“CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST” Concert Review
Written by Olivia Friess and accompanied by photos from Madalyn Schaller
It was March 6th. Finally. I had been counting down the days to this show ever since I snatched up some tickets over the summer of 2021, blindly hoping that the future Covid situation would allow for a major stadium tour. Truthfully, I haven’t actually attended a major-scale arena tour since 2019, opting more for the intimate feel of smaller venues (and admittedly cheaper ticket prices so I can attend more shows). As much as I absolutely adore smaller shows and the closer audience-to-artist connection they offer, the sheer scale and production of Tyler, the Creator’s CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST Tour can best be described as life-changing to a longtime listener like myself.
Tyler, the Creator is the stage name of artist, producer, designer, and all around entertainer Tyler Okonma. Tyler first became known through his presence in the alternative hip-hop collective known as Odd Future, which also produced the likes of Earl Sweatshirt, Frank Ocean, and Syd (also known for her work with The Internet). A prominent feature of Okonma’s work is his intricate artistry, with each album he releases being accompanied by a new narrative, color scheme, and fashion era. His most recent release, 2021’s CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST, was met with an upscale, vintage, preppy fashion era, reminiscent of the “lost in Europe” motif that persists throughout the album. These influences were reflected in the set design for his tour, which featured a grand turquoise mansion complete with white molding and decorative banisters, as well as a matching Rolls Royce, a motor boat, and a grassy field.
The show opened with its first out of four performers of the night, Teezo Touchdown, an unconventional artist who fuses rap, indie pop, 80s synth-pop, and alternative styles to produce an eclectic discography that has something for every music fan, no matter their preference. His set resembled that of a workshop that housed homages to several of his music videos, including an electric fan, a nod to his “I’m Just A Fan” music video, and graffiti-ridden garage doors, a nod to “Rooting For You,” “SUCKA!,” and “Social Cues,” to name a few. Aside from his feature on Tyler, the Creator’s “RUNITUP,” I was not all that familiar with Teezo’s work, but if there is anything I took away from his performance, it was his incredible, almost natural, ability to control a crowd. To be able to hold a stadium-sized audience in the palm of your hand is no easy task, but to get them chanting, singing, and mimicking your dance moves is just that much harder. His performance was about as versatile as his discography, ranging from starting the first mosh pit of the night to a cell-phone-flashlight moment, complete with rewarding the crowd with Home Depot-style “Heavy Metal Only” shirts and silver hardhats.
Next to take the stage was Vince Staples, whose minimalist set design and costume approach created a completely different tone from that of Teezo’s. Staples took the second stage in the venue, a smaller rectangular platform in the pit with mood-setting lighting displays and smoke machines. His simplistic performance approach put a lot more emphasis on his music rather than the performance itself, allowing the audience to sing along to every word. Staples opened with “LIL FADE,” the eighth track off his self-titled album, in a plume of smoke and lights as the pit crowd rushed to surround his stage. During his calmer songs, such as “ARE YOU WITH THAT” and “TAKE ME HOME” featuring Fousheé, he often sat down on the stage floor, imitating the atmosphere of a more intimate concert, feeling more level with the audience. Prior to the show, the Vince Staples project I was most familiar with was his iconic 2017 release Big Fish Theory, so hearing him perform “745” and “Big Fish” was definitely a highlight in my book. Staples finished off his set with a crowd favorite, and perhaps his most popular song, “Norf Norf” off of 2015’s Summertime ‘06. This song culminated his set in a burst of energy, especially from the pit, before he made his elusive exit, seemingly disappearing from the stage.
The third and final opener of the night was the beautifully talented Kali Uchis. Uchis is truly an entertainer, as she worked the audience into a trance, mesmerized by her fluid vocals, smooth dance performances, and scene-setting visuals that were projected across the back stage wall. She was accompanied by a set of four background dances, each in a black bodysuit which caused them to resemble shadows moving across the stage. Uchis harnessed the audience immediately, kicking her set off with “Dead to Me” off of 2018’s Isolation, a stunningly melodic R&B album infused with jazz, latin, and pop influences. She then eased into “10%,” a Grammy award winning song on which she collaborated with hip-hop-funk-house producer KAYTRANADA. Her energetic performances brought any audience members that were still seated to their feet immediately, dancing and singing along to every word they knew. Kali Uchis’ set spanned both her own discography as well as several tracks on which she was featured, such as Don Tolivers “Drugs N Hella Melodies” and Amaarae’s “SAD GIRLZ LUV MONEY” which also features Moliy. I would be lying if I said that I wasn’t silently hoping that Tyler, the Creator would make his grand entrance during Uchis’ second-to-last song, “After the Storm” off of Isolation, which features both him and Bootsy Collins, but alas Tyler would not appear until about fifty minutes later. Uchis closed her set with a new crowd favorite, “telepatía” off of her 2020 album Sin Miedo (del Amor y Otros Demonios) ∞. Kali Uchis certainly set the tone for what was to come throughout the rest of the night: dancing, singing, and a carefully curated aesthetic wonderland.
Then, the nearly forty minute decompression period after Uchis’ performance was quickly shed once the lights went down for the fourth time that night: Tyler was here. The stadium, buzzing with anticipation, exploded into a chorus of excited screams and cheers as Tyler rose from below the main stage in a teal Rolls Royce, rapping “SIR BAUDELAIRE” out of the vintage car’s sunroof. I could hardly contain myself as he wrapped us into his beautifully color-coordinated world of clean, retro-inspired excursions abroad. Important detail to mention: this show did in fact happen to occur on Tyler’s 31st birthday, which only added to the energy, and led to several attempts at singing “Happy Birthday” to Tyler, despite his dismay. “I would rather be booed than have you motherfuckers sing ‘happy birthday’ to me,” he said as the stadium erupted into a chorus of “BOOs” and middle fingers.
The second song of his set (one of my personal favorites) was “CORSO.” The attacking lyrics and strong bass electrified the stadium, and I am honestly surprised that I didn’t lose my voice after this one alone. The first bulk of his performance was a run through of tracks off of CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST, broken up by occasional banter with the audience. If there is anything you’re guaranteed to experience at one of Tyler’s shows, it is ridicule by Tyler himself. “Look at this Jesus ____ up here! Do you even know what kind of car this is? Someone tell this Jesus-looking _____ what kind of car this is!” Okonma yelled at a long-haired guy in the pit before exploding into the opening lines of “LUMBERJACK.”
During “WUSYANAME” Tyler boarded a white motor boat and cruised down the catwalk to a secondary stage. Instead of the light box that showcased during Staples’ performance, the stage was now covered in patches of long grass, imitating the cover of Tyler’s 2017 hit album Flower Boy. The yellow and orange lights that beat down on the small stage completed the in-real-life recreation of the cover as he performed a three-song Flower Boy set. He started with “Boredom,” which inspired a great amount of audience participation during Rex Orange County and Anna of the North’s parts. He followed that up with the first half of “911/Mr. Lonely” which features Frank Ocean and Steve Lacy who, unfortunately, did not make an appearance that night (one day!). The Flower Boy set was finished off with “See You Again,” a dreamy track about a lover stuck in a daydream that features Kali Uchis. Tyler closed out this track with an instrumental section featuring a call-and-response marching salute bit with the crowd. Now that is unbelievable crowd control. The audience was truly under a trance. He followed this song trio with a quick run-through of bits from several older songs off of 2015’s Cherry Bomb, 2013’s Wolf, and his 2011 solo debut Goblin. This run-through truly exposed the diversity of Tyler, the Creator’s lengthy discography, with each respective album carrying a completely different, yet just as great sound as the last.
Tyler reboarded his boat and cruised once more down the catwalk to the main stage to “I THOUGHT YOU WANTED TO DANCE,” the second half of the double-track “SWEET/I THOUGHT YOU WANTED TO DANCE.” He then performed one final track from Flower Boy, “Who Dat Boy,” which featured a shadow of A$AP Rocky rapping in one of the mansion windows and yes, Tyler exploding. Okonma dove into an IGOR set of songs off of his 2019 Grammy-award-winning album. “You know, I really like a song that can make me dance,” the artist admitted before performing “I THINK,” but only after giving into the audience’s chants to “Shake that ass! Shake that ass!” He followed this with one of my favorite visuals of the night, a shower of sparks over the stage during “EARFQUAKE,” and I would be lying if I didn’t admit that the beauty of this experience didn’t make me a little emotional. Then came the moment I had been waiting for: the buzzing buildup which broke into the stadium-shaking intensity of “NEW MAGIC WAND.” Not once during this show did Tyler lose any of the crowd’s attention or energy, and this single performance proved that after three openers and Tyler’s full set. We were not going anywhere.
The final song of the night, “RUNITUP” featuring Teezo Touchdown was, in my opinion, the perfect way to end the show. The song is a fun, uplifting, dance-worthy track that made me wish the night would never end. Overall, Tyler gave an incredible performance, and it may go down as my favorite show I have seen to date. My only criticism of this concert is that I wish Tyler had brought out Kali Uchis and Teezo Touchdown to perform their features live. Tyler, the Creator is not only a dedicated performer and musician, but he is a true artist who lets no detail go untouched, creating a beautifully curated atmosphere of music, art, and style. I would recommend to both hardcore Tyler fans, and those on the borderline. This show is certainly not one to miss.
View the accompanying photo gallery here.
Set List:
Teezo Touchdown
Mid
SUCKA! (ft. Fred Flippstone)
Careful
Technically
I’m Just A Fan
Social Cues
Frat House
Vince Staples
LIL FADE
Señorita
TAKING TRIPS
SUNDOWN TOWN
MAGIC (ft. Mustard)
FUN!
MHM
TAKE ME HOME (ft. Fousheé)
ARE YOU WITH THAT?
745
LAW OF AVERAGES
Big Fish
Norf Norf
Kalie Uchis
Dead to Me
10% (KAYTRANADA ft. Kali Uchis cover)
Loner
fue mejor (ft. SZA)
Drugs N Hella Melodies (Don Toliver ft. Kali Uchis cover)
Speed
SAD GIRLZ LUV MONEY (Remix) (Amaarae ft. Kali Uchis, Moliy cover)
no eres tu (soy yo)
de nadie
la luz (fín) (ft. Jhay Cortez)
Ridin’ Round
i want war (BUT I NEED PEACE)
After the Storm (ft. Tyler, the Creator, Bootsy Collins)
telepatía
Tyler, the Creator
SIR BAUDELAIRE (ft. DJ Drama)
CORSO
LEMONHEAD (ft. 42 Dugg)
HOT WIND BLOWS (ft. Lil Wayne)
LUMBERJACK
MASSA
WUSYANAME (ft. YoungBoy Never Broke Again, Ty Dolla $ign)
Boredom (ft. Rex Orange County, Anna of the North)
911 (ft. Frank Ocean, Steve Lacy)
See You Again (ft. Kali Uchis)
IFHY (ft. Pharrell Williams)
She (ft. Frank Ocean) (partial)
Smuckers (ft. Lil Wayne, Kanye West) (partial)
Yonkers (partial)
Bimmer (ft. Frank Ocean) (partial)
Rusty (ft. Domo Genesis, Earl Sweatshirt) (partial)
Tamale (partial)
I THOUGHT YOU WANTED TO DANCE (ft. Brent Faiyaz, Fana Hues)
Who Dat Boy (ft. A$AP Rocky)
I THINK
EARFQUAKE (ft. Playboi Carti)
NEW MAGIC WAND
RUNITUP (ft. Teezo Touchdown)
