Tyler, The Creator took home a Grammy Award in the Best Rap Album category for IGOR on Sunday night (January 26). The unexpected victory gave the Odd Future co-creator the perfect opportunity to revisit a tweet from someone who told him in 2011, “@fucktyler dont b too excited. u wont get one.”
“I FAVORITED THIS 9 YEARS AGO JUST FOR THE MOMENT TO TELL YOU I GOT ONE,” Tyler tweeted shortly after the win. “YES IM PETTY AS FUCK, GOOD DAY MARK.”
I FAVORITED THIS 9 YEARS AGO JUST FOR THE MOMENT TO TELL YOU I GOT ONE. YES IM PETTY AS FUCK, GOOD DAY MARK. https://t.co/WfU85JeHEj
— Tyler, The Creator (@tylerthecreator) January 27, 2020
Despite Tyler’s win, he still was outspoken about his feelings toward the Recording Academy and Grammys in general. During a press conference, he equated the word “urban” with the “n-word” and admitted he was torn on how to react to the recent controversy swirling around the Academy’s voting process.
“On one side, I’m grateful that what I can make can just be acknowledged in a world like this but also it sucks that, whenever we, and I mean guys that look like me, do anything that’s genre-bending or that’s anything, they always put it in a rap or urban category, which is … and I don’t like that ‘urban’ word. It’s just the politically correct way to say the N-Word to me. So when I hear that I’m just like ‘Why can’t we just be in pop?’”
Tyler, The Creator calls out the #Grammys on their racism when it comes to music genres pic.twitter.com/rzWe2lR3xO
— ??? ?????? (@itsOddFuture) January 27, 2020
Tyler continued, “So I felt like half of me feels like the rap nomination was a backhanded compliment. Like ‘Oh my little cousin wants to play the game. Let’s give him the unplugged controller so he can shut up and feel good about it.’ That’s what it felt like a bit.
“But another half of me is very grateful that the art that I made can be acknowledged on a level like this when I don’t do the radio stuff. I’m not playing in Target. I’m in a whole different world than what a lot of people here listen to so I’m grateful and like ehh.”
IGOR arrived last May and debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, marking Tyler’s first chart-topping album.