The ascension of Tyler, the Creator is really wild.
In the late 2000s, he seemed to be little more than Millennial Eminem – the guy who said wild stuff to excite the kiddos and terrify their parents. But the most jaded ears could hear that even his most obnoxious bars were laced with legit artistry. As the front man of the (former??) Odd Future collective, Tyler would become in demand both as a producer and in Hollywood, while continuing to refine his craft.
And over time, he’d evolve from shock rapper to one of the standouts of his generation.
Today, let’s look back at his journey, revisiting and ranking all his LPs (and one sorta-mixtape) from bottom to top.
Tyler was the entry point for many young rap fans in the late 00s, so I know the nostalgia for some of these projects will be heavy. While some of that early work doesn’t age well, it’s easy to see that Tyler has truly found himself as an artist today.
7. Cherry Bomb (2015)
Soul in Stereo rating: 2.5 stars out of 5
Edd said:“In Search Of did more for me than Illmatic,” Tyler says on the on opening track “Deathcamp.” I guess I can hear where he’s coming from? I say “guess” because the mixing on this album is notoriously hideous that I can barely hear anything.. Half of it sounds like it was recorded under a pile of laundry in Bikini Bottom. Lyrically, Tyler is solid and I appreciate the concepts he presents but a big chunk of it is sonic sandpaper in my ears.
Forgotten favorites: “Blow My Load,” “The Brown Stains of Darkeese Latifah Part 6-12 (Remix)”
6. Goblin (2011)
Soul in Stereo rating: 3 stars out of 5
Edd said: It’s the roach eating album! Yeah, that disgusting “Yonkers” video brought Tyler a lot of viral fame in 2011 – for better or worse. This album trapped him into the Horrorcore box for a few years. Goblin attempts to be a more fully-formed version of his previous mixtape Bastard, but it’s bogged down by more filler and weaker production. Like most early Tyler projects, he has something to say but the concepts get lost in all the shock value. He’d learn to balance that better soon enough.
Forgotten favorites: “She,” “Nightmare,” “Golden”
5. Bastard (2009)
Soul in Stereo rating: 3.5 stars out of 5
Edd said:Bastard has a weird legacy – some call it a mixtape but Tyler considers it his debut LP, so I made sure to include it on this list. Two things were immediately apparent upon my first listen – Tyler had bars, but Tyler also had issues. A lot of his outlandish lyrics go a bit too far. If you think the reaction was mixed in 09, his career would be DOA if this dropped in 2024. Intentional troll jobs distract from the actual talent he displays. Wwhen he’s focused on a theme, the album works really well. It’s very rough around the edges but the glimpses of greatness are evident.
Forgotten favorites: “Seven,” “Parade,” “VCR Wheels”
4. Igor (2019)
Soul in Stereo rating: 3.5 stars out of 5
Read our review here
Edd said:BeforeIgor’srelease, Tyler dropped a lengthy statement essentially telling fans not to expect a rap album and thatthis projectdeserves to be heard from beginning to end. You know, like we USED to listen to music. At its core,Igoris a breakup record, and I have no problem with Tyler exploring the more melodic side of his artistry, but sometimes theexperimentation causes stumbling blocks. On most tracks, his vocals are overloaded with unnecessary pitching and other odd effects. Tyler wasn’t wrong aboutIgor– except for “A Boy is a Gun” and maybe “Earfquake,” most of the songs here don’t work individually. But listen to them sequentially as a complete packageand theyare much stronger.
Forgotten favorites: “A Boy Is A Gun,” “Gone, Gone/Thank You,” “Are We Still Friends?”
3. Wolf (2013)
Soul in Stereo rating: 4 stars out of 5
Read our review here
Edd said:I feel like I’m the, ahem, lone Wolf fan out here sometimes. It doesn’t get nearly enough credit for Tyler’s rise to artistry. While the building blocks for greatness were always there, it was this album that saw him master the balance of anarchy and artistry. Wolf is a bizarre combination of lush, beautiful production, disturbing lyrics clearly intended for shock value and surprisingly meaty concept tracks. It’s like a nutrient-filled smoothie mixed with motor oil and poured it into a wine glass – and it somehow still tastes pretty good. It doesn’t have the lasting legacy of a Flower Boy or even the infamy of Cherry Bomb, but it’s easily his most overlooked release.
Forgotten favorites: “Awkward,” “Answer,” “Bimmer”
2. Flower Boy (2017)
Soul in Stereo rating: 4 stars out of 5
Read our review here
Edd said:“BUT YOU GAVE THIS ALBUM 3.5 STARS IN 2017” the Internet gotcha gang will scream. But guess what? It’s 2024 and I’ve come to appreciate Scum F*** Flower Boy much more in the past seven years. That mainly comes down to the production – easily the best at this point in his career and arguably the best to date. After the experimentation of Cherry Bomb went badly awry, Flower Boy blossomed into a project that was much more grounded and mature (for Tyler, that is). It’s far from perfect, hence my original rating, but strong production and a renewed focus has strengthened this over time.
Forgotten favorites: “I Ain’t Got Time!,” “See You Again,” “Garden Shed”
1. Call Me If You Get Lost (2021)
Soul in Stereo rating: 4 stars out of 5
Edd said:If you were on the scene in the 2000s, I’m pretty sure you heard DJ Drama’s minion yelling GANGSTA GRILLZ in the background of your favorite mixtape cuts. That’s why it was such an inspiring choice for Tyler to turn back the clock onCall Me If You Get Lost, giving it a throwback feel to an era when artists were destined to prove themselves. Obviously, Tyler is no rookie – six albums in, more than a decade in the game, and tons of media projects adorn his resume – but he’s well aware that some fans and critics (myself included) have often questioned his consistency over the years. Well, this album shuts us right up. With Drama as the loud-mouthed hype man, Tyler delivers his best album to date, flexing the lyrical dexterity that he’s shown glimpses of in the past but rarely to this extent. Combine that with his vastly underrated production skills and storytelling and you have by far the most dynamic project in his catalog. From a promising but unfocused batch of early releases to dropping one of the best rap albums of the 2020s, Tyler is really creating a legacy.
Forgotten favorites: “Hot Wind Blows,” “Manifesto,” “Runitup”
What are your favorite Tyler project? Rep for Odd Future and drop yours below.
