Background and career
Tyler Gregory Okonma (; born March 6, 1991), known professionally as Tyler, the Creator, is an American rapper, singer, record producer, and fashion designer. He is known for his eclectic and experimental music, raw lyrical style, and frequent use of alter egos and alternate personas across his albums. During the 2010s and 2020s, he was described as an influential figure in alternative hip-hop. In the late 2000s, Okonma co-founded and led the music collective Odd Future. As a member of the group, he worked as a rapper, producer, director, and actor, and produced studio albums for several of its members. He also appeared on the group's sketch comedy series Loiter Squad (2012–2014). Alongside his work with Odd Future, he developed a solo career with his self-released debut studio album, Bastard (2009). His second studio album, Goblin (2011), brought him mainstream attention, largely through the success of the single "Yonkers" and its music video. During this period, he attracted attention over his controversial horrorcore-influenced sound and violent, transgressive lyrics. After releasing his third studio album, Wolf (2013), Tyler moved away from horrorcore and began incorporating elements of jazz, soul, and R&B. He followed with Cherry Bomb (2015), which included guest appearances from Lil Wayne and Kanye West. In 2017, Flower Boy received widespread critical acclaim and commercial success. Igor (2019) and Call Me If You Get Lost (2021) both debuted atop the Billboard 200 and won Best Rap Album at the 62nd and 64th Grammy Awards, respectively. His later albums, Chromakopia (2024) and Don't Tap the Glass (2025), also debuted at number one in the U.S., with Chromakopia recording the strongest first-week sales of his career. Beyond music, Tyler founded the clothing brands Golf Wang and Le Fleur, and has collaborated with Lacoste, Converse, and Louis Vuitton. He is also the founder of the Camp Flog Gnaw Carnival, an annual music festival launched in 2012 that has featured performers including Kanye West, Drake, Kendrick Lamar, Lana Del Rey, and Billie Eilish. Under the pseudonym Wolf Haley, he has directed all of his music and promotional videos. In 2025, he made his feature film debut as Wally in Josh Safdie's Marty Supreme, under his birth name. Tyler has won three Grammy Awards, three BET Hip Hop Awards, a Brit Award, and an MTV Video Music Award. In 2019, The Wall Street Journal named him "Music Innovator of the Year", and in 2024, the Los Angeles Times featured him in its "L.A. Influential" series as a "creator who is leaving [his] mark" on Los Angeles.
Tyler Gregory Okonma was born on March 6, 1991, in Hawthorne, California, a suburb of Los Angeles. He is the son of a Nigerian Igbo father and an African-American mother who is half-Canadian and multiracial. He spent his early life living in Hawthorne before moving to Ladera Heights at 17. At the age of seven, Okonma took covers out of CD cases and created covers for his own imaginary albums—including a tracklist with song lengths—before he could make music. He produced his first beat, on FL Studio, at age 12. At the age of 14, he taught himself to play the piano. In his 12 years of schooling, Okonma attended 12 different schools in the Los Angeles and Sacramento areas. In the eighth grade, he joined a drama class and was removed for being too hyperactive, while in the ninth grade, he was not allowed to join the band class because he could not read music. He attended Westchester High School, where he befriended Lionel Boyce in a theater class. Okonma worked at FedEx for under two weeks, and at Starbucks for over two years. He took his stage name from a Myspace page he used to post his creative endeavors. When Okonma was 15, he had a YouTube channel named "bloxhead". His first YouTube video was released on February 28, 2008. He posted videos until October 2009, when he stopped uploading to focus on his debut album, Bastard. The channel was originally titled "I Smell Panties" named after his comedy hip-hop duo group with Jasper Dolphin.
Tyler co-founded the alternative hip-hop collective Odd Future in 2007, alongside Hodgy, Left Brain, and Casey Veggies. They self-released their debut mixtape, The Odd Future Tape, in November 2008. On December 25, 2009, Tyler self-released his first album, Bastard. It was eventually ranked 32nd on Pitchfork Media's list of the Top Albums of 2010. On February 11, 2011, Tyler released the music video for "Yonkers". The video received attention from several online media outlets. An extended version with a third verse was made available on iTunes. Tyler won Best New Artist for "Yonkers" at the 2011 MTV Video Music Awards. Tyler's thematic content in these first two solo projects led fans and publications alike to categorize him in the horrorcore scene, although he vehemently rejected his connection with it. In early 2011, Tyler was gaining the interest of a number of figures in the music industry, including Steve Rifkind, Jimmy Iovine, Rick Ross and Jay-Z. Tyler and the rest of Odd Future eventually signed a deal with Red Distribution/Sony in April 2011. His second studio album, Goblin, was released May 10, 2011. Tyler and fellow Odd Future member Hodgy Beats made their television debut on February 16, 2011, when they performed "Sandwitches" on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. On March 16, Tyler and Hodgy performed "Yonkers" and "Sandwitches" at the 2011 mtvU Woodie Awards, being joined by other members of Odd Future during "Sandwitches". During an interview with Tyler for Interview, Waka Flocka Flame expressed his interest in collaborating with the Odd Future frontman to direct a music video for him. In early 2011, Tyler told fans through his Formspring account that his third album would be called Wolf and it was scheduled to be released in May 2012. Tyler also announced that Odd Future would establish their own TV show called Loiter Squad. On September 8, 2011, the show was finally confirmed as a 15-minute live-action show composed of various sketches, man on the street segments, pranks and music made by Odd Future. Dickhouse Productions, the production partnership that created Jackass, was scheduled to produce the show.
Odd Future's television show Loiter Squad premiered on Adult Swim on March 25, 2012. The show ran for three seasons and featured guest appearances from celebrities, including Johnny Knoxville, Lil Wayne and Seth Rogen. In 2015, Tyler stated that the show "is no more". On February 14, 2013, Odd Future uploaded a video to their YouTube account, which includes L-Boy skydiving and stating that Wolf would be released on April 2, 2013. The same day, Tyler would reveal the three album covers via his Instagram account. In promotion of Wolf, Tyler performed several guest verses for other artists, notably "Trouble on My Mind" by GOOD Music artist Pusha T, "Martians vs. Goblins" by The Game (also featuring Lil Wayne), "I'ma Hata" by DJ Drama (also featuring Waka Flocka Flame and D-Bo), the title track from fellow Odd Future member Domo Genesis' collaboration album with The Alchemist, No Idols, and "Blossom & Burn" by Trash Talk (also featuring Hodgy Beats). Tyler also co-produced the song "666" from MellowHype's third album Numbers, which featured Mike G. Through March and April 2013, Tyler toured North America and Europe. The first single from the album was released on February 14, 2013, titled "Domo23" along with the music video which features cameos from Domo Genesis, Earl Sweatshirt, Jasper Dolphin and Taco Bennett. On February 26, 2013, Tyler performed the songs "Domo23" and "Treehome95" on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. Wolf was released on April 2, 2013, by Odd Future Records and RED Distribution under Sony Music Entertainment. It featured guest appearances by Frank Ocean, Mike G, Domo Genesis, Earl Sweatshirt, Left Brain, Hodgy Beats, Pharrell, Casey Veggies and Erykah Badu. The album was produced solely by Tyler, except for the final track "Lone". Along with the lead single "Domo23", music videos were filmed for "Bimmer", "IFHY" and "Jamba". Upon release, the album was met with generally positive reviews and debuted at number three on the Billboard 200, selling 90,000 copies in its first week. On January 31, 2014, Tyler was reported to be working with Mac DeMarco.
On April 9, 2015, Tyler released the music video for the song "Fucking Young" to Odd Future's official YouTube channel. The video also included a short snippet of another song, "Deathcamp". Tyler announced on the same day that the songs will be featured on his upcoming album Cherry Bomb, set for release on April 13, 2015. Tyler announced via his Twitter account that the album would feature Charlie Wilson, Chaz Bundick and Black Lips member Cole Alexander. Two days later, Tyler performed the songs "Fucking Young" and "Deathcamp" for the first time at Coachella. During the set, Tyler notably criticized VIP members in the audience, of which many were celebrities, for their lack of enthusiasm. Cherry Bomb was released digitally on April 13, 2015, through Odd Future Records, with physical copies of the album, featuring five different album covers, set to be released on April 28, 2015. The album features performances from notable artists such as Kanye West, Lil Wayne and Schoolboy Q. The album was supported by a world tour through North America, Europe and Asia, beginning at Coachella Festival on April 11, 2015, and ending in Tokyo, Japan in September 2015. Tyler cancelled the Australian leg of his Cherry Bomb World Tour following a campaign by the grassroots organization Collective Shout to bar him from returning to Australia due to their opinion that his music promotes and glorifies violence against women. On August 26, 2015, Tyler revealed that he had been banned from visiting the United Kingdom for three to five years, which forced him to cancel a string of tour dates supporting the Cherry Bomb album, including the Reading and Leeds Festivals. The reason for the ban came from lyrics dating back to 2009. His manager Christian Clancy said they were informed of the ban via a letter from then-Home Secretary Theresa May. May cited lyrics from the album Bastard as the reason for the ban, although Tyler had toured multiple times in the UK since its release. Tyler later claimed that he felt he had been treated "like a terrorist" and implied that the ban was racially motivated, stating that "they did not like the fact that their children were idolizing a black man".
On April 8, 2017, Frank Ocean released a song titled "Biking" on his Beats 1 radio station "Blonded Radio", which features both Tyler, the Creator, and Jay-Z. Eight days later it was announced Tyler would write, produce, and perform the theme song for scientist Bill Nye's new show, Bill Nye Saves the World. On June 28, the trailer for Tyler's TV show Nuts + Bolts premiered on Viceland. The show focuses on things Tyler, the Creator, finds interesting or is passionate about, and explains how they are created. The series premiered on August 3, 2017. On June 29, 2017, Tyler released the song "Who Dat Boy" featuring ASAP Rocky on a new YouTube channel, following many promotional countdown posts on his social media accounts. Later that night, he released the song on streaming services alongside a new song titled "911 / Mr. Lonely" featuring Steve Lacy, Frank Ocean, and Anna of the North. On July 6, 2017, he announced the title, tracklist and release date of his fifth album, Flower Boy, which was released on July 21, 2017. Several singles were released following up to the album's release date, including "Boredom" and "I Ain't Got Time!". The album was released via iTunes, Spotify, and other major music services. On September 14, 2017, Tyler, the Creator, announced his third TV show to date, The Jellies!. It premiered on October 22, 2017. Flower Boy received rave reviews from critics and was nominated for Best Rap Album at the 60th Annual Grammy Awards, giving Tyler his second Grammy nomination after contributing to 2013 Album of the Year nominee Channel Orange, but was beat out by Kendrick Lamar's fourth studio album Damn. On March 29, 2018, Tyler released "Okra", among a string of freestyles and remixes. Tyler referred to it as a "throwaway song", stating that it was not going to be included on any upcoming album, and was not an indication of the sound of any future projects. On May 22, 2018, he released "435", continuing this string of singles. On July 23, 2018, Tyler and ASAP Rocky announced a collaborative project, WANG$AP, by releasing a music video for a remix of Monica's "Knock Knock" called "Potato Salad" on "AWGE DVD (Vol. 3)", a video compilation by AWGE, ASAP Rocky's creative agency.
