Tyler, The Creator - CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST (Album)
I have been a fan of Tyler since the "Bastard" days & let me just say that his growth has been so beautiful to see; his catalog is just immaculate. Still, I don't think people have really appreciated his skills as a lyricist until this album got dropped into the universe's lap. It's said that Westside Gunn inspired Tyler to get back into his rapping bag & thank God for that cause his rapping on here is as immaculate as the whole artistry behind it. I never once in my life thought that we'd get a Gangsta Grillz tape from Tyler, but here we are. It's beautiful to see DJ Drama getting his flowers for his work on here & I'm sorry, but I much rather his chants over records than Khaled's & that's no disrespect, but I'm sure we all feel the same.
Even the way this album starts, you know you're in for a treat, "SIR BAUDELAIRE" is a subtle number that immediately showcases his skills as a lyricist. He just has such a distinct voice; it really helps you focus on what he's saying. It's always some fresh shit & he doesn't need gum; his wit & braggadocio are being flaunted at you every which way & Drama is just adding fuel to his fire with his iconic shit-talking. His faith in Tyler as not only an MC but creative is palpable; the two's chemistry is ever so present on "CORSO." Tyler had said it was originally made with A$AP Rocky in mind, but it worked for the better that he ghosted him for as long as he did cause Tyler carried the record gracefully.
The features on here are crazy as well; 42 Dugg on "LEMONHEAD" just leaves this sour taste in your mouth, giving you that stank face cause what you're hearing is just so ill. The production is just so triumphant & then that bleeds into an R&B number with Youngboy Never Broke Again, of all people? That's wild to me, but it works & of course, anything that Ty Dolla $ign is a part of is an automatic hit. I really love the modernist Neo-soul vibe of this record, probably my favorite out of all of these numbers; it makes me wanna walk up to a random girl & ask, "WUSYANAME." "LUMBERJACK" was the 1st taste of this album we got & it was classic Tyler in terms of his visuals. Still, the rapping on it is what took the world by storm & therefore, he capitalized on it with his first-ever BET performance. Let's be honest again in saying that it was the best performance that the awards show has ever seen, definitely the best I've ever seen; who else has done something like that?
The "HOT WIND BLOWS" whenever Tyler & Wayne get together for a record, which they have a good amount of music together, dating all the way back to their double feature on The Game's "Martian Vs. Goblins," but this is probably their most elegant collab & Wayne more than delivers on this one, one of his best verses I've heard in a minute. On "MASSA," Tyler gives us a little insight into his thought process; it's a very personal number, probably the most autobiographical record on this record. Even linking back up with Domo Genesis, who's criminally underrated as a lyricist to deliver their "MANIFESTO," even a hilarious skit from his momma, which you just have to hear, I can't reiterate it any better than she did, so hilarious. All in all, though, "CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST" is Tyler's magnum opus & now I have to go back & listen to the rest of his albums, starting with "Flower Boy" cause I never truly appreciated them enough at the time.