As visually stunning lights brighten Crypto.com Arena, Tyler, the Creator puts everyone into an amazed trance with his call-and-response.
Along with Tyler, the Creator, rapper Lil Yachty and artist Paris Texas have been touring with him, with five dates here in Los Angeles. I’ve been following Tyler, the Creator for quite some time but never fully listened to any of his projects from front to back. That is until, “CHROMAKOPIA,” his most recent album, dropped where I enjoyed almost every track. I began really listening to his albums such as “Goblin” and “Cherry Bomb” which helped me further grasp the concept behind his outstanding discography.
Preceding Tyler’s set, rapper Lil Yachty took to the B-stage and performed a great 45-minute setlist. Yachty played some of my favorite songs of his like “Split/Whole Time,” “Strike (Holster)” and “Solo Steppin Crete Boy.” I’ve been following Lil Yachty for longer than Tyler and seeing him live was something I’ve been looking forward to for a long while.
The visuals for Lil Yachty’s performance were amazing with a very large LED screen showing his face with filters along with other color hues and contrasts. Lights surrounded the stage near where he was standing and further elevated the aura of his performance.
After a 30 minute set change, Tyler came out from backstage and started performing his songs from “CHROMAKOPIA”. He performed the first nine tracks on the record and everyone was singing along with enthusiastic but melodic screams. I was blown away by his stage presence during “Like Him” and truly showing how much the topic of the song means to him.
One thing I liked was the stage and how it was designed. The main stage had a catwalk that connected to the B-stage and lowered to Tyler’s convenience. After using the escalating platform to traverse to the second stage, he used vinyl records to switch albums for his songs. On the second stage, the set resembled a room with a couch, bookshelves and other items resembling his career.
His outfit changed from the classic “CHROMAKOPIA” conductor outfit with his signature mask, to his easy-breezy T-shirt and Jorts after entering the second stage. Even songs I didn’t know quite as well, I enjoyed how he performed them. I could tell he had fun while performing— he even took a break in the show to eat an Oreo from a part of his set.
Throughout his show, the crowd urged Tyler to play a certain album, “Cherry Bomb,” but he refused. Then I noticed there was a setlist that he didn’t want to stray away from, which made it a bit awkward to refuse the crowd’s pleas but he played it off well.
I think that Tyler should have had a backing band with him on stage. A drummer, bassist and guitarist would have helped elevate the concert to a whole new level. His stage presence was amazing, although slightly lacking the depth I was looking forward to because it was just him on stage.
Overall, I really enjoyed this show and would look forward to watching this artist again in the future. Tyler will be touring the rest of The United States hitting cities like San Diego, California, Austin, Texas and Seattle, Washington. The tickets were a bit pricey with nosebleeds costing up to $400. Tyler’s way of captivating his fans struck a chord in my perception of him as an influencing artist because of the way he connects with his audience.
