One half of Tegan and Sara takes aim at Odd Future’s Tyler, the Creator
Looks like we’ve got an old-fashioned Twitter fight on our hands, this time between a Canadian indie rock darling and hip hop’s weirdest up-and-comer. On the heels of last night’s sold-out show at the Phoenix, Odd Future’s outspoken pseudo front man, Tyler, the Creator, finds himself once again at the centre of controversy—this time drawing the ire of Sara Quin, one half of Tegan and Sara.
Quin has penned a letter attacking the lyrical content on Tyler, the Creator’s latest album, Goblin:
When will misogynistic and homophobic ranting and raving result in meaningful repercussions in the entertainment industry? When will they be treated with the same seriousness as racist and anti-Semitic offenses? While an artist who can barely get a sentence fragment out without using homophobic slurs is celebrated on the cover of every magazine, blog and newspaper, I’m disheartened that any self-respecting human being could stand in support with a message so vile.
As journalists and colleagues defend, excuse and congratulate ‘Tyler, the Creator,’ I find it impossible not to comment. In any other industry would I be expected to tolerate, overlook and find deeper meaning in this kid’s sickening rhetoric? Why should I care about this music or its “brilliance” when the message is so repulsive and irresponsible?
This is hardly the first time Tyler has had to respond to criticism over his often appalling and always controversial lyrics. Yet this attack is different, coming as it does from a fellow musician (although don’t tell Quin we put her in the same category as these guys). We’d be remiss if we didn’t point out the similarities between this debate and Tipper Gore’s Parents Music Resource Center controversy from the mid-’80s, which brought the issue of censorship to the forefront and resulted in this being slapped across millions of album covers. Tyler, the Creator, for his part, has responded to Quin’s criticisms via Twitter in a response that, it’s safe to say, will likely reinforce your position on either side of the debate.
. We’d be remiss if we didn’t point out the similarities between this debate and Tipper Gore’s Parents Music Resource Center controversy from the mid-’80s, which brought the issue of censorship to the forefront and resulted in this being slapped across millions of album covers. Tyler, the Creator, for his part, has responded to Quin’s criticisms via Twitter in a response that, it’s safe to say, will likely reinforce your position on either side of the debate.
(Images: Quin, Shayne Kaye; Tyler, Po'Jay)){kind=link}
Tipper Gore? Really? From what I see in this letter, she’s voicing an opinion, not trying to get music censored.
So… Tegan and Sara are against free speech. I’m very disappointed to learn that.
Freedom of speech and hate speech are two different things.
Eric this isn’t about free speech. If you have read the letter you will see that no where do they say he can’t rap about what he raps about.
Its about people reaction to it. Free speech allows people to sing insulting stuff about any group, but if a white was getting popular singing about Ni**ers then that would be there would be media backlash against them. But this group can sing about fa**ots and they get rave reviews.
These girls are questioning why hate speech against one minority is applauded while hate speech against other groups is, quite rightly, detested.
Eric, you are an idiot. Quin never said he should be forbidden from saying anything. She said that media outlets and musicians should be using their own freedom of speech to challenge him on it.
Every media report I’ve seen about this group spends a good long time analyzing their “hate speech.” She has every right to criticize another artist, but she’s wrong to suggest no-one else is doing so.
didnt know much about t&s until they opened for jack j. talented, much loved by their fans, a credit to canada.
I’m sick of listening to one group that is discriminated against, doing the same to another. I’m by no means an outspoken advocate for gay rights, any more than I support womens rights, or the rights of the suburban white middle class (of which category I am a member,) but may do I believe in equal rights. It’s what makes our country truly a great place to live . I have a sister, and a mom, and I am sick of people calling their friends, sisters, wives and mothers sluts and ho’s in songs because it might sell some records. I have friends who are openly gay, and it makes me sick and angry when someone choses to use the F bomb 50 times on a track to ‘express creativity’. There were scary people who are not that far removed from setting up hatred and segregation. They used another word to divide that starts with an ‘N’ which as a human being makes me equally as upset.
What’s different here? Raw talent? So I guess it’s ok. I love hip hop and the culture it has created for the most part, breakdance, graf, the poetry for the most part play an increasingly important role as original voices fade in the din of mass media. All music really, anything creative should be encouraged. I dont understand how yelling ‘f*ggot’ over and over again can be considered creativity, and what the purpose is. Maybe I missed something?
Oh yeah, and my big protest moment here on this topic here is…. I wrote a letter and posted it on this website, which no one will likely read and most likely will fall on deaf ears (if not total deletion for length, or tone, or language etc etc.), but you should also note I took back the Goblin disc to the retailer I bought it from, and asked him to send it back to the label for me. I didn’t ask for a refund, just for a him to enclose a short paragraph note outlining the lack of consumerism I felt after reading about this story, the media tone and their response (or lack thereof). I love the music, can’t support this message.
Most likely I wont have any impact, as I said probably no one will read this right. Maybe Sara Quin wont either. But she got my attention, so that’s two.
Ever hear the boy who cried ‘Wolf’ Tyler? Maybe it should be ‘The Boy Who Cried Wolf Gang’ instead? Eventually nobody game a shit when the wolves came. Ditto to the ‘music industry’ . If I put out a record (laughable, I know) laced with racial slurs in nearly every song, using the ‘N word’ as if it was going out of style (oh, wait, it did) there’d be demonstrations in the street about the hate I was sharing with the world.
I was going to write my thoughts about this issue, but the long post above pretty much sums it up. I am sick of women being referred to as “hos'”, and sick of people cowardly hiding behind the “Freedom of Speech” defense when they are spewing adolescent hate messages – how can we teach our younger generations to be tolerant and mindful of other people’s rights when this kind of message is jammed into their ears? I doubt someone like Martin Luther King would applaud these lyrics. The music itself is great, the lyrics suck and only reveal an infantile brain.