Tyler, the Creator sparked a scene when he confronted the paparazzi confidently. It was during the resultant moment of Tyler leaving the GQ Men of the Year event; as he came out of the event, he was surrounded by photographers who tried capturing each and every moment in his movements.
As Tyler approached his car, the paparazzi swarmed all over; he told them to back off horizontally. “Y’all nas back the f** up, for real,”** he exclaimed. The confrontation escalated even further when Tyler said, “I will hit y’all nas and win the lawsuit.”* Automatically, this caught the attention of many people and the media in general with the incident of how intrusive the paparazzi were getting to Tyler.
Fans had mixed views about the incident. Quite a number of fans praised Tyler, saying he actually stood up for himself and set some boundaries with the paparazzi. Basically, they just love the candidness and unapologetic vibe of his personality; it’s refreshing to see in most instances of this overly polished world of celebrities. Some of them commented on social media: “Tyler is right to defend his personal space. Paparazzi can be so invasive!” “Good for Tyler! Even celebrities deserve privacy.”
At the same time, others felt that Tyler was too aggressive in his response. As much as setting limits is imperative, they say, it could have been handled in a much tactful manner. Responses such as, “Tyler could have handled that better. No need to escalate things, and “I get it-the paparazzi get annoying, but it’s not a reason to threaten them,” speak to this.
Tyler, the Creator, has been termed candid and unapologetic. This goes a long way toward explaining his tolerance for confrontation with the paparazzi. He has, one or two times, voiced his displeasure at invasive photographers, increasing further his frustration with them.
This incident, therefore, is just a recurrence of his long struggle with media attention. He has had one or two tussles with the press in the past, which doubtless contributes to his itchiness about feeling followed.
He has been arrested, for example, for inciting a riot at the South by Southwest festival in 2014, and he faced a ban from entering the UK in 2015 because of some offensive lyrics. These experiences have shaped his complex relationship with fame and the media.
Tyler is not the only major artist to voice his frustration with the paparazzi in recent months. Lana Del Rey was very vocal last month against photographers who chased her and her husband with drones and trackers for shots. These incidents represent the ongoing tension between celebrities and the paparazzi, raising questions about privacy and boundaries of public life.
A heated altercation with the paparazzi catapults Tyler, the Creator, into a broader debate about celebrity privacy versus public interest. What can be said for sure, though, is still undeniably up in the air that Tyler does not budge an inch in the matter of his personal space and is ready to take any extreme measure necessary in setting boundaries with the media.
