Tyler, the Creator
Tyler, the Creator might be on tour in support of his 2024 album Chromakopia, but the Grammy-winning superstar hasn’t let the busy schedule get in the way of creating new music. Just a few days ago, the Los Angeles-area native announced the impending release of his ninth studio album, Don’t Tap the Glass; the LP is out now via Columbia Records.
Tyler first teased that something was coming July 21 with cryptic posts on social media. On July 18, artwork featuring him and the album’s title appeared outside his concert at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center. The project’s announcement arrived hours later. In the lead-up to the album’s release, Tyler downplayed any hype around the project, including speculation that it would be a concept album. “Y’all better get them expectations and hopes down,” he wrote on X. “This ain’t no concept nothing.”
The 10-track project was born out of a desire to create a party album that people can dance to. He was satisfied with what he made after holding a listening event and seeing hundreds of people react exactly how he wanted them to.
“I asked some friends why they don’t dance in public and some said because of the fear of being filmed. I thought, ‘Damn, a natural form of expression and a certain connection they have with music is now a ghost.’ It made me wonder how much of our human spirit got killed because of the fear of being a meme, all for having a good time,” he wrote on social media. “This album was not made for sitting still. Dancing, driving, running—any type of movement is recommended to maybe understand the spirit of it.”
Chromakopia: The World Tour continues its North American leg in Montreal on July 22 before continuing on to Australasia and Asia later this summer. The tour wraps up Sept. 21 in Quezon City, Philippines.