Who represents the biggest change in musical history, not only personality-wise but musically as well? Well, if you’re wondering, that would be Tyler the Creator. To anyone that doesn’t listen to Tyler, when he first started rapping, his music was considered aggressive or offensive to the point he would be “cancelled.” Which honestly is the cool thing because he used his discography to show change throughout his character and music, another key factor that separates Tyler from other artists, including his use of his “alter egos” for each of his albums, for example. Ace the Creator is Tyler’s most aggressive ego, hence his music back then, vs. his most recent ego, who goes by Tyler Baudelaire, but the ego we’re talking about today goes by “Flower Boy.” This ego represents his true vulnerability and his soft-spoken character. Throughout this song, Tyler the Creator uses a lot of similes and metaphors to show how he’s fantasizing about a lover and the possibility of a future with them. He also strongly uses similes, metaphors, etc. to show people an example of why love is desirable, as shown in the first verse. He’s singing to his ideal lover, who never seems to drift away from his imagination. Tyler’s use of literary devices expresses a mental connection to listeners and fans; this way, they can truly connect not only to him but also to his music.
Tyler’s use of simile highlights the importance of how you can become totally dependent on someone, as emphasized in the line, “Stop chasing like an alcoholic.” Tyler uses this as a simile for alcoholics, who are dependent on alcohol on a mental and physical level. He is comparing his love for her to that of an alcoholic since he is as addicted to her as an alcoholic would be to alcohol. This creates an intriguing feeling towards listening because it’s an odd way to compare love, making them want to listen even more.
Tyler also employs hyperbole as a way to create the exaggeration of his optimism to soon see his “ideal lover,” as shown when he says, “Can I get a kiss? And can you make it last forever? I said I’m about to go to war, and I don’t know if I’m going to see you again.” With this, Tyler expresses his hope that fate will soon bring them together—the girl he’s fantasizing about, of course. When requesting a kiss before he goes for war,” this is his terms of reality and the dream world he would happen to be in at that moment, which is why he claims he doesn’t know when he’ll see her again. Indicating that he didn’t intend to be away in the first place, he is expressing that something is keeping him away. And that thing that would be keeping him away would be his reality, since you can’t daydream forever.
Lastly, we have Tyler and the use of metaphors throughout the song which he demonstrated in this verse “20/20, 20/20 vision, cupid hit me with precision.” For instance, everyone is aware that 20/20 vision refers to the capacity to see an object clearly from a distance, in which he’s referencing his clear vision of what he sees in her and the future he wishes to pursue with the girl if he ever meets or sees her again. As for the “cupid hits me with precision” portion, in mythology, Cupid is known to shoot people with his golden arrows, which causes that person to become filled with uncontrollable desire for someone. This is perfectly illustrated here since he wants to start a keen relationship with this person.
Tyler, the Creator, through his emotional music, demonstrated literary devices. He used metaphors, similes, and hyperboles, showing how he connected with his music as well as with his fan base. Very influential hidden meanings in some of his lyrics. Together, he showed a deeper understanding of music and literary development.
