By Andre Paras
Staff Writer
In just 13 days, Tyler, The Creator has gone through the entire rollout process for his new 14 track, seventh studio LP “CHROMAKOPIA.” The album’s promotion online boasts “All songs [are] written, produced, and arranged by Tyler Okonma,” something his entire solo discography has in common.
To help make this album experience a mystery, “CHROMAKOPIA” had a list of “hidden features” on its release day of old and new collaborators not listed on the streaming album, including Daniel Caesar, Teezo Touchdown, Childish Gambino, GloRilla, Sexyy Red, Lil Wayne, ScHoolboy Q and Doechii.
He began the rollout on Oct. 16 with his first of many song snippet teasers, beginning with “St. Chroma,” the album’s opening track, and then announcing the album just a day later.
On Oct. 21, he released the lead single “NOID” alongside a music video of the first half of the song with both lyrical and visual themes of weapons, invasion of privacy and Tyler’s anxieties as a celebrity in the modern age.
The video featured actress Ayo Edibiri running up to the camera like a screaming fan with bulging eyes, and in her hand, her phone was changing back and forth to a gun. It critiques a new issue of parasocial relationships devoted fan bases have.
After a vinyl announcement, release of tour dates and more snippet teasers, “CHROMAKOPIA” was released on Oct. 28, a Monday, at 6 a.m. which seems to be an intentional, artistic choice from Tyler. Most albums from major artists are released at 12 a.m. EST on Fridays.
“If you put [an album] out during the week, man that commute to work, or that commute to school… you really have that hour to dive in and really listen,” Tyler said in an interview back in 2023.
With all of this in mind, it’s no secret that a lot goes into Tyler’s creative process. He makes this apparent, with the album’s opening featuring the voice of his mother, and creative inspiration, Bonita Smith. Smith’s spoken word plays with this metaphor of “the light” as this need for Tyler to create.
Up next is “Rah Tah Tah,” featuring some of Tyler’s most aggressive lyrics and instrumentation on this record, reminiscent of his second album “Wolf” from 2013.
This song serves as a quick flex and celebration of his riches quickly devolves into something more vulnerable in its outro, playing with Tyler’s paranoia to provide a seamless transition into the lead single, “NOID.”
Instrumentally, “NOID’s” stinging Black Sabbath-esque guitar riff reminds me a lot of Tyler’s 2015 album “Cherry Bomb.”
“Hey Jane” was a real surprise, featuring two extended verses of Tyler opening up on an accidental pregnancy with Jane, a character Tyler creates for the song. The title of the song was inspired by the New York City abortion service of the same name. Tyler emphasizes the importance of Jane’s choice and the support he has for her during this time.
In the second verse, Tyler writes from the perspective of Jane deciding how to face this situation alone while navigating through her relationship with Tyler given these new circumstances.
“Take Your Mask Off” strikes this same chord lyrically, as Tyler opens up about the clash of religion and LGBTQ+ relationships, a hypothetical situation of a woman seeking independence, all while finding himself in the process. He opens up and embraces his own values and insecurities while encouraging those listening to do the same.
“Tomorrow” fittingly adds a new sound to Tyler’s catalog, as he sings in a falsetto range over a clean guitar sound. He expresses vulnerability about his future ahead of him as he acknowledges himself and his mother growing older, along with his fear of settling down.
“Thought I Was Dead” was the final teaser of the album, serving as a venture back to a more chaotic sound amidst many downbeat tracks. Lyrically, it addresses Tyler missing his streak of putting out an album once every two years, which he broke for this release. It’s also a statement on Tyler’s problematic past.
“Pull up old tweets, pull up old t-shirts, all that, I moonwalk over that,” Tyler raps.
All of this goes to show the purpose of releasing this album. As an artist and performer, Tyler constantly navigates his Tyler, the Creator persona and how much that breaches into his own self as Okonma, using the mask as symbolism. However, through all the chaos musically, he’s able to be the most transparent than ever in his lyrics whilst tapping into many new sounds his discography has yet to see.
