Tyler, the Creator takes retrospective look at his debut mixtape 'Bastard' after 10 years
Tyler, the Creator took to Instagram on December 25 to take a retrospective look back on his self-produced debut mixtape, 'Bastard', which was released for free on Christmas Day exactly 10 years ago, way back in 2009.
'Bastard', along with his follow-up project, 'Goblin' would go on to put Tyler, the Creator firmly on the musical map as an artist to watch out for, and also garnered tremendous amounts of exposure for members of his alternative hip-hop collective, Odd Future, aka OFWGKTA. Many Odd Future members like Earl Sweatshirt, Domo Genesis and Hodgy Beats would later go on to become critically acclaimed rappers in their own right. Since then, Tyler has released 'Wolf', 'Cherry Bomb', and 'Flower Boy' and become a multiple Grammy-nominated artist.
In the 10-year anniversary post, Tyler reflected on the fact that it had been a decade since 'Bastard' and he didn't really know what he was doing back then. He revealed that he had first released the album to about 46 people on ZShare, a now-defunct file-hosting service. The rapper also admitted that "I had ideas, an unmeasurable amount of energy and wanted to piss off/get a reaction from anyone who had ears." But Tyler was also in a generous and grateful mood, and thanked all the people that helped make the album possible, even adding that the place where he started recording the mixtape was "drowned in magic."
Even though his debut 'Bastard' was relatively simplistic in terms of lyrics, beats, and production (Tyler used FL Studio to make it), it showcased an incredibly potent creative energy and consequently resonated with fans and music critics alike. But like all great works of art, it also caused controversy with members of the Conservative Party in the UK, which eventually led to Tyler getting banned from the United Kingdom. 'Bastard' also gave Tyler and Odd Future plenty of respect and credibility within the rap community and was a significant inspiration for internet-based independent/DIY musicians everywhere.
To see the original post in its entirety on Instagram, click here. Tyler, the Creator also recently released two new songs a few days ago, 'Best Interest' and 'Group B.'