The 28 Best Tyler, The Creator Songs

We count down the Odd Future general's best tracks in the wake of his latest full-length, 'Flower Boy.'

Tyler, The Creator
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Image via Scott Dudelson/Getty

Tyler, The Creator

Tyler, the Creator is an anomaly. For nearly a decade he has been everything and nothing to a culture that wasn’t fully prepared for the change him and his childhood friends foreshadowed. Armed with the internet, endless Neptunes-inspired chords, music software, and a dream, came Odd Future and its leader Tyler, the Creator.

At times Tyler, seemed like he was following in the footsteps of Marshall Mathers, hellbent on shocking the world into submission, while simultaneously becoming the biggest rapper alive in the process. At other times Tyler has sought to break free of the shackles of his own making and pursue the pastures of pop production like his mentor Pharrell before him.

There have been four solo studio album, one scene-stealing debut tape, countless releases with Odd Future and all along the way Tyler has manifested his perverse fun world reality on to the public like a Supreme-obsessed Willy Wonka. However, with the release of Scum Fuck Flower Boy, Tyler is charting a new course. Gone are the shackles of a father that abandoned him. The horrorcore influence has been erased, and in its wake symbolism of flowers and the beauty of nature abound. The kid that made the world quake in fear is coming into his own.

Flower Boy is an awakening. Sexuality, creative freedom, and economic empowerment overflow on Tyler’s fourth studio album, but it wouldn’t be possible without the awkward phases that got him here. The years of problematic lyrics aren’t erased. For every exceptional Tyler beat, there is often one that circles into experimental oblivion. Early 2009-2010 punchlines have aged like an avocado in an abandoned Chipotle.

Regardless, we’ve tracked Tyler’s growth in front of our eyes. He’s consistently leveled-up against peers like A$AP Rocky and Earl Sweatshirt, while running laps around veterans like The Game and Pusha T. Below are the songs that got Tyler here and proved that no matter what anyone said, he was always going to stick around.

29. "Okaga, CA" f/ Leon Ware, Clementine Creevy, & Alice Smith

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Album: Cherry Bomb (2015)

There was a time when it felt like nothing could soothe the rage bubbling up from the depths of Tyler, the Creator’s soul. To think the bastard who made Bastard had a song like “Okaga, CA” in him. Calming, loving, and lowkey, Cherry Bomb’s outro finds Tyler singing to a love about flying away to California. Tyler sounds like an angelic alien eating strawberry frozen yogurt as he sings, “Girl you’re special to me, to me.” Add in Alice Smith’s light and sultry voice and the reverb soaked backing vocals of Leon Ware and “Okaga, CA” has musical layers for days.

28. "Awkward"

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Album: Wolf (2013)

Tyler, the Creator loves distorted and pitched down vocal effects. He’s used the effect to differentiate between characters, most frequently his fictional therapist Dr. TC. “Awkward” finds the goblin like vocal effect used through the duration of the song. “Awkward” is an endearing tale about the character Sam’s first date and maybe Tyler’s depending on how much you think the two are interchangeable in the larger narrative of Wolf. The song’s best moment arrives when Tyler pitches up the effect and starts crooning “Your my girlfriend.” It sounds like he took lessons from Frank Ocean and halfway through realized he was late for a Loiter Squad taping.

27. "Analog 2" f/ Tyler the Creator, Syd & Frank Ocean

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Album: The OF Tape Vol. 2 (2012)

If there’s anything that stretches across the expanse of Tyler’s music it’s his knack for idyllic imagery. “Can you meet me by the lake, by the car, by your room,” is the type of phrasing that could seem overly simplistic or trite in clumsier hands, but Tyler and Frank Ocean turn the phrase into a romantic, hypnotic, and irresistible chant.

In retrospect, Tyler, Syd, and Frank all being on a song like “Analog 2” makes so much sense. Each of them has had their own specific journey with coming to terms with their sexuality in the public eye. The utopian lake, car, or room varies as a metaphor to not only cover burgeoning sexuality in all its forms, but also represents safe spaces where we’re allowed to explore our urges without the perverse creeping of those that want a well-manufactured story for the masses.

26. "Rusty" f/ Domo Genesis & Earl Sweatshirt

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Album: Goblin (2013)

The intro of “Rusty” starts with a message from pro skateboarder Jason Dill. As he gives Tyler an uplifting speech he states, “You go from being a kid, just doing your thing, hanging out with your friends. Months later you're world famous. You're a gay rights activist, and you don't even know it.” With the release of Scum Fuck Flower Boy, Dill might have been onto something four years ago, even if Tyler or the music fans didn’t know it. Over the boom bap beat Tyler sounds like a grandpa admonishing kids for popping mollies and sitting on Tumblr. But the heart of “Rusty” is Tyler defending himself against attacks that he’s homophobic, condones violence against women, and is some type of devil worshipper.

25. “I Ain’t Got Time”

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Album: Flower Boy (2017)

A grubby synthline, energetic handclaps, and a memorable, bouncing bassline make “I Ain’t Got Time” the most dancefloor ready song on Flower Boy. The rapping is some of the most vivid and intense on the album, including the oft-quoted lines about River Phoenix and other kissable white boys. “Everything I say is hot, bitch I speak toaster.” Hard to argue with that. —Ross Scarano

24. "Answer" f/ Syd

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Album: Goblin (2013)

“Answer” is beautiful, because of how distinct it is. Tyler’s music has never lacked emotion, but if feelings were crayons and anger was red, it wouldn’t be hard to see what that coloring book would look like. The metaphor of a phone and the reconciliation that someone picking up on the other side teases is emotional beating heart of “Answer.” However, instead of showing sheer anger at his father, Tyler allows his worldview to be expanded. He raps about his manager Christian Clancy giving him the opportunity to see a world that could’ve been denied him. He shows concern for Frank, Hodgy, and Syd in Tyler’s own special way. “Answer” is a human song by a rapper that has been everything from a goblin to a wolf, but rarely something as vulnerable as a boy.

23. "Couch" f/ Tyler the Creator

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Album: Earl (2010)

Earl’s lackadaisical flow spreads across any song he’s on like dark molasses creeping along a smooth surface. Sweatshirt’s way of using double entendres, internal and forced rhymes completely smothers beats with his scathing poetic skills. A byproduct of Earl’s rap mastery is that it forces Tyler to slow down his own delivery and lean into his considerable talent for stacking verses with blink and you miss them punchlines and intricate rhyme patterns. Take his verse on “Couch,”


I got you niggas nervous like virgins flirtin' with Uncle Mervin

Fuckin' y'all with no lubricant, go grab the detergent

I preach to demons at your church, now I'm the newest sermon

Wearin' nothin' but they fuckin' blast with the matchin' turban

I drive through white suburbans in the black Suburban swervin'

Hittin' curbs and blastin' Erick Sermon drunk off English Bourbon

I'm stealin' purses rapin' nurses I'm a crooked surgeon

And treat the beat like sanitized nazi pussies, I'm a German

I'm squirtin' while I'm masturbatin' and regurgitatin'

From eatin' Miley Cyrus salad pussy platter they were servin'

My only purpose is to jerk it cause it has a curve

So bitches hate to do me like it's convict community service

In the span of one verse, Tyler manages to rhyme Mervin, with sermon, turban, suburban, swervin, bourbon, surgeon, German, squirtin’, and servin’. He uses repetition of words like sermon and suburban to extend the rhyme pattern, while complicating his delivery with the alliteration of phrases like “Suburban swervin’” and “Pussy platter.” Tyler ends his second verse, with the line “Killed him on his own track,” and for as many times as Earl has run circles around Tyler it’s nice to see the OF leader flexing on arguably the best lyricist in the crew.

22. "Orange Juice" f/ Earl Sweatshirt

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Album: Radical (2010)

Rap as a genre is basically high school purgatory and picking beats are akin to fishing for a suitable date to an endless prom. In 2010 the girl rappers were awkwardly trying to grind on was the Bangladesh produced “Lemonade.” Everyone from Big Sean to Fabolous to the oft-forgotten Donnis put their spin on the Gucci Mane song. Beat snatching mixtape culture was at its apex and Odd Future’s specific brand of sugar anarchy coincided with the time perfectly. On 2010’s Odd Future mixtape, Radical, EarlWolf joined like the Wonder Twins to flex on the bubblegum beat. Earl undoubtedly has the best verse on the song, but Tyler still finds time to drop gems like:


Dirty rotten nigga picked it from a cotton gin

Do not give a fuck I've got the swagger of a virgin's dick

But if I did it would be bigger than Earl's upper lip

21. "Martians vs. Goblins" f/ Lil Wayne & Tyler the Creator

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Album: The R.E.D. Album (2011)

“Martians vs. Goblins” is a peculiar song for a couple reasons. The Game spends his first verse doing his best Tyler impression, which ends up sounding like The Game’s best Tech Nine impression of Tyler. “Have a bonfire with old Harry Potter books,” is a real rap line that comes out of his mouth. Game is also mad that DC comics overlooked him and immediately calls Captain America a pussy. First of all, wrong publisher Game. Second, the Russo brothers didn’t slave over Winter Soldier for this nonsense. Luckily, Tyler saves “Martians vs. Goblins” from its geriatric tendencies. The fact that Tyler not only uses Game’s government name, but includes a punchline about Jayceon’s tendency to name drop singlehandedly moves the song into not-as-bad-as-it-could-have-been territory.

20. "Radicals"

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Album: Goblin (2011)

“Kill people. Burn shit. Fuck school.”

It was the phrase that launched a thousand horrible thinkpieces and adorned the pen carved surfaces of countless desks owned by white school districts. Everything about the absurdity of “Radicals” and its impact can best be summed up by comedian Hannibal Burress.

"The hook to their closing song was “Kill people. Burn shit. Fuck school.”...But doesn’t it seem like they’re getting more reasonable as they go along? I kill people, that’s murder. That’s awful. Burn shit? It depends on what you’re burning right? If it’s a controlled fire go ahead do your thing. Fuck school. That’s just truancy. What’re you standing on man? That’s weak. Who hasn’t missed class before?"

“Radicals” didn’t age particularly well. Despite this, the song accomplished what it needed to at the time. It kept music writers up at night obsessing over its larger meaning, when truthfully it didn’t have any. The mission statement of "Radicals" was always in that simple six-word phrase. Most just weren’t paying attention.

19. "AssMilk" f/ Earl Sweatshirt

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Album: Bastard (2009)

Before there was the dissolution of The Throne, there was the travesty that was the end of EarlWolf. “Otis” might be a classic, but Jay and Kanye never had the type of back and forth synergy Tyler and Earl have on “AssMilk.” The highlight of the song is when it gets interrupted by Tyler bullying Earl into saying “sorry” as Sweatshirt pleads for him to stop. It is a rare peek into the type of friendship and unity rap can inspire. Also, who doesn’t want to hear Earl spit a line like, “In this cracked crack fag back slab in disguise?”

18. "Jamba" f/ Hodgy Beats

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Album: Wolf (2013)

As Odd Future’s nucleus, Tyler has a distinct chemistry with each member of the group. Tyler and Hodgy bring out the dustiest demons in each other. What separates “Jamba” from previous Tyler and Hodgy collaborations—“Sandwitches,” “French”—is the absence of some of the more schlocky and shock for shock’s sake bars. Instead we’re gifted to immature punchlines, Tyler talking about drugs he never does, and Hodgy somehow making “tumble-crush on huzzy sluts” and “Professor Nutty Buddy Klump” seem like the most swagged out opening bar on Wolf.

17. "Garden Shed"

Tyler, the Creator "Flower Boy"

Album: Flower Boy (2017)

The fulcrum of Flower Boy, "Garden Shed" unfolds loosely, a confident slow build of hazy guitars and atmospheric voices setting the stage for Tyler's rapid-fire unloading of seemingly everything on his chest. He doesn't begin rapping until the last minute of the song, but the tightly wound, rapid-fire flow ensures he packs a series of punches. It's done so self-assuredly, and reveals so much, it feels like a statement of purpose and one of Tyler's most coherent and affecting pieces of work. —Brendan Klinkenberg

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15. "Sandwitches" f/ Hodgy Beats

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Album: Goblin (2010)

A singular ability few emcees possess and even fewer master is the art of being in on the joke. Early Eminem had it. Lil B never lost it. Vince Staples is perfecting it. This isn’t to say these artists aren’t meant to be taken seriously, in fact quite the opposite. Life is inherently absurd and nonsensical. There is beauty in embracing the chaos and hearing the laughter before everyone else. Tyler, the Creator’s opening on “Sandwitches speaks to this phenomenon in all its glory.


Who the fuck invited Mr. I Don’t Give a Fuck

Who cries about his daddy in a blog

Because his music sucks? (I did)

The lyric is hilariously true, because it demonstrates how much Tyler was aware of the storm that encircled his collective.

14. "French" f/ Hodgy Beats

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Album: Bastard (2009)

Wolverine has a long and convoluted comic book history. He was first introduced in the pages of The Incredible Hulk #180 and #181. Over the course of the years, he’s been an X-Men and Avenger. He was cloned and said clone subsequently became his daughter. In the comics he’s currently dead and replaced with an old man alternate timeline version of himself. He even had a psychopathic son with a mohawk and questionable tribal tattoos who debuted in 2007.

That was a very long-winded way of saying Tyler, the Creator is a nerd. I can imagine a teenage Tyler, the Creator reading Wolverine Origins and immediately coming up with the accompanying line, “Rectum, I'm like a chromosome I always X them, Like Wolverine stepson attacking a deadly weapon.” “French” featuring Hodgy Beats is quintessential Odd Future” and has Tyler at his horrorcore finest.

13. "Smuckers" f/ Kanye West & Lil Wayne

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Album: Cherry Bomb (2015)

Tyler, the Creator above all else is a producer. This isn’t reserved purely for music. Whether it’s designing shirts with demonic kittens or coaxing Kanye and Lil Wayne to deliver superb performances, Tyler is acutely aware of not only his visions, but how it will proliferate and be accepted by the masses. The jazzy plink of Tyler’s keys mixed with cinematic horns and boom bap drums are hallmarks of a time, circa 2004 - 2005, where Ye and Weezy were still floating over soul samples. “SMUCKERS” also provides both artists with a sense of nostalgia that serves both well.

Kanye’s lines like, “‘Cause Nike gave a lot of niggas checks, But I'm the only nigga to ever check Nike, Scarier than black people with ideas, I made a million mistakes, but I’m successful in spite of them,” are particularly prescient considering Tyler is now facing some of the same barriers in sneakers and design that West did.

12. "FUCKING YOUNG/PERFECT" f/ Toro y Moi, Kali Uchis, Syd, & Charlie Wilson

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Album: Cherry Bomb (2015)

The boy who ate a cockroach and puked bile that looked summoned from the deepest hell pits shouldn’t be capable of making something this beautiful. Wistful and longing in its sincerity Tyler, the Creator Toro y Moi, Kali Uchis, Syd, and Charlie Wilson come together for a song about love that can never be. “FUCKING YOUNG/PERFECT” details Tyler having feelings for a girl six years younger than him. In a 2015 Billboard article Tyler stated,


"I wanted to make a song like Stevie Wonder’s Innervisions album. You listen to shit in the ‘70s, they got to the point. Although it sounds soft, “Fucking Young” is perverted and weird, but it’s true. There was this girl that I liked, and we both had feelings for each other, but there was a five-year difference between us. It weirded me out, so I wrote a song about it."

Who knew Tyler and Uncle Charlie could sound so good together with such a weird topic? Sometimes it pays to go down the Wolf Haley rabbit hole.

11. "Treehome95"

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Album: Wolf (2013)

There isn’t much Tyler on “Treehome95.” His voice is absent for large portions of the song. The production shows only brief flashes of some of his signature style. This in part is what makes “Treehome95” work. By letting Quadron singer Coco O and Erykah Badu hold the spotlight, Tyler shows the light handed touch of a producer that would make his idols proud. “Treehome95” is also interesting for how it foreshadowed some of the same themes of sexuality and its closeness to nature that would color the symbolism of Scum Fuck Flower Boy. The song isn’t perfect. Tyler awkwardly yells the word “bridge” at you guessed it...the bridge. Despite, minor mishaps like that “Treehome95” points to a Quincy Jones future for Golf Wang’s general.

10. "Domo23"

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Album: Wolf (2013)

The first single off Tyler albums tend to follow a similar format Eminem and Dr. Dre perfected in their heyday, starting with “My Name Is.” It is the song a rapper releases for maximum shock value. In Eminem’s case you mention celebrities (Spice Girls, Pamela Lee), tease your closest mentor figure (Dr. Dre), and generally say anything that will rile the general public up (“Hi, kids! Do you like violence? Wanna see me stick nine inch nails through each one of my eyelids?”).

“Domo23” follows this same pattern. Tyler calls protesters that came to the 2011 Pitchfork Festival to denounce Odd Future for their violent lyrics “a couple fags”. He mentions pop culture figures like Jada Pinkett Smith, David Beckham, Rodney King, calls his manager Clancy a slave master, and leans into whatever could piss the largest swath of people off. The song pulls no punches just the way Tyler likes it.

9. “911/Mr. Lonely” f/ Frank Ocean

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Album: Flower Boy (2017)

The most vital pairing in the Odd Future universe these days is Tyler and Frank. And they never sound better than when they’re dabbling in the admittedly immature feelings of young romance. The song is bright and breezy, with time for a beat switch and a Gap Band interpolation. I’m not convinced that having a pet as a kid makes you better equipped to be someone’s boyfriend but I love Tyler’s commitment to the idea. —Ross Scarano

8. "What The Fuck Right Now"

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Album: n/a (2016)

Eerie and pulsating with the uncomfortable sensation of a drug-induced fever dream, Kanye West’s “Freestyle 4,” is the red-headed stepchild of The Life of Pablo. As much as Kanye’s lyrics match the intoxicated nature expected from a title that assumes this was Ye’s fourth go in the booth, the beat always seemed like a labyrinth left half explored. Thankfully, Tyler saw the untapped potential in “Freestyle 4” and mutated it into the blistering “WHAT THE FUCK RIGHT NOW.” In the course of almost four minutes, Tyler takes aim at rappers, fickle fans, drug culture, and materialism as Rocky plays Flava Flav to his Chuck D. Rap is rarely as fun as when Tyler decides to spaz and on “What The Fuck Right Now,” he murked his way into a lyrical coma.

7. "Rella" f/ Hodgy, Domo, & Tyler, the Creator

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Album: The OF Tape Vol. 2 (2012)

The third verse is a gift and a curse. This is especially true when you have to follow Hodgy Beats and Domo Genesis in their prime. In the grand scheme of Odd Future, Hodgy and Domo were always the lyrical miracles. For what they lacked in personality they generally made up for in scorching punchline laden verses that would make the dustiest of New York rap fans proud. That’s why Tyler going toe-to-toe with the two is not only surprising, but speaks to his innate need to compete when on a track with his OFWGKTA brethren. Tyler uses at least three to four different flows on the song, mentions J Kwon, and his dick in some fashion five different times in the span of a minute.

6. "She" f/ Frank Ocean

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Album: Goblin (2009)

The sweet and sour, silky and rough juxtaposition of Frank and Tyler gives a distinct tension to their songs most other collaborations in modern music can’t match. Frank’s sweet melodies and soft voice tease a sense of sexuality that never comes to fruition on “She.” It is expertly ruined as Tyler raps about Tyler things: stalking, masturbating, and Adventure Time. However, that’s what saves “She” from being another cliche R&B collaboration on a rapper’s debut project. For a brief moment, Tyler takes Frank away from his 1980 BMW E30 M3 and breezy Tumblr coastlines to play in his Wes Craven toy box.

5. "Telephone Calls"f/ Tyler, The Creator

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Album: Cozy Tapes Vol. 1: Friends (2016)

Tyler’s kaleidoscope view of the world has always been filled with refractions of Springfield baked donuts, neon vans, and the fastest McLaren on the market. Since Odd Future’s inception, Tyler’s all encompassing aesthetic has wrapped around him like a venomous symbiote lashing out at anyone and everyone in its path. On “Telephone Calls” Tyler turns the heater on the rap game and in the process many of the people that appear on the song with him (Rocky, Playboi Carti, Gleesh).  

Here is a small list of all the popular rapper accoutrements Tyler spits he doesn’t fuck with during “Telephone Calls”:  Giuseppe, Gucci, Raf, swag, Lamborghinis, Ferraris, parties, and blunts. For comparison, here are the things Tyler does fuck with: Jasper, Taco, Lionel, striped shirts, Vans, tennis courts at his home, and opportunities.

4. "Trouble On My Mind" f/ Tyler, The Creator

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Album: Fear of God II (2011)

In no world should Tyler, the Creator be able to outrap Pusha T. [Spoiler Warning for those who are too uncultured to never have seen HBO’s The Wire]

What Tyler does to Push on “Trouble on My Mind” is basically what Kenard does to Omar in Season 5 of The Wire. Do you remember the moment you realized Kenard had killed Omar? At this point in the series, Omar seemed untouchable. The thought that a child could take out a force of nature like Omar seemed especially cruel. That’s what it feels like listening to Tyler out spit Push armed with Rugrats references and mentions of dinosaur dicks.

3. "Bimmer" f/ Frank Ocean

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Album: Wolf (2013)

“Bimmer” is Tyler’s musical crown jewel. It circumvents all classification for the type of music Tyler had been known for up to that point. It is also home to two of the biggest musical crimes of the last decade. The first can best be described by using a lollipop metaphor. How many licks does it take to get to the center of “Bimmer”? The answer is 4:40 minutes of “PartyIsntOver” and “Campfire.” The second crime is the how relatively short the song actually is. By the time the Pharrell inspired synth four count comes in, “Bimmer” breezily races like its namesake to an all too fast conclusion. The contrast of Tyler’s dry delivery of “you mind me of my bimmer” is beautiful against the bright video game sounding synth blips. When Frank Ocean arrives it’s like an angel descending to take the song to the highest cloud. “Bimmer” is Tyler at his Pharrell worshipping pop prince best. Now only if it could have been longer.

Sidenote: R. Kelly has added another allegations to his long history of misconduct against women. So he is even more canceled. This means “Bimmer” now has the best “key in your ignition” metaphor in rap or R&B.

2. "Bastard"

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Album: Bastard (2009)

“Bastard” the song and by extension the mixtape has acted as the thesis statement for the Tyler, the Creator brand. Within the confines of the intro are all of the themes and cornerstones that would inform his music for the next five years.

On “Bastard” we’re introduced to Dr. TC the therapist that would appear on ensuing albums like Goblin and Wolf. There was the attack on popular 2009 gatekeepers—”Yo, fuck 2DopeBoyz and fuck Nah Right/And any other fuck-nigga-ass blog that can't put an 18-year-old nigga/Making his own fucking beats, covers, videos and all that shit—that foreshadowed Tyler’s general mistrust of most establishments. Even Tyler’s complicated relationship with women and tendency to devolve into horrorcore was on full and by future Odd Future standards muted display.

However, what makes “Bastard” such a standout is the sheer amount of hurt, pain, and vulnerability he shows as a result of the absence of his father. Throughout the song, Tyler weaves a tale of loneliness and abandonment that explains the source of the rage that soaks through the seams of his music. As Tyler raps, “My father's dead, well I don't know, we'll never fucking meet/I cut my wrist and play piano cause I'm so depressed,” he sets the stage for the main conflict that drives his creativity.

1. "Yonkers"

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Album: Goblin (2011)  

It was the cockroach heard round the world. With one bite Tyler affirmed his place in hip-hop history. To think it all began as a joke. In an episode of Golf Radio, Tyler detailed the making of his classic song:

“Niggas don’t know that that beat was made as a joke. I was trying to make a shitty New York beat and we was just rapping like we was from New York like we were retarded. And then, I just had some random verses and I was just like ‘I’ll just record it to this beat, this beat is kinda cool.’ And then niggas really liked it. That’s so nuts, because that shit was actually a fucking joke. I made that beat in literally eight minutes.”

“Yonkers” would go on to amass over 90 million plays on YouTube, win an MTV Video Music Award for Best New Artist, and be featured in numerous end of year lists from Rolling Stone, Time, and The Guardian. No matter how it was created or the massive success that ensued, “Yonkers” ultimately succeeds, because of its minimalistic brilliance. The opening line, “I’m a fucking walking paradox — no I’m not,” launches Tyler into a cacophonous blizzard of dizzying rhymes, like in the first verse:

Swallow the cinnamon

I'ma scribble this sin and shit, while Syd is tellin' me that she's been gettin' intimate with men (Syd, shut the fuck up!)

Here's the number to my therapist (Shit!)

You tell him all your problems, he's fuckin' awesome with listenin'

The way Tyler rhymes cinnamon with the words sin, gettin’, intimate, men, and listenin’ is a marvel. However, where the intricacy of the line comes to the forefront is when Tyler uses the word “shit” to stretch the pattern to encompass words like Syd, the “mate” in intimate, and therapist, shows a dexterity people rarely give Tyler credit for. The complexity of “Yonkers” continues when you start connecting the theme of paradoxes to the songs most impressive lines — “I'm an overachiever, so how about I start a team of leaders/And pick up Stevie Wonder to be the wide receiver?” or “Green paper, gold teeth, and pregnant golden retrievers/All I want; fuck money, diamonds and bitches! Don't need 'em.”

Tyler has had more emotional songs. There are better beats in his catalog. He’s had better verses. However, “Yonkers” was a specific moment in time where everything negative and positive that had been said about him, Odd Future, and their movement came together to be bigger than the sum of its parts.

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