For HONGJOONG: About Tyler, The Creator  I’m making this post because Hong Joong said he was very inspired by Tyler, The Creator’s performance. Here’s my take on him since currently, the only two artists I go this hard for are ATEEZ and Tyler, The Creator.  I mentioned it before, but I was raised on Tyler, The Creator, and a lot of how I am today is almost indirectly influenced by me growing up with Tyler, The Creator’s music since I was about 12 years old until now… (I'm 23) and he was the first artist I fully was a fan of and consistently followed his lore, his come-up, the times where the entire industry turned on him, and more… He also helped me understand my identify as a black person who likes things outside of what's 'normal' for people in my culture to like. I love him because despite his absolutely unhinged insane personality, he stayed true to himself no matter what… and personally, he showed me that I can be unhinged and chaotically myself while also being grateful, humble, always willing to learn, create and expand.  Everything started with 'Odd Future', the blueprint for an American artist doing something like a variety show, but it was all produced by the collective. Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All, better known as Odd Future and often abbreviated as OF or OFWGKTA, is an American alternative hip-hop music collective formed in Los Angeles, California in 2007. (Fun fact, one of our ATINY out in LA went to high school with all of them and used to be in the studio before they started becoming commercial.) His lore is intense and very dark, but it ranged from him understanding why he was becoming a version of himself that was very angry and borderline sadistic and used his art to express that. He also was hating how the industry works and refers to Clancy, his manager, (he’s white, it’s important to his lyrics lol) as the guy who believed in him so much to where he took him with him and tried to get both him and Clancy out of bad record deals as they were taking too much money from his art despite it being normalized. (“This 60/40 isn’t working!” — Tyler, NEW MAGIC WAND)  Then, by the end of the first trilogy he did, he used his trauma of his dad abandoning him to heal himself from the anger he was feeling. Throughout this, the deep voice at the beginning of his discography is painted as a therapist, but really, it’s the voice in his head betraying him trying to work out his trauma.  After this, he explores how the entire industry doubted him and strove to prove himself as one of the best producers, rappers, lyricists and artists in the industry. Simultaneously, he explores his s*xuality and slowly recognizes him liking both men, women and gender nonconformity. Now, a lot of his music is about how his experiences on the daily, his other art, music, etc. He has his own line GOLF LE FLEUR, and Louis Vuitton and Tyler, the Creator have unveiled a Spring 2024 Men’s Capsule Collection, spotlighting the savoir-faire of Louis Vuitton through the creative lens of the American rapper and long-time friend and collaborator of Pharrell Williams.  He once said, “If ‘IGOR’ doesn’t do well, I will give you all my money and quit my career.” because he was so confident that he was so good the industry would finally recognize him.  Attached are my favorite songs of his that I hope Hong Joong will be influenced by… especially the production.  HOT WIND BLOWS https://open.spotify.com/track/3JJL91ilRV6fXhKqu0FGXs?si=BWBHv8J_Scm3cCVPpEvtQg WHO DAT BOY (I lost my shoe at his concert one time at his show to this song when A$AP Rocky came out) https://open.spotify.com/track/21yRtB6B8EMounImAfHRCP?si=bara3YXPRm6KT_IGRfl0_A CORSO https://open.spotify.com/track/46oHvXwpEZOFX518we1nJD?si=RhA1y8KlT2Cd76zK3rY-WA&context=spotify%3Aalbum%3A45ba6QAtNrdv6Ke4MFOKk9 2SEATER https://open.spotify.com/track/6Xw3iWrQKgArwlRhVuU9CK?si=t0MIDDevS0aFMsr7Ye4zUQ GARDEN SHED https://open.spotify.com/track/6ACiYjq5Q7e6BlhZEHz7cd?si=Vux8-4mpThCsqU_7UvFJ3w FOREWARD https://open.spotify.com/track/33i3xxHB4YSYGYbtJrwwO8?si=i6zG0m4HTAScAdzfq3EBHQ DOMO23 (This song is intense be warned) https://open.spotify.com/track/75kiQfmmuQwgquZ9RLSvuA?si=ZfqSMvvWT5SAaOmQVu1L4Q IGOR’S THEME (Best intro song of all time in my opinion) https://open.spotify.com/track/51RN0kzWd7xeR4th5HsEtW?si=24z_WEbGSZW4RfSF5Z74CQ I THINK https://open.spotify.com/track/4f8Mh5wuWHOsfXtzjrJB3t?si=Cjg5yKq1T_q4YsiMEc531w BOY IS A GUN (My friends and I say the arrangement of song reminds us of ATEEZ members) https://open.spotify.com/track/1nXZnTALNXiPlvXotqHm66?si=akE2194xQemoiVpaSSIxCA PARTYISNTOVER/CAMPFIRE/BIMMER https://open.spotify.com/track/04QTBqa3IA4ZAKEuqRPzEH?si=00_eOYGfQwazWYHk8bOmIw YONKERS (He made this beat to make fun of how the industry has terrible producers and it ended up being good. also never repeat these lyrics LOL like nope 🙃🤣) - https://open.spotify.com/track/1zsAAnB6dMpGOvXjoYP9Um?si=1XCCR7yKQVCD6y4T7v1yug DEATHCAMP (Another intense song) https://open.spotify.com/track/1dXYBALYTj3AMxa8hgiQhA?si=PV-2SJCRR2GRxMFByaIF9g I AIN'T GOT TIME (I will rap this song in full every time I hear it) https://open.spotify.com/track/430qNtapCS3Ue1yoSql1oV?si=V-pa7BDYTrCiyD115grXuA&context=spotify%3Aalbum%3A2nkto6YNI4rUYTLqEwWJ3o FAVORITE MUSIC VIDEOS: https://youtu.be/HmAsUQEFYGI?si=eUlsVJbSXhcEYdAf https://youtu.be/3bgc3k-s0yg?si=5un4Q6eV-Yl7toNo https://youtu.be/6zxnoT3XBu0?si=aZsV3MELpbYGZ6qy https://youtu.be/NJea386275c?si=eFRX9S08TVBEJ_Hx His production is what got me dabbling in musicality and understanding production as a hobby despite me not getting into producing beats until I got into ATEEZ.  (*) Note, his lyrics are very vulgar and the beginning of his career; it has a lot of things you really can’t say out loud, but understanding how his lore is connected is really a beautiful thing. But Hong Joong if you’re reading this, we’re both a d u l t s here, you got it bro haha.  I hope you're inspired by him as much as you inspire me. With love always. #HONGJOONG #홍중 #ATEEZ #에이티즈