Tyler, The Creator: Banned In The U.K.?

Scheduled to play the U.K. this week, Tyler tweeted on Monday that “due to circumstances” he wouldn’t appear at the Reading and Leeds festivals, Belfast and “other shows.”

On Wednesday Tyler tweeted that although he was in United Kingdom eight weeks ago, he now has to wait “3-5 years” before returning to the country.

Tyler’s manager, Christian Clancy, also went online to express his disappointment regarding the ban, writing in The Phuckery blog on Tumblr that he received formal notification of the ban via a letter from the U.K.’s Home Office stating the artist was no longer welcome due to lyrics from his 2009 self-produced album Bastard, and his 2011 album Goblin.  According to Clancy’s blog post, the letter said Tyler was no longer welcome in the U.K. because his work “encourages violence and intolerance of homosexuality” and that his lyrics foster “hatred with views that seek to provoke others to terrorist acts.”

Tyler has had his share of criticism over his lyrics.  The Guardian reports that earlier this month the artist canceled his Australian tour after feminist group Collective Shout launched a petition to ban him from the country because of his lyrics about “rape and violence against women.” 

Australian police investigated the artist in 2013 after Tyler launched an onstage rant against Collective Shout member Talitha Stone, who had campaigned against his performing in the country.  During the rant Tyler said, “F**king bitch, I wish she could hear me call her a bitch, too,  f**king whore.  Yeah, I got a sold-out show right now bitch.  Hey this f**king song is dedicated to you, you f**king c**t,” according to the Guardian, which noted that the object of his ire was in the audience and captured the moment on film.

In his blog posting, Clancy said “this is a broader issue of free speech, with new lines being drawn that include reaching back in time without acknowledging growth” and that Tyler wrote the lyrics “from an alter ego perspective.”

According to the Guardian, Tyler “joins the ranks of rappers who have been banned from the U.K., including Busta Rhymes and Snoop Dogg, due to “convictions for criminal offences in the U.S.”