Number one, body movement; no sitting still. Number two, only speak in glory; leave your baggage at home. Number three, don’t tap the glass. These are the three tenets of Tyler, The Creator’s DON’T TAP THE GLASS, his latest installment to his now nine-album length discography that I deem as his most experimental album to date. This album is unlike any of his music we’ve experienced in the last decade. While Cherry Bomb, his fourth album, is deemed an experimental album due to his coming out of his shell from his previous album, Wolf, exploring a darker theme of twisted love, this recent album throws the listener off completely and gives us something that he’s never done before.
Tyler, the Creator is known for having stories overarching in the albums he releases. In his most popular album to date, IGOR, Tyler popularizes the idea of a concept album, following the persona of a character named Igor, who experiences a messy love triangle and goes through an emotional journey from falling in love to heartbreak and eventual regret. This album is one that is nothing compared to the album he released this year. DTTG has no concept, no overarching plot and no story. This is just an album to enjoy. Tyler, the Creator’s fanbase has always tried to look deep into whatever he does, like Taylor Swift’s fanbase. Tyler, the Creator decided to create this album so his fanbase would appreciate just appreciate his music, rather than look into every lyric possible. He created this album for people to have fun.
Tyler, the Creator has always tended to be the odd one out in the music industry, whether that be through his music and word choices, or what he says outside of his songs in the real world. While fitting in with the rest of pop/hip-hop artists would’ve been a safer, more guaranteed option, he decided to take a shot in the dark and create a section of music for those who didn’t want the traditional artists that follow each other and follow each other’s lyrical tendencies.
DON’T TAP THE GLASS is an album he didn’t advertise; he only put out a release date only days before its release, during his tour for his second-to-most recent album, Chromakopia. He knew that his fans would popularize it themselves because he knows that the people don’t want the usual music; Tyler stands out because he’s not traditional, he’s what people only strive to be; different from the rest.
