Tyler, the Creator
Spark Arena, Auckland, NZ
Monday, August 18th
For Tyler, the Creator, whose career now spans three decades and nine albums, there’s plenty about him that he’s left unsaid, tucked beneath a Golf Wang hat and masked from the public consciousness.
His eighth studio album, 2024’s Chromakopia, and its namesake global tour marks a new depth to his vulnerability and how much he’s willing to tell the world. Since February, he’s been lugging a plethora of newly-revealed personal anecdotes across the globe in a mammoth, emerald green shipping container with his album’s name slapped on the side.
In Auckland last night, there was a difference. Historically, both during this tour and past ones, Tyler’s performances have had more physical properties, such as literal shipping containers creating an elevated stage, and his military-esque “St. Chroma” costume, including a mask of his own face that he metaphorically hides behind.
But inside Spark Arena, it was a more minimalist experience: two large jumbotrons and a small stage with a centre runway, where Tyler pranced non-stop for 80 minutes in a monochrome yellow hat, jacket, and pants combo. Everything felt more simplistic, but for a 13,000-capacity arena, going propless and maskless for a comparably smaller crowd proved to create a much more intimate experience.
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As the lights went out at 9:25pm, the crowd of largely under-25s roared to life as Tyler climbed onstage via a small staircase (as opposed to walking out from behind a raising jumbotron) and broke into album-opener “St. Chroma”.
”It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you motherfuckers, what’s cracking?” he asked the ocean of ushankas, loafers, Polo tees, and preppy looks that he’s inspired over the years. Chromakopia favourites like “Rah Tah Tah” and “Noid” rapidly followed as Tyler’s feet endlessly slid across the stage.
The concert air became electric as Tyler belted out the marching band-inspired “Sticky” before sitting down, pleading with fans to undertake their own self-exploration through “Take Your Mask Off”.
”If y’all don’t mind, I’m gonna go through my old records and play some shit” he told the crowd as sweat poured through his Petalers hat and leather ensemble, “I wanna play the records that’ve allowed me to come to places like this.”
A trip down memory lane ensued, as Tyler tore through Igor-era hits like “EARFQUAKE” and “ARE WE STILL FRIENDS?”, broke into deep cuts like “She” and “IFHY”, and delivered a medley of Call Me If You Get Lost favourites “LUMBERJACK” and “WUSYUNAME”.
A segment everyone had been waiting for, but nobody knew they wanted mere weeks ago, then came along: a collection of tracks from Tyler’s three-day notice ninth album released in late July, Don’t Tap the Glass.
While this newer soundtrack doesn’t hold any deeper affirmations or stories of unrequited love, it carries a simple mindset: dance like the animals we all are, and don’t tap the glass of anyone’s enclosure — or your phone screen.
”Yo Auckland, can you dance tonight?” Tyler asked, as he finished “Big Poe” and took a puff from his inhaler. The crowd heeded the request, but nobody moved quite as effortlessly as him as he belted out hits such as “Sugar on My Tongue”, “I’ll Take Care of You”, and “Ring Ring Ring”.
Tyler ushered in the show’s closing moments with “Like Him”, the emotional climax of Chromakopia centred on his fatherless upbringing that carries a heartwrenching twist.
“I ain’t from here, I ain’t from anywhere near here, but the fact I could reach this far away… I appreciate it so much,” the rapper said with misty eyes. “Y’all have a real beautiful place here, y’all should be so proud.”
Finally, the show was capped off with fan-favourites “See You Again”, “NEW MAGIC WAND”, and “I Hope You Find Your Way Home”.
“Get home safe, don’t tap the glass, and I hope you find your way home,” Tyler preached as he executed his finale, dance-walked back up the runway, and back down the small staircase he entered on.
With the omission of tour staples such as “Tamale”, “MASSA” and new fan-favourite “Stop Playing with Me”, Tyler’s Auckland set was noticeably shorter. However, there was no overwhelming sense of longing; no consensus that a lot had been left to be desired.
As one of the music industry’s biggest advocates for radical authenticity and “texture” in production and performance, much of Tyler’s success is rooted in his fascinatingly relatable stories and his boisterous, one-of-a-kind stage presence.
Even without his trademark outfits and set designs, his exuberant personality and artistry, which in his words has “never not been him,” is beyond enough to keep crowds swaying amongst the fingers of his grasp, allowing him to assuredly leave the mask – both metaphorically and literally – at home.
Tyler, the Creator’s tour now heads to Australia. Ticket information is available here.
