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Tyler, The Creator

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Key Takeaways:

• Tyler, The Creator’s newest challenge, ‘DON’T TAP THE GLASS,’ blends dance-forward beats with satirical lyrics and daring manufacturing decisions.
• The album contains options from Pharrell Williams, DAISY WORLD and extra, with highlights like “Sucka Free” and “Stop Playing With Me.”
• Themes of meme tradition, self-expression and artistic autonomy run all through the providing, reflecting Tyler’s evolution as an artist.

Continuing his comparatively new custom of dropping music in the beginning of the week, Tyler, The Creator is again along with his ninth studio album, DON’T TAP THE GLASS. The LP arrived on Monday (July 21) at 6 a.m. ET with contributions from Pharrell Williams, DAISY WORLD and extra.

Ahead of the challenge’s shock rollout, which he first teased final week, Tyler defined the inspiration behind the music — particularly its dance-heavy path. “I asked some friends why they don’t dance in public, and some said [it was] because of the fear of being filmed,” he shared through Instagram. “I thought, ‘Damn, a natural form of expression and a certain connection they have with music is now a ghost.’ It made me wonder how much of our human spirit got killed because of the fear of being a meme, all for having a good time.”

The 10-song providing opens with Tyler laying down a number of floor guidelines: “no sitting still,” “leave your baggage at home,” and naturally, “don’t tap the glass.” On “Big Poe,” he steps into the position of his latest persona to dish out strains about Mario and never trusting white individuals with dreadlocks. Amid all that occurring, Pharrell lays down two verses of his personal, and there’s additionally a pattern of Busta Rhymes’ “Pass The Courvoisier Part II” on the bridge.

Meanwhile, “Sugar On My Tongue” is a sexed-up minimize with dance-floor power effervescent below its floor. The album’s strongest moments come early, notably with “Sucka Free” and “Stop Playing With Me,” the latter accompanied by a star-studded video that includes LeBron James, Clipse and Maverick Carter. Elsewhere, “Don’t Tap That Glass / Tweakin’” affords a two-part hear that references his six-night run at Los Angeles’ Crypto.com Arena again in February.

There’s quite a bit to like about DON’T TAP THE GLASS, from its instrumentals — lots of which Tyler produced himself — to his general return to the type of provocative, controversial lyrics that first put him on the map. Take a hear beneath.

Tyler is at present on the highway selling final 12 months’s CHROMAKOPIA, which additionally dropped on a Monday again in October. It got here with tracks “St. Chroma,” “Like Him” and what is likely to be its most star-studded document, “Sticky,” that includes GloRilla, Sexyy Red and Lil Wayne. Compared to a number of the Odd Future frontman’s earlier releases, the album supplied a extra mature, introspective take a look at an artist that followers have grown with for years.