“CHROMAKOPIA” by Tyler, the Creator, was one of the most anticipated albums of this past year, announcing his world tour kicking off in St. Paul, which was all the more exhilarating for local fans. With nearly 1.5 billion Spotify streams of the album to date, the Xcel Energy Center as expected, hosted a sold-out crowd of over 15,000 fans.
Tyler’s 93-minute set began with the titular song “St. Chroma”, with a set built out of shipping containers raised to reveal the rap star in a green uniform coat and a mask covering the top half of his face marching in place. He continued performing songs in album order up to “Judge Judy” when a catwalk descended and Tyler performed fan favorites “Sticky” and “Take Your Mask Off” (and removed his mask) above the pit crowd.
Tyler made his way to the B-Stage, changing into street clothes and taking time to switch the shoes he was wearing. This feature was prominent throughout the performance, potentially representing the different roles he was stepping into during the different stages of the show.
The B-stage was set up like a small living room, with a couch, piano, record player and box of vinyl records in one corner. Tyler riffled through the box of records, which contained copies of his older albums. From a camera angle set above the box, fans went crazy as Tyler passed old favorites like “Cherry Bomb,” “Flower Boy” and “Wolf,” eventually settling on “IGOR” from 2019. The surprise additions to the set were received with roaring support from the crowd when Tyler said, “I can keep playing music, right?”
After taking a look back through his career in the staged living room, Tyler walked back across the catwalk to a final song from his 2017 album “Flower Boy” before returning to the main stage to finish out the rest of “CHROMAKOPIA”.
The rest of the set included “Like Him,” currently the album's most streamed record. The song describes Tyler’s experience of being compared to his estranged father by his mother, asking, “Do I look like him? … / How could I miss something that I’ve never had?” In concert, following the bridge of “Like Him,” Tyler paused, closing his eyes, taking out his in-ear monitors and pointing the mic towards the audience to listen to his crowd sing one of the most openly vulnerable songs he has ever released. Affirming at the end of the piece, “I don’t look like him.”
The entire performance was an odyssey of Tyler’s career and his emotional journey as a person and artist, which was incredibly appropriate considering the themes of “CHROMAKOPIA” itself. The performance was both a nod to his past and how it affected him, while also continuing to talk about his current struggles with maintaining relationships and identity. Tyler’s music remains true to who he is, making it relatable in ways some modern records fall flat.
The “CHROMAKOPIA” concert continues to showcase Tyler’s abilities as a performer and storyteller. The “CHROMAKOPIA” tour continues for the next seven months, remaining in the United States until late July and finishing the tour in Australia this September, so fans still have plenty of time to get a taste of the Tyler experience before the curtain falls.
