October 7 was a date I had been awaiting for nearly four months. Since the middle of June, when tickets went on sale for a Tyler, the Creator concert, I knew I wanted to go more than anything. So with some convincing on my parents’ behalf, I snagged a ticket for the show and made plans with one of my close friends to go together.

Tyler, the Creator is a well-known artist and has been for many years. While the tour was for his new album, Igor, I have been a fan since late 2017. I remember that my friend strongly recommended that I listen to his song, See You Again, because “even if you don’t like him, at least Kali Uchis sings in it.” I laughed at her, but once I gave the song a try, I was immediately hooked. I started to listen to his newest album at the time, Flower Boy, and fell in love with not only the songs but the type of music he created. 

Needless to say, when Tyler, the Creator announced his tour dates and I saw that he would be performing at Red Rocks, I knew I had to go. During the past four months, I had been looking forward to the concert and trying to process how, seemingly in no time, I would be seeing Tyler, the Creator, live. I did not know what to expect. I had watched some videos and live streams of his performances in the past, but seeing him live just felt different. I could not pinpoint anything I thought would happen, but I knew that no matter what he did or what songs he sang, I would love it regardless.

I had a countdown of the days until the concert for over a month, so when the day of the show arrived, I was almost overwhelmed. It was crazy to think that in a matter of hours, I would be seeing an artist I had grown to idolize, in person. I spent most of the day with a smile on my face, even when I was bored out of my mind in my classes. Once I got home from school, I got ready as quickly as I could so I could try to get good seats. 

My friend and I arrived at Red Rocks at nearly 6:30 p.m. and made the trek up to the venue as quickly as possible. We ended up finding open spots in a row about halfway up through the seats; almost every seat closer to the stage either taken or being kept for someone who was yet to arrive. The crowd already consisted of probably around three or four thousand people, but that did not exactly come as a shock. Red Rocks has a capacity of nearly ten thousand people, and the concert tickets were sold out in just a few minutes, so we were expecting a huge crowd from the start.

On the image that was initially posted to announce the tour dates, three opening acts were scheduled: Goldlink, Blood Orange, and Jaden Smith. While I did not know either Goldlink or Blood Orange’s music, I was pleasantly surprised by the songs they played. They both turned out to have a good variety of songs and I found myself feeling like I would listen to them after the concert. Jaden Smith did not open for the show and I was somewhat disappointed that he did not, as he was the only opener who I was previously familiar with. I was okay with the change though, and the gap between the opening acts and the main show provided me an opportunity to buy merchandise. After waiting in line for nearly forty minutes, I purchased a shirt that was specialized for the tour.

About thirty minutes after we returned to our seats from the merchandise stand, the main show actually began. It was a beyond exciting moment when the venue’s lights turned off and the spotlight focused on Tyler as he walked out onto the stage.  Donned in a stylish blue suit and a blonde wig that reached just past his ears, he assumed the persona of “Igor,” a character whose story is featured over the course of the album. He opened with the first song on his newest album, “Igor’s Theme.” I thought the opening of the concert was amazing and a perfect way to get the audience excited for the main bulk of the show.

From there, the concert was what I could only describe as absolutely amazing. He played some of my all-time favorite songs of his, some of which consisted of I Think, See You Again, and Are We Still Friends? His setlist primarily came from his new album, but he also included songs from his albums in the past as a nod to his longtime fans. Beyond just the songs he played, though, the show itself was entertaining. The graphic design projected behind him as he sang was beautiful and colorful and provided a stunning background to his performance.

Towards 10:30 p.m., he began to end the show and announced his final song of the night, which was entitled Are We Still Friends? It is one of my personal favorite songs from his new album and it felt like an amazing way to wrap up the show, as it was the final song on his album as well. It was almost overwhelming to know that it was his last song of the night, but it was an amazing performance and I thought it concluded the concert wonderfully. 

I left the venue speechless after the show. I could not, and still cannot, believe that I got to see one of my favorite artists live and that the performance was as amazing as it was. We ended up getting home around midnight and, although it had been nearly two hours since his set ended, I still felt in total awe of the concert. Seeing Tyler, the Creator was one of the coolest nights of my life, and not just because he is someone I have listened to and loved for so long. He put on an incredibly entertaining and near-perfect show, and I am beyond happy to say that I got to see it in person.