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While anarchic rap troupe Odd Future and leader Tyler, the Creator have captivated underground hip-hop fans and earned praise from Diddy, Jay-Z and Pharrell Williams over the past year, one musician who is decidedly against Tyler's antics is Sara Quin, one-half of indie-rock sister duo Tegan and Sara. The singer has posted an open letter on the group's website describing Tyler, the Creator as a "bully" and decrying the rapper's use of homophobic and misogynistic lyrics.
"In any other industry would I be expected to tolerate, overlook and find deeper meaning in this kid's sickening rhetoric?" Quin writes in the letter, which is titled "Call for Change." "Why should I care about this music or its 'brilliance' when the message is so repulsive and irresponsible? There is much that upsets me in this world, and this certainly isn't the first time I've drafted an open letter or complaint, but in the past I've found an opinion - some like-minded commentary - that let me rest assured that my outrage, my voice, had been accounted for. Not this time."
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Quin also takes aim at the media for its efforts to "defend, excuse and congratulate" Tyler, the Creator, who released his sophomore album, "Goblin," last Tuesday (May 10). The album has generated a favorable score of 72 out of 100 on Metacritic.
"If any of the bands whose records are held in similar esteem as Goblin had lyrics littered with rape fantasies and slurs, would they be labeled hate mongers?" asks Quin, who describes herself as "a human being, both a girl and a lesbian" in the letter. "The more I think about it, the more I think people don't actually want to go up against this particular bully because he's popular. Who sticks up for women and gay people now? It seems entirely uncool to do so in the indie rock world, and I'll argue that point with ANYONE."
Meanwhile, Tyler, the Creator posted his response to Sara's impassioned letter on Twitter yesterday: "If Tegan And Sara Need Some Hard D**k, Hit Me Up!" Tyler and the rest of Odd Future continue their U.S. tour tonight in Detroit.
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