Tyler, the Creator, has released a new album known as “Chromakopia” that ranges from a complex and astonishing rap-band performance to an emotional pop lament that expresses internal conflicts about an absent father. This album takes you on a rollercoaster of multiple types of African-American genres to create so much depth. And all songs are listenable, and I will have it on repeat until I grow physically sick of it. If I do, anyway.
Tyler, the Creator, had previously earned Grammy Awards for his “Igor” and “CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST” albums due to his diversity between each song, whether that be rap or pop music. Similarly to Tyler, the Creator’s “Igor” album, Tyler portrays a character and a unique story that evolves from the beginning of the album to the secret track on the vinyl (Which is “MOTHER” in Chromakopia). This astonishing diversity and story are no different for Chromakopia, if not better, due to his growing career as a musician.
Chromakopia begins with the song “St. Chroma.” This particular song uses uplifting and confident lyrics and a strong beat of stomping boots that personally connect to me as a person. This song is incredibly inspiring as it talks about artistic evolution and personal growth. I have no complaints.
Not only does Chromakopia have so much diversity in terms of African-American genres of music, but all songs are layered with so much precision that it comes together as this beautiful piece of intense art. The more I listen to these songs, the more I hear. Such as “Sticky,” which is anything but your typical rap song. Instead of the typical electronic beats, “Sticky” solely uses brass and woodwind instruments, most prominently the tuba and the trumpet. It creates a dramatic and loud feeling as if you were listening to a marching band. “Thought I Was Dead” uses this same rap-band format but in a different tone, which gives Tyler, The Creator’s “mental manifesto” of a song much more independence as a song, and an amazing sense of tension and suspense. I have chills.
“Judge Judy” and “I Killed You” both have the subtle background vocals of Childish Gambino, which is a pleasant surprise on the album. His background vocals harmonize with the melodies and beats of these songs to create a more euphoric feeling in these two songs. And it perfectly encapsulates the tone and feeling between both of them.
Finally, “Like Him” was the absolute climax of this entire album. This incredible and dramatic song talks about Tyler’s internal conflict of not knowing his father, thinking he abandoned him. The song starts with a simple piano melody that emotionally draws you in. It then takes on a more electronic, neo-soul melody that generates genuine and raw emotion. The subtle yet angelic background vocals, some being his mom and some being his younger himself as Lola Young, put such a setting to the song that it’s incredible. The song concludes with a sample from his mother, claiming that his father did, in fact, want to be a father to him and that it was her fault for everything that happened. This particular song not only has intense meaning, but it also has intense meaning for Tyler’s career. Throughout his career, Tyler has sung about his father leaving him and his mother, and his hatred for his father for that. Only for it all to conclude in “Like Him.” And this song was an incredible conclusion to this father-conflict trilogy.
The song “Hey Jane” is the only disappointment on this album. The same bland beat is repeated throughout the song, with little to no climax. Although the song is about a serious topic that shifts between two perspectives, the song itself has no real qualities to stand out like the rest of these songs in this album. But I do enjoy the subtle differences between both perspectives.. It makes a really good argument, especially from a man’s and a woman’s perspective of the topic in “Hey Jane.”
Chromakopia is a 5-star rating from me. This emotional-musical rollercoaster of an album is a must-have for anyone who enjoys the genres of African-American music.
