Tyler the Creator Concert Review

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I AINT GOT TIMEEEE!

I can firmly say this is the first time a recording artist I’ve seen in concert has gone on a five-minute rant about the greatness of Wegmans grocery stores while on stage.
Tyler the Creator performed in the Main Street Armory in Rochester February 21, proving to be the best rap show I’ve ever attended. To be fair, I’ve only been to three. He played around 18 songs, and almost every track off his latest release, “Flower Boy.”
Although lasting over an hour, the show seemed like 20 minutes as a result of the constant intensity and engagement, I truly never wanted it to end. This was in sharp contrast to the opening act, Vince Staples, someone I am personally not a fan of and whose set seemed to outlast it’s welcome.
Tyler opened by appearing at the top of a large suspended staircase disguised as a tree, and placed within a forest-y stage to fit the nature themes of the album. He launched into the reoccuring opening number “Garden Shed,” which got audience members chanting along to the lyrics “I rock, I roll, I bloom, I grow” from the get-go. Perhaps what made the show so exciting was almost all the audience members seemed to know the tour’s album like the back of their hand. Every time the music cut out for the audience to sing, coherent lines were shouted by the masses rather than falling flat. One could definitely spot the type Tyler’s fans were as they clung to the front of the venu. You couldn’t look five feet in front of you without spotting at least 10 pairs of checkered Vans sneakers or Odd Future tube socks.
Several songs into his set, Tyler shifted into a compilation of snippets of some of his most beloved songs of the past like “IFHY,” “She” and “Tamale.” My only complaint was that most songs were not finished all the way through, or new tour versions were created, because of the large amount of featured artists Tyler uses in recording. This was most likely a good thing because what’s the point of going to a show just to hear the same voice samplings as you can on Spotify. That being said, this is a major difference rap concerts have with others, a result that can leave audience members somewhat unfulfilled when it comes to hearing all of their favorite songs.
HIghlights of the set included the incredibly high-energy songs “Who Dat Boi’ and “I Ain’t Got Time,” the latter in which Tyler demanded everyone stop filming and taking pictures on their phones. This made the relationship between audience and performer much more bonded together, and completely in the moment. It was an uncommon, but great experience.

Tyler ended the show without an encore, but his last song, in usual fashion, was perhaps his greatest hit off “Flower Boy.” “See You Again” was a perfect last message and moment. Tyler looked out onto the crowd as the entirety of the theater chanted one of the most charming lyrics off the album in bittersweet unison: “I wonder if you look both ways when you cross my mind.”




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