For the last four years there are two festivals that I must attend annually: Coachella and Camp Flog Gnaw. While Coachella is considered the standard bearer of music festivals, Camp Flog Gnaw is a close second. At Camp Flog Gnaw, Tyler, the Creator created his own world and has been so gracious as to invite us in. And this year was particularly special as it was the only Los Angeles stop for his “IGOR” tour (which is one of the best albums of 2019. Fight me.)
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Hosted in his hometown of Los Angeles, CA, Tyler started Camp Flog Gnaw (Golf Wang backwards which is a Spoonerism of Wolf Gang) in 2012 as a one day show featuring OFWGKTA (Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All), Lil Wayne, Trash Talk, and Action Bronson.
This past weekend, Tyler hosted his 8th Camp Flog Gnaw Carnival, which grew into a two-day festival at Dodger Stadium, featuring Drake (more on that later), Solange, DaBaby, H.E.R., YG, 21 Savage, and so on. He built it from the ground up, before all your faves were hosting festivals, driven off the confidence of believing in himself and his brand. Tyler rode no waves or coattails.
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Not to mention that he also incorporated a WHOLE ASS CARNIVAL into the festival with rides (that are free with purchase of tickets) and carnival games (tickets sold separately).
The best part about attending Camp Flog Gnaw, and music festivals in general, is seeing the variety of Black people. This may not be true but the feeling is that many black people view music festivals (that do not specifically cater to black people) as ‘some white people shit”. Camp Flog Gnaw almost seems like it was created for those Black kids who were told they sound “white” because they spoke “proper” and liked “white music” even though the line-up is always Black AF. We are truly doing ourselves a disservice if that is the case. Not only do we need our own spaces, we need to invade the spaces of others. We are not monolithic. Black festival gear doesn’t always have to be Wakanda meets Coachella. Its exciting to see us in other elements, expressing the various ways to “Black” and how we always manage to stand out among a sea of others.
And that is why I enjoy Camp Flog Gnaw so much because this space was created by a young, awkward, angsty, imaginative, quirky, queer, Black boy from Ladera Heights who has never fit within the box, carving out his own lane during at a time when rap music was hyper-masculine, saturated with the “grind/from the streets/dope boys” personas. Camp Flog Gnaw is a place where those ‘awkward’ kids can be themselves. I met this one Black chick while waiting for Tyler’s set to start, who was amped about hopping into the mosh pit during “New Magic Wand“. And I fucked with that because Black people mosh too. (Side note: I almost died twice in that mosh pit and almost lost my shoe but it was worth it and I’d do it again).
And this is one of the reasons why Drake got the reception he did. Tyler’s fans are different. The audience Camp Flog Gnaw attracts is different from your typical festival. While not opposed to more mainstream acts, the acts Tyler chooses have loyal fan bases who fuck with them because of their body of work, not because of popularity. Excitement grows when you see the line up. Some hardcore fans go to a particular festival just to see one specific act and everything else is considered a bonus. Which is why Tyler’s ‘???’ on the lineup was a gamble, and one that Aubrey Graham took a L on because many fans bought tickets willing to bet their life savings on the ‘???’ being Frank Ocean.
Camp Flog Gnaw cussed Drake off stage, never been so proud. Frank will never perform here. #campfloggnaw2019 #drake pic.twitter.com/najOVvEq0I
— sf (@abathingfroman) November 11, 2019
While it is unfair for the fans to project its desires on to a festival, and by no means is booing tolerated, it is not unreasonable for those in attendance, who positioned themselves for hours to get a good spot for the closing act, to feel a sense of disappointment when Champagne Papi hit the stage and not Frank. And trust, he and Tyler did themselves no favors. After bringing out ASAP Rocky and Lil Uzi Vert to do two songs a piece, Tyler asked if he could bring another friend out and it was Drake. The crowd went NUTS! Drake said he was here for us and was going to do a few songs and we were with it. After two songs, he asked if we wanted more and we did. After like 5 songs you could feel the confusion brewing. How long is Drake planning on performing? There are 30 minutes left and surely Tyler is bringing out another friend and that friend is gonna be Frank Ocean because he just released two songs and is BFFs with Tyler so I mean….
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So, after playing two deep cuts specifically requested by Tyler (one being “Feel No Ways“) that sucked the energy from the crowd because only a handful of people knew those songs because no one came to Flog Gnaw ready for Drake (except Tyler). So when Drake asked the audience again if we wanted more, the collective feeling was “No!” because we wanted more of whoever else was supposed to be hitting the stage. Had Tyler and/or Drake made it clear after teasing us that Drake was the closing act I think the narrative would be different. Folks would have let go of their Frank dreams and the real Drake fans could’ve moved up front and given him the love he requires and deserves. And shout out to Drake for bowing out gracefully. He was truly a class act for that one because the crowd was disrespectful…and entitled. I still can’t believe Drake got booed off a stage. Only in 2019.
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That said, I will be there next year and the year after next and plan on expanding to other festivals (when my pockets get right) in order to share the black festival experience I feel is underrepresented. We outcchea and it is a personal goal to make sure the world knows it.
Thank you Tyler for providing another outlet for the Black experience. Until next year….