“Music Inspired by Illumination and Dr. Seuss’ the Grinch” Review

By Nina Raemont

Since his release of “Flower Boy” in 2017, Tyler, the Creator has made a new name for himself with music that is not conventional to his original genre of hard rap. With the recent release of his Christmas EP, “Music Inspired by Illumination & Dr. Seuss’ the Grinch ,”the prior statement couldn’t be more true. His EP is without a doubt unconventionally Christmas, yet it attracts the likings of any modern day music junkie with its variety of voices, lyrics, and the overall smooth R&B feel it elicits.

The holiday EP begins and ends with classically Christmas sounding instrumental tracks curated by Tyler himself. The second song—and my personal favorite—is when we begin to hear a more Tyler-tinted style of Christmas music with lyrics. “Lights On,” featuring Ryan Beatty and Santigold, is an uplifting tune including voices that are simultaneously smooth and warm. Other songs like “Big Bag” and “Hot Chocolate” provide a unique and upbeat sound. His intent of this EP, as he said on his Twitter page, was to create something Christmas themed, yet “not too Christmassy.” He perfectly achieved his idea of a cool yet holiday inspired album. Tyler’s EP embodies exactly who he is as an artist: nonconforming to the traditional roles of a rapper, stepping out to create a sound and identity that holds greater importance to the times of today, and producing modern holiday music for all along the way.