LUMBERJACK

⟵ WUSYANAME • LUMBERJACK • HOT WIND BLOWS ⟶

LUMBERJACK is the fifth track from Tyler, The Creator's seventh studio album CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST. It was released as the album's only single on June 16, 2021, alongside its music video, and then later as part of the album on its June 25 release date.

Background

Tyler had treated himself to a Rolls Royce shortly after winning his 2020 GRAMMY for Best Rap Album Igor. He went with the Rolls Royce because it was big and much different from his previous smaller racing cars. On one night, he packed up and went to Utah for sledding, but encountered confusion from a Starbucks crowd about what kind of car he was riding. This song is a response to that.

Lyrics

Refer to Genius for more information.

Rolls Royce is brought up several times in this song, explicitly in the chorus ("Rolls Royce pull up, black boy hop out") and subtly in the last line of the first verse ("never rain in Cali, came with an umbrella"). The "umbrella" line refers to how Rolls Royce vehicles come with a free umbrella; its Genius annotation was scrutinized by Tyler himself on Twitter:

man genius just be saying anything lmfao, even the lyric meanings be way off im like ??? “might be referencing the umbrella that comes with the rolls royce, maybe” ARE U DUMB IM CLEARLY TALKING ABOUT THAT. “ no he mean in 2016 when he met earl on wednesday” and lyric is “ cat”

ima post lyrics like monday for genius apple all dat so its all correct and stuff

In the first verse, Tyler namedrops hit rapper Drake in a line ("I hit Drizzy and told him I had a milli' for him (Oh shit)") that some fans speculate is double-edged. On one hand, Tyler can be paying respect to Drake after he was booed off by fans at 2019 Camp Flog Gnaw festival and in turn referring to the price of a feature from him, but fans also point out that "milli" might be a subtle joke about Drake and his communications with then (and still) underaged British actress Millie Bobbie Brown.

Throughout the rest of the track, Tyler namedrops popular film Mulan and television series Malcolm in the Middle. He also refers to his 2019 song "NEW MAGIC WAND" and its live performances, likely specifically his 2020 GRAMMY performance of the song.

Sample

The song samples "2 Cups of Blood" by Gravediggaz, from 1994.

Music video

Like the music video for "WUSYANAME", it opens with spoken word from Tyler before cutting into the first verse (and skipping the regular intro altogether):

The plan was to sled in Brian Head, Utah. Chasing big, [?] vanilla and cocoa, [?] that's reflecting on my porcelain skin. I decided to drop my concrete boat. Floating, Kelly Green. [?] spacious.

In the music video, viewers can see some unreleased LE FLEUR shoes and possibly even unreleased LE FLEUR nailpolish that Tyler receives.

Interestingly, a butler (played by Tyler) appears to hold a Rolls Royce umbrella (a reference to the corresponding line in the song) and has an appearance that is reminiscent of the "IFHY" music video. Both the butler and Tyler attempt to hold their ground as a big gust of wind strikes them continuously.

Both the butler and the odd house in the background later appeared in Tyler's performance at the 2021 BET Awards, which is a re-enactment of the music video for a live audience.

For the second verse, Tyler is shown facing heavy snow conditions (another reference to the "sled in Utah" line in the song) before the video cuts right after the "magic, new wand" line.

The video only stars Tyler himself and an unknown woman who gave Tyler a manicure.

Live performances

For Tyler's performance of the song at the 2021 BET Awards, he recreated the windy part of the music video. It opened with an alternate intro from DJ Drama pleading him to remain safe with heavy wind conditions headed his way. His chauffeur and him struggle to maintain their balance with a heavy wind blowing away his house. Tyler intentionally ends the performance abruptly at the beginning of the third chorus by falling off stage due to the wind.

Hey Tyler, wassup man, it's Drama. Listen, tonight, you're at the BET Awards, big big night. I need you to let them know. It's going to be a wind storm. Please, my guy, please, be careful. Uh, if anything, CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST.

Beginning with his landmark performance at Coachella 2024, Tyler has performed the song set to an alternate backing track including a lengthy introduction and some alternate instrumentals. He has performed his version on the Chromakopia tour.

Trivia

• When Tyler performed CMIYGL at the Roxy in June 2021, this song was labeled as "ROLLSROYCE" on the setlist.