A continued celebration of his growth and eclectic nature, characterized by his newest alter ego, “St. Chroma,” the first leg of Tyler, the Creator’s CHROMAKOPIA: THE WORLD TOUR concluded in Washington, D.C. earlier this month.
The tour arena was packed with a floor-length standing-room pit full of fans, along two stages on opposite sides of the floor and a hanging set-piece bridge that Tyler used to move from one set to the next. Lil Yachty and Paris Texas accompanied him on tour.
As Tyler’s fan base grows and he continues to reflect on manhood, familial and romantic relationships, and even political commentary, how is his large audience developing with him?
Tyler was notably very popular among white kids early in his career. He mentioned on multiple occasions, but specifically in a 2011 interview with SPIN, that he didn’t care for race and that he spent much of his time with “teenage[d] white kids.”
This remained a talking point for Tyler in terms of fan engagement.
So, are the same white boys who rocked with the angst of “Wolf” and “Goblin” still keen to listen to Tyler’s rap about feeling disrespected by his fans or Black manhood?
From “Goblin” to “CHROMAKOPIA,” Tyler has released narrative albums introducing versions of himself reflective of stages in his career.
This tenth album and tour, according to Genius, “battles with the shades of maturity, as the once colorful glee of ambition and youth withers away with his maturity.”
For an artist like Tyler, this album not only represents the shedding of his own adolescence but that of his fans as well as they follow him through this maturation.
The feedback and demographics from the bulk of this tour have the potential to reveal how his fans are growing with him and further understanding his evolution as an artist and an individual.
15 years and five Grammys later, Tyler has since moved past many stunts of his youth like joking about assaulting pregnant women and putting the LGBTQIA+ flag over a neo-nazi symbol.
It reflects the changes from childhood to adulthood, the perils of accountability and finding oneself. It seems that he hopes for the same personal development for his listeners.
Grant Valentine, a senior mechanical engineering major from Houston, Texas, first heard Tyler in the fifth grade and became a constant listener in 2021.
“It was awesome hearing all the songs live,” Valentine said.
He attended the show although he didn’t listen to the artist’s more controversial music at the time it was out. Nonetheless, he was excited about the environment of “CHROMAKOPIA” and what it represented.
“I will say with confidence that he has definitely matured and his recent work seems to be about that growth,” Valentine said.
Despite the tonal shift of the music and controversy of Tyler’s past, Valentine noted that he recognized the evolution in both his music and character, which garnered admiration for the artist.
“He also doesn’t try to hide his past, which could be seen as admirable,” the mechanical engineering major said.
Any artist hopes their listeners reflect and understand their body of work, and with that in mind, it’s safe to assume that the same listeners who appreciated the thoughtfulness and fun of his youth, still maintain a love and willingness to understand what he is saying through his music now.
Aside from the occasional serial concertgoers or those in attendance purely for the hype of it all, Tyler’s less-than-intimate show settings still display a sense of resonance and strong fan retention.
It is safe to assume that if Tyler, the Creator was only loved for his lack of filter or colorful dressing style, he wouldn’t still be selling out arenas around while rapping about Black hair (“I Killed You”), a pregnancy scare (“Hey Jane”) or revelations about his parental relationships (“Like Him”).
Copy edited by Anijah Franklin
