It was just last fall that I caught solo sets from both Tyler, The Creator and Vince Staples at Terminal 5. Both came in support of their equally sharp new albums Flower Boy and Big Fish Theory, two of the best albums of 2017.
Not too long after their performances a joint tour between the two was announced, which included two nights at The Theater at Madison Square Garden. We were able to attend night one of the two-night run, which took place on February 23.
Vince Staples was locked in, dressed in a riot gear outfit and came out to a giant countdown clock before playing some political videos. Staples was all business from there, running through tracks from the new record with a fierce intensity that was all business. Just to give you an idea of how energy the set had while shooting the first three songs of the set, the crowd in the GA area was going so hard that the floor was literally shaking.
As expected, Tyler gave a much more loose and goofier performance than Staples did. His stage set-up was drastically different than the one he had at Terminal 5, with prop trees and forest like imagery that Tyler started the show perched upon before slowly making his way down by song three. While most of the material was taken from Flower Boy, he also dove back deep into his earlier days, giving us cuts of songs such as “She” and “Yonkers.” He admitted he probably had a lot of new fans from the release of Flower Boy and then jokingly scolded all those diehards who think they’re better than the new fans because they’ve been with him from the start. A$AP Rocky surprised fans during “Who Dat Boy,’ and stuck around to perform his own track “Telephone Calls.”
It’s safe to say that Vince and Tyler are two of the brightest minds in hip-hop at the moment, growing their fanbase while also finding fans in other genres, as well as critical acclaim. Most impressively, they’re only really getting started. The future is looking very bright.
Vince Staples:
Tyler, The Creator:
Tyler The Creator Setlist:
1. Where This Flower Blooms
2. Ziploc
3. Foreword
4. Boredom
5. Biking (Frank Ocean song)
6. 911
7. Mr. Lonely
8. IFHY
9. Smuckers
10. Fucking Young
11. Yonkers
12. She
13. 48
14. Tamale
15. Garden Shed
16. Who Dat Boy (feat. A$AP Rocky)
17. Telephone Calls (A$AP Rocky cover) (feat. A$AP Rocky)
18. November
19. Glitter
20. Pothole
21. I Ain’t Got Time!
22. Sometimes…
23. See You Again
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