An early indicator that Tyler has begun to turn over a new leaf is “See You Again,” which can only be described as a straightforward, no-frills love song. Here, Tyler strives to demonstrate his duality-there’s the usual brash, loud persona he’s presented all along, while a softer, more transparent entity begins to blossom from track to track. In fact, the album’s original title may still be its most apt. Almost a decade after founding the hip-hop shock jock collective Odd Future, Tyler is still only 26, and Flower Boy seems to be his first real attempt to escape his prolonged adolescence. While the full extent of Tyler’s sexual identity is still more or less unconfirmed, Flower Boy swiftly becomes about more than the is-he-isn’t-he rumor mill - it’s a rumination on what it means to be truthful from someone who has more often than not shrouded his talent and emotions in controversial trolling.

Elsewhere on the record, he refers to different types of boys: himself, his friends, faceless haters, the objects of his desires.

Tyler the creator flower boy