The Odd Future collective’s infiltration into the worlds of music, fashion and television can obscure the fact that Frank Ocean was actually one of the first members of the crew sign a recording contract. Ocean was inked to Def Jam—where his work was shelved before he decided to release Nostalgia, Ultra on his own—before the “Yonkers” video went viral. In a brief interview with GQ magazine, Tyler the Creator reflected on those early days when he got a helping hand from Frank Ocean.
“That’s my nigga, because I was broke as fuck a year and a couple months ago,” Tyler revealed, in a brief interview for GQ’s Men of the Year 2012 series. “He would take me and a couple other friends to random restaurants and meet all his other famous friends and shit. It was cool. It was like this other life I didn’t know. He had a nice ass car.”
After signing a distribution deal with Sony, Tyler noted that the nice cars are spread around the rest of the crew. But he also praised his fellow Odd Future member’s solo debut, Channel Orange, which is close to being certified gold domestically.
“I first heard Channel Orange like in pieces,” Tyler added. “[Frank Ocean] took me to the studio and played me pieces, and I was stoked. My favorite is “Sierra Leone.” I actually don’t know what the fuck he’s talking about on “Sierra Leone,” I just like the way it sounds if you want to know the truth.”
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The full interview can be seen below, courtesy of GQ.com.
