The World Land Trust (formerly the World Wide Land Conservation Trust) is a UK-based nonprofit environmental organization established in 1989. Its primary aims are to ensure conservation of plants, animals and natural communities in areas at risk. For this purpose, it privately funds the purchase of large tracts of land by local NGOs for the purposes of protecting it, in a fashion similar to the Nature Conservancy by making use of land trusts. The organization also seeks to help in-situ conservation measures by providing training, capital and equipment for environmental stewardship in economically backward areas. The World Land Trust also offers to offset the carbon emissions of individuals and businesses[1]. It is affiliated to the World Conservation Union. Along with the WCU, it co-organized the first symposium on private nature reserves for conservation, named Land Purchase as an Intervention Strategy for Biodiversity Conservation in 2006. The noted environmentalist John Burton is the CEO of the Trust.

A short history[link]

The World Land Trust (originally the World Wide Land Conservation Trust) came into being in 1989 when the Programme for Belize was launched to raise money to privately buy land in Belize to protect tropical rain forests. The core of the trust was a $ 10,000 start up donation from the Massachusetts Audubon Society to John Burton, for the purposes of setting up an office in the United Kingdom for the trust in January 1989. An initial appeal was made in the BBC Wildlife magazine in April 1989 and was followed up by a fundraiser by noted naturalists Gerald Durrell and his wife Lee Durrell at the London Butterfly House in May 1989 when the Durrells formally declared the Trust open. The Trust then went on to help purchase and conserve land in Costa Rica and other Latin American countries like Patagonia in Argentina . They have since expanded operations to Asia and Africa, and even own a small reserve in Gloucestershire, locally in the United Kingdom. The Trust has maintained its links with the Durrell Conservation Trust, and Lee Durrell was the keynote speaker at the WLT's 20th Anniversary celebrations in 2009. The Trust's patrons are Sir David Attenborough, and David Gower. Other high profile supporters of the Trust have included Ken Livingstone, David Bellamy, Bill Oddie, Chris Packham Frank Thornton, Simon Barnes and Mark Carwardine .

A partner organization, World Land Trust - US [formerly World Parks Endowment] was also created in 1989, and like WLT is a non-profit organization that funds local organizations to buy land and protect rainforests and other critical habitats in the tropics. Both organizations are dedicated to minimizing their costs in order to allow donated funds to flow to real habitat conservation projects on the ground. Most land purchases are made at an average of only $100 an acre. Since its founding, WLT-US has saved over 700,000 acres (2,800 km²) of land -- 62,500 acres (253 km²) purchased outright and over 600,000 acres (2,400 km²) created as governmental protected areas.

The Trust manages a Diploma course with the University of East Anglia (Norwich) The Trust manges several websites, all of which have links to the main site: www.worldlandtrust.org. The Trust also initiated Green Ink, a unique support from writers, authors, photographers and illustrators, which involves Public Lending Rights, PLR's.

The Trust raised over £2.5-million to fund land purchase and conservation in 2009.

Projects[link]

Current Projects:

• Tropical Forest Conservation in Ecuador, working with Fundacion Jocotoco, Fundacion EcoMinga and Pro Bosques
• Atlantic Rainforest Conservation in Brazil working with REGUA
• Wild Lands Elephant Corridor Project in India, working with Wildlife Trust of India
• Chaco Pantanal Reserve in Paraguay, with Guyra Paraguay
• Grasslands in the Kinangop Highlands of Kenya with Nature Kenya
• Orangutan corridors in Borneo with LEAP

Other current project involvement:

• Patagonia Restoration Fund, on the Ranch of Hopes Wildlife Refuge, previously purchased with funds raised by WLT, working with Fundacion Patagonia Natural
• Friends of Belize, Belize working with Programme for Belize on the protection of their lands, much of which was funded with the help of World Land Trust
• Danjugan Island Support Fund, Philippines WLT funded the purchase of the island and now liaises with the Philippine Reef & Rainforest Conservation Foundation (based on Negros Island) on its protection.
• Carbon Restoration. WLT undertakes a range of restoration ecology projects, with funds raised through Carbon Balancing, on behalf of companies and individuals.

Europe[link]

• Kites Hill Reserve, Gloucestershire United Kingdom, was donated to the Trust and is managed as a nature reserve.

Previous projects[link]

• Management of the conservatory Wyld Court (now The Living Rainforest) - a tropical forest exhibit, in Hampstead Norreys

External links[link]

• Official website of the trust

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (February 2011)

There are two distinct definitions of a land trust:

• a private, nonprofit organization that, as all or part of its mission, actively works to conserve land by undertaking or assisting in land or conservation easement acquisition, or by its stewardship of such land or easements;^[1] or
• an agreement whereby one party (the trustee) agrees to hold ownership of a piece of real property for the benefit of another party (the beneficiary).^[2][3]

History[link]

Land trusts have been around at least since Roman times but their clearest history is from the time of King Henry VIII in England. At that time people used land trusts to hide their ownership of land so they would not have to serve in the military or suffer the other burdens of land ownership. For example an elder uncle would hold his nephew's land so they would not have to join the king's army. To put an end to this King Henry in 1536 passed the Statute of Uses. The statute declares that if one party holds land "to the use of" or in trust for another ("beneficiary"), legal title is vested in the beneficiary. Obviously, if the statute had been given literal effect, there would be no trust law. Shortly after the statute was enacted, however, English courts declared that the statute only applied if the trust was passive, that is the trustee didn’t do anything but hold the land.^{[citation needed]}

In the late 19th century in Chicago some people figured out that land trusts would be good things for buying property for investors to build skyscrapers on, and city aldermen figured they would be a good way to hide their ownership in land since they were forbidden to vote on city building projects when they owned land nearby. Since the law of England including the Statute of Uses was the law of America the question arose whether a land trust would be valid. This question went to the Illinois Supreme Court which ruled that if a land trust was set up with some minor duty on the trustee (such as to deed the property to the beneficiaries 20 years later), then the trust would not be considered passive and would be valid. Thus the land trust in America today is often called an “Illinois-type” land trust or "Illinois Land Trust".^[4]

Land trusts have been actively used in Illinois for over a hundred years and in recent decades have begun to be used in other states. The creation of land trusts is not a recorded document, however the declaration of a trust is through a "deed to trustee". Many believe that the trust is to be filed as a public document, however this removes all of the asset protection provided by the formation of the land trust. Robert Pless pioneered the land trust technology that has been used by many firms throughout the United States since the early 1990s.^{[citation needed]}

Types[link]

Conservation land trusts[link]

Land trusts, also called land conservancies and more rarely, conservation land trusts, have been in existence since 1891. However, it is only in the last two decades that land trusts began to proliferate, and they now form one of the fastest-growing and most successful conservation movements in American history.^[5]

History[link]

Since 1891, when the first regional land trust, The Trustees of Reservations, was founded, the number of land trusts has steadily increased, and there are now more than 1,667 land trusts operating in every state of the United States. There are land trusts working in Canada (e.g. Wildlife Preservation Canada, Edmonton & Area Land Trust, Ecotrust Canada and Georgian Bay Land Trust) and Mexico, and other countries worldwide, in addition to international land trusts like The Nature Conservancy and the World Land Trust.^{[citation needed]}

In 1891, the Trustees of Reservations was founded, perhaps the first conservation land trust in the entire world. Conservation land trusts now operate in all 50 U.S. states, as well as many other countries. Since then, the number of land trusts has steadily increased, with most forming in the last 25 years. Over 300 new local and regional trusts were formed in the period from 1998 to 2003 alone, with the last LTA Census counting 1,537 operating in the United States. Over 1,000 of these are members of the LTA. California now has the most land trusts, with 173 operating statewide in 2003. Massachusetts, despite being much smaller, was a close second with 154 land trusts that year.^{[citation needed]}

Aims[link]

The goal of conservation trusts is to preserve sensitive natural areas, farmland, ranchland, water sources, cultural resources or notable landmarks forever. These include enormous international organizations such as The Nature Conservancy or World Land Trust, as well as smaller organizations that operate on national, state/provincial, county, and community levels. Conservation trusts often, but not always, target lands adjacent to or within existing protected areas. However, land areas that are particularly valuable in terms of natural or cultural resources or are home to endangered plant or wildlife are good candidates for receiving protection efforts.^{[citation needed]}

Land trusts conserve all different types of land. Some protect only farmland or ranchland, others forests, mountains, prairies, deserts, wildlife habitat, cultural resources such as archaeological sites or battlefields, urban parks, scenic corridors, coastlines, wetlands or waterways; it is up to each organization to decide what type of land to protect according to its mission. Some areas have extremely limited public access for the protection of sensitive wildlife, or to allow recovery of damaged ecosystems.^{[citation needed]}

Many protected areas are still under private ownership, which tends to limit access as well. However, in many cases, land trusts work to eventually open up the land in a limited way to the public for recreation in the form of hunting, hiking, camping, wildlife observation, watersports, or other responsible outdoor activities. This is often with the assistance of community groups or government programs. Some land is also used for sustainable agriculture or ranching, or even for sustainable logging.^[6] While important, these goals can be seen as secondary to protection of the land from development.

Strategies[link]

Many different strategies are used to provide this protection, including outright acquisition of the land by the trust. In other cases, the land will remain in private hands, but the trust will purchase a conservation easement on the property to prevent development, or purchase any mining, logging, drilling, or development rights on the land. Trusts also provide funding to assist like-minded private buyers or government organizations to purchase and protect the land forever.^{[citation needed]}

As non-profit organizations, land trusts rely on donations, grants and public land acquisition programs for operating expenses and for acquiring land and easements. Donors often provide monetary support, but it is not uncommon for conservation-minded landowners to donate an easement on their land, or the land itself. Some land trusts also receive funds from government programs to acquire, protect, and manage land. Some trusts can afford to pay employees, but many others depend entirely on volunteers. According to the latest National Land Trust Census, 31% of land trusts reported having at least one full-time staff member, 54% are all volunteer, and 15% have only part-time staff.^[7]

When land is acquired, trusts will sometimes retain ownership of the land in perpetuity, or sell the land to a third party. This third party is often the government, which will usually add the land to an existing protected area, or create a new one entirely. Land trusts were instrumental in the 2004 creation of Great Sand Dunes National Park in Colorado, as well as the expansion of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park by 50% in 2003. Land trusts also sell land to private buyers, usually with a strict conservation easement attached. Keeping the land under private ownership has the added benefit of maintaining the land on local property tax rolls, providing income to the local government.^{[citation needed]}

Land trusts use many different tools in their protection efforts. Land trusts buy or accept donations of land in fee. This means that the landowner will sell fee simple interest to the land trust or will just give the land they own to an organization. Landowners may also sell or donate a conservation easement to a land trust.^{[citation needed]}

When a landowner donates a conservation easement to a land trust, he or she gives up some of the rights associated with the land. For example, the landowner might give up the right to build additional structures, while retaining the right to grow crops. Future owners also will be bound by the conservation easement’s terms. The land trust is responsible for making sure the easement’s terms are followed. This is done through annual or more frequent monitoring of the land.^{[citation needed]}

Conservation easements offer great flexibility. An easement on property containing rare wildlife habitat might prohibit any development, for example, while an easement on a working farm might allow the addition of agricultural structures. An easement may apply to all or a portion of the property, and need not require public access. Each conservation easement is carefully crafted to meet the needs of the landowner while not jeopardizing the conservation values of the land.^[8]

In between selling land or an easement to a land trust is an option called a bargain sale. A bargain sale is where a landowner sells a property interest to an organization for less than the market price. The amount of value between the market price and the actual sale price is considered a donation to the organization. There are other strategies to conserve land as well.^[9]

In October 2002, Property and Environment Research Center published a report by Dominic P. Parker entitled Cost-Effective Strategies for Conserving Private Land. This paper identified numerous ways for operating land trusts more efficiently, pointing out that conservation easement and other tools for land preservation may be less costly than ownership. Sometimes the various rights associated with land ownership are separable. A preservationist organization may, for instance, buy only the extraction rights on a property with oil or minerals, and then rent those rights to extracters on the organization's terms. The terms might include requirements to protect the environment and pay the organization royalties on materials extracted. Many land trust organizations had already been using these strategies for years when this report was published.^{[citation needed]}

Structure[link]

The Land Trust Alliance, formed in 1981, provides technical support to the growing network of land trusts in the United States. The Alliance performs a National Land Trust Census that keeps track of the land protected by local and regional land trusts.^[10] The last Census, conducted in 2003, reported that these trusts have protected almost 9.4 million acres (38,000 km²) of land in the United States, double the 4.7 million acres (19,000 km²) recorded in the 1998 survey. Over 5 million acres (20,000 km²) of that was protected by conservation easement in 2003. Although it does not include national or international land trusts in its Census, the LTA estimates another 25 million acres (100,000 km²) in the U.S. have been protected by those organizations. The largest amount of land protected by local and regional trusts is in the Northeast with 2.9 million acres (12,000 km²), while the fastest growing region between 1998 and 2003 was the Pacific (consisting of California, Nevada, and Hawaii), with protected land increasing 147% to 1.5 million acres (6,100 km²) in 2003.

Community land trusts[link]

History[link]

Community land trusts trace their conceptual history to India's gramdans where villages held property in the community interest, and to European and North American land banks, which are quasi-public agencies that invest in land often to help build family farms or to encourage economic development. "The ideas behind the community land trust...have historic roots" in the indigenous Americas, in pre-colonial Africa, and in ancient Chinese economic systems, as Robert Swann and his co-authors saw it in 1972. The introduction in their book, "The Community Land Trust: A Guide to a New Model of Land Tenure in America" continues, "...we can say the goal is to "restore" the land trust concept rather than initiate it."^{[citation needed]}

Residential land trusts emerged in the United States after calls among civil rights leaders in the 1950s and 1960s in the American South for economic reforms to reverse rampant poverty. An Institute for Community Economics was organized in the late 1960s to help residential trusts:^{[citation needed]}

• Gain control over local land use and reduce absentee ownership
• Provide affordable housing for lower income residents in the community
• Promote resident ownership and control of housing
• Keep housing affordable for future residents
• Capture the value of public investment for long-term community benefit
• Build a strong base for community action
• Preventing foreclosure

Residential community land trusts are now widespread in the United States, but seldom gain much notice beyond occasional local news accounts. The Institute for Community Economics in 2004 reported nearly 120 community land trusts of varied sizes in 30 states, the District of Columbia and in five Canadian provinces. While a few earlier trusts faltered, the number of land trusts in North America overall nearly tripled between the 1987 and 2004.^{[citation needed]}

Aims[link]

Community land trusts (CLT) rely on community members, word of mouth and strategic communications to attract new residents, members and supporters. In residential land trusts, the CLT usually owns the land, leasing it long-term to the land user who owns the home and other improvements on the land. CLTs usually retain rights to buy buildings from residents who move out of the community. The goal of residential trusts is often to protect housing prices from real estate speculation and gentrification but to allow residents to accrue equity, including sweat equity.^{[citation needed]}

A study conducted in December 2007 showed that foreclosure rates among members of 80 housing land trusts across the United States were 30 times lower than the national average.^[11] Foreclosure is destabilizing some neighborhoods as vacancy and abandonment rise and absentee landlords replace homeowners. To focus attention on the problem in Washington, D.C., Enterprise Community Partners and City First Land Trust established a real estate owned program and acquired more than 50 properties in 2009.

Burlington Community Land Trust (BCLT) is a nonprofit, member-based organization whose mission is to ensure access to affordable homes and vital communities for all people through the democratic stewardship of land. BCLT was the first municipally funded community land trust, and today is the largest community land trust in the United States, with more than 2,500 members. BCLT has become a model of locally affordable housing and community revitalization.^{[citation needed]}

Other land trusts[link]

A land trust is a useful way to manage complex divisions of the Bundle of Rights that people can own in real estate, and can be used to manage something as large and complex as a multi-state REIT, or as common and small as a single-family home.^{[citation needed]}

Corporations sometimes set up land trusts when they want to compile large tracts of land without arousing suspicion or alerting people to their plans (which would cause the asking price to rise). For example, the land for Walt Disney World near Orlando, Florida, was put together by using many land trusts to buy smaller tracts of land.^{[citation needed]}

Individuals use land trusts as an alternative type of housing tenure to owner occupancy mainly for privacy and to avoid probate. No one knows what one's bank balance or stock investments are, yet anyone with an internet connection can look up a person's real estate holdings. A person who has an auto accident or a doctor who accidentally injures a patient often becomes a target for a lawsuit if he or she owns substantial real estate investments. Many investors buy their properties through land trusts so that their name does not appear in the public records. The land trust also allows the property to immediately pass to the owner's heirs at the moment of death, rather than go through a time-consuming probate process.^{[citation needed]}

Some of the other advantages of land trusts for individuals are:^{[citation needed]}

• Sales price of the property can be kept off the public records.
• Property taxes are lower if the purchase price is kept private.
• Judgments or liens (such as IRS liens) against an individual's name are not a lien against their land trust property.
• Partners can more easily continue a project if one dies or is divorced.
• Interests can be transferred quickly without recording a deed.
• Managing a rental property is easier when the trustee can be blamed.
• Negotiating a purchase or sale can be easier when the trustee can be blamed.
• Liability on financing can be limited to the assets of the trust.

Investment trust companies hold property for investment purposes and non-citizens who want long-term access to land in Mexico often enter real-estate trust agreements, called fideicomiso, with Mexican citizens, but land trust more often refers to a community scale organization. Community land trusts are established to provide low- and moderate-income families access to affordable housing while conservation trusts protect environmentally, historically or culturally valuable places. Land trusts are also in place to protect farmland and ranchland. Despite the use of the term "trust," many if not most land trusts are not technically trusts, but rather non-profit organizations that hold simple title to land and/or other property and manage it in a manner consistent with their non-profit mission.^{[citation needed]}

Approximately 56 million acres (230,000 km²) of land in the United States is owned by the United States Government in trust for Native American tribes and individuals.^[12] The Indian trust lands are governed by the tribes, exempt from taxes, and are usually exempt from state laws. Indian trust lands differ from commercial land trusts in that there was no trust document that created the Indian trust and specified the duties incumbent on the federal government in managing the trust.^{[citation needed]}

See also[link]

• Community land trust
• Conservation communities
• Cooperative
• Extractive reserve
• Green belt
• Natural Lands Trust
• Gamiing Nature Centre
• Pennsylvania Land Trust Association

References[link]

• Thelandtrust.org.uk

External links[link]

• The Land Trust Alliance

Frank Ocean
Frank Ocean performing at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in 2012
Background information
Birth name	Christopher Breaux
Also known as	Christopher Francis Ocean, Lonny Breaux, Frank Ocean
Born	(1987-10-28) October 28, 1987 (age 24)[1] New Orleans, Louisiana
Genres	jazz R&B, Neo Soul, Alternative hip hop, hip hop soul[2]
Occupations	Singer-songwriter, rapper, musician, entertainer, vocalist
Instruments	Vocals, Keyboards,
Years active	2007–present
Labels	Odd Future Records, Island Def Jam
Associated acts	OFWGKTA, James Fauntleroy II, Jay-Z, Kanye West, Justin Bieber, Beyonce
Website	frankocean.com

Christopher Francis Ocean (born Christopher Breaux; October 28, 1987), better known by his stage name Frank Ocean, is an American singer-songwriter from New Orleans, Louisiana. Breaux made an early career as a ghost-writer for artists such as Justin Bieber, Bridget Kelly, Aramide Makinde and John Legend. In mid 2010 he became a member of OFWGKTA premiering on Domo Genesis' track, "SteamRoller". In February 2011, he released his debut mixtape Nostalgia, Ultra to critical acclaim. He released two singles; "Novacane" and "Swim Good". Both singles achieved chart success. Ocean went on a 7 show tour through North America and Europe promoting the mixtape. He is currently located in New York City.

The mixtape caught the interest of recording artists such as Kanye West, Beyoncé Knowles and Jay-Z, and he appeared on Watch the Throne. He co-wrote the popular track "Thinking About You" for Bridget Kelly. On January 5, 2012, the BBC announced that he had finished in second place in the BBC's Sound of 2012 poll.^[3] Ocean is currently working on his debut studio album, set to be released in the first half of 2012, while the same year he appeared at Coachella and he is scheduled to appear at Lollapalooza.

Biography[link]

2005–2010: Career beginnings[link]

Frank Ocean began his career with the producer duo The MIDI Mafia. Ocean joined Los Angeles-based hip hop collective OFWGKTA, whom he met through his connections, at the end of 2009.^[4][5] In late 2009, he met Tricky Stewart, who helped Ocean sign a contract with Def Jam Recordings as a solo artist, however, he was initially unable to build a relationship with the company.^[5][6][7] In 2010, he changed his name from Christopher Breaux to Christopher Francis William Ocean via a legal website.^[5]

[edit] 2011–present: Nostalgia, Ultra and debut album

Ocean has written songs for Justin Bieber, John Legend, Brandy,^[5] and Beyoncé Knowles ("I Miss You" from the album 4),^[8][9] Ocean has also worked with Nas^[10] (on whose 10th studio album Ocean is expected to feature, along with fellow Odd Future members Tyler, the Creator and Hodgy Beats)^[11] and Pharrell Williams.^[12] On February 18, 2011, Ocean released his first mixtape, Nostalgia, Ultra, to critical acclaim.^[5][7] His music mostly focuses on interpersonal relationships, personal reflection and social commentary.^[5] NPR's Andrew Noz calls Ocean's songwriting "smart and subtle...setting him apart from the pack."^[13] Rolling Stone magazine's Jonah Weiner calls Ocean a "gifted avant-R&B smoothie".^[14] In an April 2011 interview, Ocean stated that his relationship with Def Jam has strengthened since the release of his mixtape.^[4]

Ocean appeared in Tyler, the Creator's music video for the single "She", from Tyler's second studio album Goblin (2011).^[15][16] Ocean first performed with Odd Future at the Coachella Music & Arts Festival in April 2011, then later joined his OFWGKTA bandmates for the first time on tour from May 12 to May 19, 2011. They toured the eastern seaboard of the United States.^[17] On May 19, 2011 Ocean's record label Def Jam announced its plans to re-release Nostalgia, Ultra as an EP.^[18] The single "Novacane" was released to iTunes on May 31, 2011, and the EP originally was set to be released on July 26, 2011, but through his Tumblr blog on July 24, he stated that it would not be released on that date.^[19][20] In June 2011, Ocean revealed on his Tumblr that he would be working on the upcoming Kanye West and Jay-Z collaborative album, Watch the Throne.^[21] Ocean was ultimately a writer and featured artist on the tracks "No Church in the Wild" and "Made in America".^[22][23] On July 28, 2011 a song titled "Thinking About You"^[24] was leaked on the internet. It was later revealed the song was a reference track and written for Roc Nation artist Bridget Kelly for her debut studio album.^[25] Kelly who has performed an acoustic version of the song, retitled the song "Thinking About Forever".^[26] However, on September 15, 2011, a music video directed by High5Collective for Ocean's version was released, yet the song appeared on Bridget Kelly's debut EP Every Girl.^[27] His debut album is set for a release on Def Jam Records in Spring 2012.^[28] On March 8, 2012, a re-mastered version of "Thinking About You" leaked, intended to be a single.^[29] On April 5, Ocean released the cover art for his upcoming debut studio album's lead single "Thinkin' Bout You", revealing the song would be released to digital retailers on April 10.^[30] "It succinctly defines me as an artist for where I am right now and that was the aim," he said of the follow-up to the acclaimed Nostalgia, Ultra. "It’s about the stories. If I write 14 stories that I love, then the next step is to get the environment of music around it to best envelop the story and all kinds of sonic goodness."^[30]

Ocean used the entire melody and chords of The Eagles' song "Hotel California", without permission, on his own song, “American Wedding.” When asked about it, Ocean stated that Eagles band member "Don Henley is apparently intimidated by my rendition of 'Hotel California'. He threatened to sue if I perform it again." In response to Ocean's comments, The Eagles released a statement: “Frank Ocean did not merely 'sample' a portion of the Eagles’ 'Hotel California,' he took the whole master track, plus the song’s existing melody, and replaced the lyrics with his own. This is not creative, let alone 'intimidating.' It’s illegal. For the record, Don Henley has not threatened or instituted any legal action against Frank Ocean, although the Eagles are now considering whether they should.”^[31] In early 2012, a suit was filed against Frank Ocean for the use of Hotel California.

In March 2012, Coldplay announced that Ocean would perform as an opening act for a number of shows on their European tour in July and August 2012.^[32]

Discography[link]

Collaborative albums[link]

• The OF Tape Vol. 2 (2012)

Mixtapes[link]

• Nostalgia, Ultra (2011)

Awards and nominations[link]

References[link]

Tyler, The Creator
Background information
Birth name	Tyler Gregory Okonma
Also known as	Wolf Haley, Ace, Tron Cat, Young Nigga, Thurnis, Tyler Haley, DJ Stank Daddy
Born	(1991-03-06) March 6, 1991 (age 21)
Origin	Ladera Heights, Los Angeles County, California, United States[1]
Genres	Alternative hip hop
Occupations	Rapper, record producer, director, actor, graphic artist,[1] fashion designer[2]
Instruments	Vocals, piano, keyboards, drums
Years active	2006–present
Labels	Odd Future Records, XL Recordings, RED Distribution
Associated acts	Odd Future
Website	oddfuture.com

Tyler Gregory^[3] Okonma (born March 6, 1991), better known by his stage name Tyler, The Creator, is an American rapper, record producer, actor and fashion designer^[2] from Los Angeles. He is best known as the leader and co-founder of the alternative hip hop collective Odd Future,^[4] and has rapped on and produced songs for nearly every Odd Future release. Okonma also creates all the artwork for the group's releases^[1] and said in an interview with DJ Semtex that he designs all the group's clothing and other merchandise as well.^[2] He is currently signed to English independent record label XL Recordings, and his own record label, Odd Future Records.

Early life[link]

Tyler Okonma was born in Los Angeles, California to a Nigerian father and a mother of African-American and white Canadian descent.^[5][6][7] He claims that he had never met his father,^[8] and spent his early life living in the communities of Ladera Heights and Hawthorne in southwest Los Angeles County.^[1][9] At the age of seven, he would take the cover out of an album's case and create covers for his own imaginary albums including a tracklist with song times before he could even make music.^[10][11] At the age of 14, Okonma taught himself how to play piano.^[12] In his twelve years of schooling, he had attended twelve different schools, in Los Angeles and Sacramento areas.^[13]

Music career[link]

[edit] Bastard and Goblin (2009–2012)

On December 25, 2009, Tyler self-released his first album, Bastard. The album was eventually ranked 32nd on Pitchfork Media's list of the Top Albums of 2010. On February 11, 2011, Tyler released the music video for "Yonkers", the first single from his second album, Goblin, which was released May 10, 2011.^[14] The video has received attention from several online media outlets.^{[15][16][17][18]} An extended version with a third verse can be purchased on iTunes.^[19] After the release of "Yonkers," Tyler announced that he had signed a one-album deal with XL Recordings.^[20] Tyler and fellow OF member Hodgy Beats made their television debut on February 16, 2011 when they performed "Sandwitches" on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon.^[21] On March 16, Tyler and Hodgy performed "Yonkers" and "Sandwitches" on the 2011 mtvU Woodie Awards, being joined by other members of Odd Future during "Sandwitches". Goblin was released on May 10, 2011.

During an interview with Tyler for Interview, Waka Flocka Flame expressed his interest in collaborating with the Odd Future frontman to direct a music video for him.^[22]

Tyler's third album Wolf is scheduled for release in 2012. It will contain the instrumentals that Tyler has been making since the age of 15.^[23]

Tyler won Best New Artist for "Yonkers" at the 2011 MTV Video Music Awards.^[24]

[edit] Wolf and Loiter Squad (2012-present)

Tyler first mentioned the album in early 2010 saying that he would have an album titled Wolf. In early 2011 he told fans through his Formspring account that his third album would be called Wolf and it is scheduled to be released in May 2012. The album will continue Tyler's sessions with his fictional therapist, Dr. TC, as hinted by the title track on his first album, Bastard, in which Dr. TC says "this is the first of three sessions...".

In August 2011, Tyler said that the album will be more focused on beats and have less rapping.[4] He has said that on the album he will try to make music similar to his current interests, which he has said do not contain rapping.

In an interview with DJ Semtex, he confirmed that he will handle all the production on the album, except one song produced by Left Brain.[5] This was how the production on Goblin was dealt with.

Tyler initially announced in early 2011, after Los Angeles hip hop collective Odd Future annoced that will get their own TV show called Loiter Squad. It wasn't until September 8, 2011 that the show was finally confirmed as a 15-minute live action show composed of various sketches, man on the street segments, pranks and music made by OF. Dickhouse Productions, the production partnership that created Jackass, is scheduled to produce the show. The show premiered on March 25, 2012.

Other enterprises[link]

Tyler has also directed music videos, acted in two roles, and also done work as a graphic artist^[1].

Criticism[link]

Homophobia[link]

Tyler has been criticized for his use of homophobic slurs, in particular, his frequent use of the epithet faggot in his lyrics and on Twitter.^[25][26] He has denied accusations of homophobia, stating, "I'm not homophobic. I just say faggot and use gay as an adjective to describe stupid shit,"^[27][28] and, "I'm not homophobic. I just think faggot hits and hurts people."^[29] However, he later said in an interview with MTV about the slurs, "Well, I have gay fans and they don't really take it offensive, so I don't know. If it offends you, it offends you. If you call me a nigga, I really don't care, but that's just me, personally. Some people might take it the other way; I personally don't give a shit."^[30][31]

Misogyny[link]

Tyler has also been criticized for his graphic depictions of violence against women and his misogynistic lyrics.^[32][33] Brent DiCrescenzo of Time Out Chicago writes that rape is a "predominant theme" of Goblin^[34] and Hermione Hoby of The Guardian writes that Tyler's "rape and murder fantasies (are) graphic enough to send the vomit rising along with the bile."^[35] The Fader tallied 68 uses of the term "bitch" over Goblin's 73 minutes.^[36] Responding to Canadian indie pop duo Tegan and Sara's criticism of his lyrics,^[37] Tyler tweeted: "If Tegan and Sara need some hard dick, hit me up!"^[38]

Legal issues[link]

On December 22, 2011, Tyler was arrested during a show at the Roxy Theatre in West Hollywood, and charged with "suspicion of vandalism" for alleged destroying of sound equipment belonging to the venue. He was released on $20,000 bail.^[39][3]

Feuds[link]

In the song "Yonkers," Tyler disses numerous artists, such as rappers/singers B.o.B and Bruno Mars, and Hayley Williams, frontwoman of band Paramore. Tyler, the Creator also disses Bruno Mars in The Game's song "Martians vs. Goblins," in which he and Lil Wayne are featured artists. In response, B.o.B released a similar diss track, entitled "No Future" that also references Tyler's group, Odd Future. Ironically, Tyler praised the song, and initially did not think it was a diss track. Bruno Mars, in response to the verse "stab Bruno Mars in his goddamn esophagus," said, "[Tyler] has to wait in line if he wants to stab me...[Tyler's] definitely not the first guy that's said something like that to me and he's not going to be the last."^[40] Los Angeles rapper Hopsin also dissed him in his "Ill Mind of Hopsin 4" music video, released in July 2011. Tyler did not respond to it.

Discography[link]

• Bastard (2009)
• Goblin (2011)
• Wolf (2012)

Filmography[link]

Awards and nominations[link]

O Music Awards

MTV Video Music Awards

MTV2 Sucker Free Awards

References[link]

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