Tyler, the Creator's "CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST"

 

                Good evening ladies and gents! Hope the past week went well! I apologize for the late blog post; I was busy with family coming over and having personal things to take care of, but we are finally here with a delicious project to break down tonight. Tyler, the Creator is an artist that has shown immense diversity in not only the types of music he creates but also the themes he explores in his albums. He’s not shy of creating a weird narrative nor being a weird artist through his clever yet sometimes harsh lyrics in his music. I definitely got into him after my first trip to Camp Flog Gnaw in 2018 as I didn’t know any references to his music. My friend that I went with encouraged me to listen to his projects, and I gotta say to this day that the first impression “Goblin” had on me was intense. Direct lyrics with super aggressive beats to explore the insanity in his concept album was something I got hooked on quick. From there, I listened to the raunchy album “Wolf” and realized how different old Tyler was to the new project he released at the time “Flower Boy”. I knew this was an artist that was creative and worthy of looking at to see what would happen in the future. Then “IGOR” dropped, and we were met with a very unique project that combined hip-hop, RNB, and alternative influences all into one. It was fun to listen to, and whether you think it was a masterpiece or not, it was something different that introduced a new perspective in making modern music. Now, in 2021, we’re given the new project “CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST” and my oh my am I even more impressed with this man.

                This album starts off with the song “SIR BAUDELAIRE” that introduces another character in Tyler’s universe ‘Tyler Baudelaire’. The idea that he introduced a brand-new character into this project means that he’s taking a different direction artistically that differs from what he’s made before. The beginning created this image for me that this is Tyler at his peak and he’s a man of immense affluence. This character can literally sneeze in a tissue and make money off it, this is the energy I got from this concept. DJ Drama adds a sense of aggression and that IGAF attitude with the loud adlibs and quirky lines scattered throughout the tracks. The second and third songs “CORSO” and “LEMONHEAD” further this swagger as “CORSO” talks more about the wealthy lifestyle that was destined to be while “LEMONHEAD” shows off more of the thug behind the rich man. The addition of 42 Dugg in “LEMONHEAD” furthers that thug mentality with the usage of colloquialism to differentiate from the energy captured in certain songs such as the one in the beginning. This connection is seen again with “HOT WIND BLOWS” and “LUMBERJACK”. This lifestyle doesn’t make Mr. Baudelaire bulletproof, because if there’s one thing that still sends our protagonist on a downward spiral, its love. Songs such as “WUSYANAME”, “SWEET/I THOUGHT YOU WANTED TO DANCE”, and “WILSHIRE” tackle the complexities of love and does a good job in my opinion in communicating it. “WILSHIRE” definitely touched me as Tyler talks about a failed relationship and how the cost of messing with a taken woman cost him scars to live with.

At this point in trying to break down Tyler’s project, I initially thought it was a project that was meant to flex on his contemporaries and those who looked down on him in life. However, there were certain songs that proved otherwise as we’re given “MASSA”, “RUNITUP”, “BLESSED”, and “SAFARI” that tackle the idea of identity and raise the question of how true can people own up to be? This is where I talk about my interpretation of the album, “CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST”. Recently, I’ve been talking about the lack of creativity in the rap genre given by the industry’s ability to just create a simple poppy rap song and make money. This lack of effort is what incentivizes artists to not try as hard and make a project that simply sells rather than something different. The recent marketing tactic of releasing two projects in one through the “deluxe” method is something that proves my point on how obvious the importance of cash grabbing is right now. This album seemed to challenge this idea, having Tyler use his influence and wealth to create a project that shows that he’s not hiding nor trying to change who he is. He refers to constant memories of the past that revolve around making controversial projects and accepting his start into the rap game. Tyler Baudelaire now comes off to me as a Tyler, the Creator 2.0 or an artist who has reached a new peak and chooses to encourage those who want what he has to work hard rather than shunning those who are trying. He knows he’s the shit, but he also knows that there’s a lot of individuals like him that need that push to become who he is now. “CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST” is a call out to those who want to follow the same path he did but may need guidance. Whether it’s getting lost in success and fame, losing yourself through your ventures, or losing loved ones along the way, Tyler Baudelaire is a man who’s seen it all and knows there’s light ahead of each dark tunnel.

This project was really well done, and I’m glad I heard it. This is a great project to listen to for motivation, and it certainly shed more light on what I want to do after listening to it. The production on this project is amazing, the features help further whatever message Tyler is trying to push at that moment, and overall, I can say that Tyler still got it. I'd give this album a 9/10 only because I think I need more time to digest it before I can safely say it's a 10. Thank you so much for reading my review and I hope you guys have a great rest of your week. Take care!                

                                                                                                                                                           Favorite Songs: SIR BAUDELAIRE, CORSO, LEMONHEAD, LUMBERJACK, HOT WIND BLOWS, MASSA, RUNITUP, MANIFESTO, RISE!, JUGGERNAUT