When Tyler, the Creator speaks his mind, people listen.

This doesn’t just include the crowds he plays to worldwide, but also nearly 2.5 million Twitter followers eager to “favourite” whatever the rapper-producer has to offer in 140 characters or less.

Last week, in an all-caps missive targeting Frito-Lay’s Ruffles chips, Tyler asked, “Why don’t you make the BBQ anymore?”, which had 3,700 social-media users rallying behind this alleged snack travesty. Never mind that many markets, including Canada, still carry the faux-smoked crisp—the faithful were more than happy to show their support.

A recent video promoting the European leg of Tyler’s tour in support of his album Cherry Bomb shows how fans are willing to do pretty much anything to get into his good books. In particular, a Bristol man went next-level by volunteering to lick up the vomit Tyler’s hype man, Jasper Dolphin, left on-stage midset. Even Tyler was shocked to see the guy slurping stringy upchuck. Disgusting, but damn, that’s some devotion.

Eyes have been on Tyler, the Creator since well before Cherry Bomb, his third official studio full-length. Five years ago, the then-teenaged Tyler garnered attention as the de facto leader of rap collective Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All, which mixed future-funk beats with punk’s fury and filthy rhymes. Though he quickly became a critics’ fave, a fair amount of negative press came his way, too. Early tracks like his Bastard mix tape’s “Blow” came under fire for shockingly ugly lyrics like “I think that rape’s fun,” while his catalogue is filled with innumerable homophobic slurs.

The provocateur says he toys with people’s expectations and beliefs. A recent T-shirt from his clothing line, GOLF, juxtaposes the LGBT rainbow flag with an image of the Celtic cross, which is often associated with the white-power movement. Of the racist implications of the latter, he wrote in a blog post that he’s “playing with the idea of taking the power out of something so stupid”.

He added, “Also, ever since my career started, I’ve been labeled as a homophobe, simply because of my use of the word faggot. Again, trying to take the power out of something, I WAS NEVER REFERRING TO SOMEONES SEXUAL PREFERENCE WHEN USING THAT WORD.” That may seem both a complicated and hollow rebuttal to his critics—he wrote that he expects as much—but the rapper is trying to create a dialogue. Of the U.S.’s decision to legalize gay marriage countrywide last week, he offered up a celebratory tweet: “America didn’t suck today.”

Cherry Bomb is bringing positivity to the forefront as well. Central to the LP is the image of soaring through the clouds, a metaphor for realizing one’s potential. “Find Your Wings” does this without rapping, but rather through an elaborate, ’70s-style soul-jazz arrangement replete with wobbly Innervisions keyboards and pillow-soft plunking from vibraphone great Roy Ayers.

That said, Tyler isn’t entirely softening the edges on Cherry Bomb. He’s not exactly shedding the misogynist tag on “Blow My Load”, an overly long oral-sex gag that leaves a woman slumped “in the back of my truck, butt-naked”. But elsewhere, “Fucking Young/Perfect” has him opting out of becoming hip-hop’s Humbert Humbert, fully paranoid over the six-year age difference between him and a girl he likes potentially translating to a 10-year sentence. He turned 24 in March.

Tyler, the Creator is still keeping in touch with fans of all ages through a newly launched app, also called GOLF. Since the spring, it’s been offering fans invitations to preshow events, among other exclusives.

This weekend, he’ll be one of the headlining acts at this year’s FVDED in the Park festival in Surrey. The performance is sure to have devotees and detractors alike scrambling to see what Tyler creates next. If Dolphin vomit is your thing, he’s got a guy on-stage for that, too.

Tyler, the Creator plays Day 1 of FVDED in the Park at Surrey’s Holland Park on Friday (July 3).