Earlier this summer an uprising from feminist group Collective Shout shut down Tyler the Creator’s Australian tour after petitioning Australia’s immigration department to deny the rapper’s visa. Now 24-year-old Tyler Gregory Okonma has been banned from so much as dropping a mic anywhere near the UK for the next 3-5 years.
BASED ON LYRICS FROM 2009 I AM NOT ALLOWED IN THE UK FOR 3-5 YEARS ( although i was there 8 weeks ago) THAT IS WHY THE SHOWS WERE CANCELLED.
— T (@tylerthecreator) August 26, 2015
According to a letter issued from the UK’s Secretary of State, the reason for the ban is because of lyrics he discovered off of Tyler’s Bastardalbum (2009) as well as his Goblin album (2011) which he saw as fostering hatred, and encouraging violence and intolerance of homosexuality.
Tyler’s manager Christian Clancy took to Tumblr to write a lengthy rant about it, saying “to say that I am confused would be an understatement. Can you imagine being beholden to things you said when you were 18?…more importantly, this is a broader issue of free speech, with new lines being drawn that include reaching back in time without acknowledging growth. in fact, punishing growth. what i do know is tyler is part of an argument that is counter to who he has become. how do you punish someone for growing up? [sic]”
The ban has forced Tyler to cancel several tour dates across the UK.
Photos by Tim Mosenfelder/Getty Images