tyler, The Creator- an artist and a talented provocateur, who is better to see once than to talk about him a hundred times. It cannot be described in one word and it is difficult to decompose into separate meanings. Unlike anyone, almost a cartoon character, and not a living person, Tyler is one of clear examples an artist who fits perfectly into the modern entertainment industry. Taking music as a foundation, he built a cult around the OFWGKTA (Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All) brand, becoming something of a multimedia artist/entrepreneur. A phenomenon for which pop culture has not yet accumulated enough prototypes to describe. Tyler is one of those people who was able to build a business by breaking the rules. He is in some ways a genius, ideally fitting into the context of the existence of new media, where provocation and humor are valued above all else.
From the outside it seems that Tyler makes money by entertaining inventively in public, but what remains behind the scenes? How did Tyler achieve everything? Where does ideas come from and how do they become reality? How does he motivate himself to work simultaneously in several directions? How are music albums, a clothing release, and a comedy show related? Who is on his team?
HYPEBEAST answered these questions and more by interviewing Tyler Gregory Okonma. We have a translation.
Is it possible to say that everything you do is rooted in music, and activity in other areas: in the fashion industry, on television, in the record business - are the concomitant elements of success in music? Or did you initially have some more complex understanding of what you want to do?
Yes, I think I have a broader perception. Since childhood, for as long as I can remember, my brain has worked in such a way that one idea always becomes part of something else. My shirt reflects the message of the song, and the lyrics can come from a joke - everything is interconnected. But the music is the most important thing.
Can you name a person who helped you all this time to move forward and develop in different directions?
I myself. I remember myself at 14 drawing on printer paper and then scanning and thermally printing onto basic Pro Club t-shirts. Just to see what happens. It seemed to me that it made sense, I was busy and kept out of trouble. I was always a curious child, I asked a lot of questions and wanted to try everything for myself. It helped me to understand everything little by little and to improve my skills in what I was seriously fond of. I grew up on Adult Swim and Comedy Central, so naturally I dreamed of having my own show on my favorite channels. All I idolized are people from different worlds. From early childhood I was inspired by completely different things. In the eighth grade, I wrote beats, rapped, played in a drama club, invented T-shirts, learned to play drums, and at the same time remained the main clown in the class. With age, I learned to prioritize correctly and concentrate on one thing until something sensible came out.
Can you highlight the people who played a key role in your business? Tell me about them. What are they doing?
My whole team, I can’t single out anyone. Most importantly, they believe in the idea, quickly get into everything and do it. From the very beginning, friends helped turn my ideas into reality. They have always supported me. My friend Arcee knows how terrible the first experiences with fashion design were at the age of 15-16...but at that time we loved it! And it's cool that I can trace the influence of the first ideas on what ended up with the Golf. Sid, Hodge, the whole gang believed in me from the start, man. When I said to Earl something like: “Yo, let's make a stupid video about the beat, assembled from synchronous sounds,” he supported me. These dudes were the only people who didn't judge me and just let me be who I am.
What are the most difficult and interesting challenges you have faced while developing your business?
I think the most difficult thing was the fight against other people's indifference. Sometimes it feels like I'm doing so much that it just gets lost or goes under the radar. But, apparently, people's interest in my work does not weaken, which I am very grateful to.
What is the similarity between being creative with the Golf clothing line and working on music releases?
And there, and there I do what I like! Right now I'm working on a combination of magenta and light blue. I'll work on this more in the coming months, but right now I like how it looks, so there will be a lot of this in the new season. For me it's like a "time capsule" - and the same story with the album. My early albums were "time capsules" of the state I was in at that moment, and made in the style that I liked at the time. And this is the answer to the question why each album is so different. I can say the same about the Golf. I know people who won't like it new collection and vice versa. You just do things that you truly love now, and in the future it’s cool to look back and say “wow wow, why did we do this?” or “why don’t we do something like this again?” I'm just happy to be in the shoes of a dude who can make cool things that he likes to wear and be surrounded by people who share his tastes. It's unfashionable to walk around in brightly colored striped T-shirts these days, no one thinks it's cool, but I don't give a shit. But if you like it, I'm glad. And this is my approach to everything. Everything I do, I do for my own pleasure and in accordance with my personal taste.
What do your friends say about your endeavors? Do they say anything other than words of encouragement?
I don't know. I don't stand by when they slander me behind my back.
Do you want to inspire your friends with your example? Why?
I'm counting on it! The whole last album is about this. Be the best, follow your dreams and send everyone who doesn't believe in you. It sounds trite, but until you start living like this, I think it will be difficult for you to understand why I say “find your wings” (“find what inspires you” - a rough translation). I surround myself with people who dream and strive for something bigger. They inspire me to pull myself together and work harder. For example, Clancy (the manager of Odd Future) is not a twenty-year-old dude, but a forty-year-old father. He is unlikely to walk around in clothes with a repetitive print and stripes. For people like him, I made a simple basic outfit with a small logo on the left chest. Even if someone is not so deep in the Golf Wang topic, they can still find something to their liking, simple clothes. People who care about what I do inspire me to move on. I love when older women wear scarves, so this season I decided to release a scarf just to see how it would look on a mature black lady. Ideas suddenly come to mind, next time I can create, for example, a women's clothing line with goyard glasses, handbags and suitcases with our cat logo. But everything has its time.
Speaking of Golf, how can you describe your feelings when the first collection hit the stores?
The first T-shirts I sold on the site, there were very few of them. Then I started making sweatshirts and button-down shirts, just wanted to see what would come of it. Now things from that collection are very rare, very much in demand. Most searched for a shirt with clouds and a hoodie with a face
- Hi excellent! Let's first talk about your latest album Cherry Bomb. The sound here is calmer and more relaxed when compared with previous works. Is there a reason for this?
- Do you think it's relaxed? Cool. But I don’t think so at all, so I don’t even know how to answer.
- Okay, but Cherry Bomb is different from Wolf and Goblin. How would you describe this evolution?
- Uh-uh… Like the last record is more tense and louder.
- In the track "Deathcamp" you read that "In Search of" (an album by Pharrell Williams' band N.E.R.D. - Ed.) did more for you than "Illmatic" (an album by rapper Nas, one of the key rap albums of the nineties. - Note ed.). Why Farrell?
- It's just normal to hold up an Illmatic vinyl and yell, "My favorite album!" And right away you're cool and everything about you is clear - in hip-hop you cut it, that means. I want to let everyone know that I have different guidelines and therefore the whole system of musical values is somewhat different from the one that most modern hip-hopers have. Well, I'm a really big fan of The Neptunes, N.E.R.D. and Farrell's approach to making music.
- So you don't like where rap music is going right now?
- I don't know man, I don't listen exclusively to rap. If you ask me what my favorite rap album of this year is, I'll tell you - mine, of course. Wait a minute though, Action Bronson has another great release - Mr. Wonderful, the only rap release I actually listened to in 2015.
Photograph: Julian Berman
- So you probably already listened to Earl's albums and the Internet. Do you like it?
- Yes, the Internet has an awesome album. This is soul music, which has been close to me since childhood.
- What's going on with Frank Ocean's album? Is there some kind of sophisticated campaign, if I'm not mistaken, preparing for the release of a new release?
- I haven't heard anything, I won't say anything.
- In general, it is clear that you are now all unique creative units, nothing is holding you back. I remember in the past you were often accused of using the word fagot (an insulting way to call a homosexual. - Approx. ed.) in songs, and you justified that it was only swearing. And now you have the most statement - the recent rainbow collection and the slogan "Golf Pride World Wide".
- Any hatred towards someone who doesn't look like you in some way sucks. But people are so arranged, they love to hate. I hope they change, but I'm not going to decide for others. We at OFWGKTA have always loved gays or others social groups. Fortunately, somehow it turned out that my music brings together a wide variety of listeners.
- You recently tweeted that you are going to fund the teaching of music and contemporary art in schools. Why do you think this is so important?
- These are the only subjects that teach you to think freely. But it seems to me that few people want to teach children to think outside the box. It is easier to plant a traditional system, proven ideas and knowledge. Take these idiotic history lessons. There, teachers do not give any opportunity to figure it out on your own, they do not offer an array that would create an overall picture. They give individual historical events torn out of time and context! Madness.
- It is arranged in such a way that if you really want to know history, go to the university to study the history department, they will tell you everything there. Or do you think that you can add art to schools and universities will not be needed?
- Well, I didn’t need this garbage, because I immediately knew what I wanted to do. Four more years of hermetically sealed training outside of reality would be a waste of time. If a person knows what he wants, he should immediately strive for it. I think sometimes higher education- it's just an excuse: "Well, then I'll deal with everything." Do you know what you want? Follow your purpose.
- It seems to everyone that musicians owe us something simply because their life is public. What do we need to know about them in general is all that matters. This is so strange. … [to hell] social media. I curse the day I registered there. (Laughs.)
- Two years ago we had Frank Ocean. Did he tell you anything about Russia?
- No, I didn't, but great idea I'll call him and ask what to expect. I am incredibly attracted to your country, and Russian fans have been asking for a concert for the past four years. You're crazy, so it will be cool.
- Recently at your concert, you paid a fan 30 bucks to eat someone else's vomit. Should Russian fans expect something similar?
- Yes, you already have everything ... [crazy]. So I'm afraid to guess anything.
- Have you heard anything crazy about Russia?
- Well, like you have schoolchildren running across busy highways, having played enough in GTA. I'm not mistaken, is this yours?
- Yeah.
Russian concerts of Tyler, The Creator will be held on August 18 in Moscow at Yotaspace and on August 19 in St. Petersburg at the Glavclub.
Tyler Gregory Okonma is a rather controversial figure in the rap movement. Already one of his pseudonyms Tyler, The Creator (Tyler, the Creator) already speaks of a certain pride, a look down on everyone else. As a child, Tyler was not a quiet child. He was born in California, in Los Angeles, in 12 years he changed 12 schools. Already in childhood, he came up with a cover for his future albums, created track lists for songs that did not yet exist. When Tyler turned 14, he taught himself the art of playing the piano.
He is only 22 years old, but he already has three albums to his credit: Bastard, Goblin, Wolf. Now he works with a British independent label, constantly repeating that for him creativity will always be the main thing. However, Tyler is constantly criticized by the public. Somehow he was accused of homophobia, allegedly he often uses words offensive to gays in an offensive manner. Tyler easily retorted, stating that these words just have the emotional connotation he needs, and personally he has no problem with gays. At the same time, he added that if someone suddenly wants to call him a “niger”, then it would not hurt him.
In addition to this scandal, Tyler is often accused of misogyny due to the harsh lyrics of his songs. But, guess for yourself how Tyler feels about this. In addition, the rapper is not afraid to enter into conflicts with representatives music industry. The most notorious targets of his malevolence are Bruno Mars, Hayley Williams (of Paramore) and rapper B.o.B.
Prompted them about this line in one of the songs
What nonsense, you ask? Listeners consider the lines from the song “I Ain’t Got Time!” to be the main argument in favor of this theory, where he reads: “ Next line will have 'em like 'Whoa'/ I've been kissing white boys since 2004". And in the song "Garden Shed" with Estelle, Tyler talks about forbidden love and how hard it is to keep it a secret.
In 2017, this turned out to be enough, and especially zealous individuals began to call everyone who refused to take these lines seriously as homophobes. Indeed, Tyler has always been famous for his eccentric antics and provocative lines that had nothing to do with reality. So, it may well be either another joke, or the words of a lyrical hero.
However, it is impossible to exclude the possibility that all this is really true.
What do you think?
Flower Boy will be out next Friday and features guest appearances from A$AP Rocky, Frank Ocean, Lil Wayne, Estelle, Jaden Smith and more.
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