Tyler, the Creator’s eighth studio album, CHROMAKOPIA, is an addition to his discography that includes raw, vulnerable insight into his personal life, as well as experimentation and ingenuity in his instrumentals and lyricism like never seen before.
We were first introduced to the album with a trailer released on Oct. 16. In this clip, we saw Tyler, in black and white, lead a group of masked people into a shipping container in a soldier formation, which is then blown up by a second Tyler, the Creator. Colored footage floods the screen and we are introduced to the first beat drop of the album in the opening song, “St. Chroma.” This song is extremely relevant to the entirety of the album, as it sets the tone for the rest of the songs, introducing us to the album’s made-up character, Saint Chroma.
Saint Chroma is just one of many characters Tyler creates for each of his albums. When Tyler, the Creator released Call Me If You Get Lost, he performed under the alias Baudelaire, and when Wolf was released, Tyler would only perform as his persona Wolf Haley. For the new album, it is crucial to look into the traits of his character, Saint Chroma, as they reveal many thematic elements and context for the tone and purpose behind CHROMAKOPIA.
“I love the idea that a guy like Tyler is making a mature record, and I agree with that take that it is mature and thoughtful,” IB literature teacher Shem Malone said. “He’s trying to explore himself in some ways.”
CHROMAKOPIA begins with a flawless transition between the songs St. Chroma,” “Rah Tah Tah” and “NOID.” This momentum is then interrupted by songs like “Darling, I” and “Judge Judy,” while simultaneously hinting at tones of frustration with the song, “I Killed You.” The lyrics within these songs reveal aspects of Tyler’s romantic life and his personal identity, both culturally and as a celebrity. In the last third of the album, the song “Sticky” includes verses from artists GloRilla, Sexxy Redd and Lil Wayne. This song has gained immense traction as it is the first song in the album that has featured artists singing verses alongside Tyler, rather than as backtracks. It is key to point out artists such as Childish Gambino, Teezo Touchdown and Daniel Caeser all have subtle parts throughout this album, as well.
The song “Balloon” brings an extra unique tone to the album with its bouncy samples from the songs “ヨロコビ,” which translates to “joy” in English, by Akiko Yano, and the iconic adlib “Don’t Stop,” taken from a chopped and sampled version of “I Wanna Rock” by Luke, as well as an unforgettable feature of Doechii. Tyler’s use of samples in this album is subtle, intentional and creative. Other examples of samples used in this album include the drums in “Sticky” taken from “Get Buck” by Young Buck and “Nizakupanga Ngozi” by the Ngozi Family in “NOID”, or “A Feeling Inside” by People Pleasure as the instrumental in “Take Your Mask Off.”
The longer you sit with this album, the more significant it grows. Make sure to listen to the album in its entirety because this album has gained universal praise throughout media within the first seven weeks of its release. Tyler, the Creator has come very far as an artist. From raunchy, provocative mixtapes like “THE OF Tape Vol. 2” to CHROMAKOPIA, Tyler has made the ends of his art meet one album at a time.
