In the past few years, Tyler, the Creator has become one of the most fascinating watch collectors of our time. He went from an affordable Casio that he wore religiously to a collection of Cartier watches so rare they’d make the archivists at the brand’s Parisian headquarters blush. Does anything say more about how deeply watches can sink their teeth into you than Tyler’s journey, which found him so deep into the hobby that he popped up at Monaco auctions in 2021 to grab new pieces? But last night, at GQ’s 2024 Men of the Year Party in Los Angeles, Tyler showed that his wristwear tastes are zagging yet again with a new peculiar watch.
Let’s zoom in on this beauty.
What in the world? While Tyler skipped the party’s red carpet, he created one of his own when he pulled up to the venue in one of his immaculate vintage cars. Upon stepping out, we got a pretty clear look at the watch on his wrist, which resembled…a painter’s palette.
My first instinct was to ask the folks at Cartier whether they happened to be responsible for the piece. It’s unlikely, but I didn’t want to rule it out entirely given the combination of Tyler’s loyalty to the brand and its history of unusual shapes. And while the maison has a history of making piece uniques for its best clients, it would be a stretch to think Cartier would produce an entirely new shape as a one-off, even for someone with Tyler’s level of fame. A Cartier representative couldn’t immediately confirm or deny this longshot.
The more likely answer is that Tyler is wearing an extremely affordable quartz watch. A listing for a piece virtually identical to Tyler’s is still visible on WatchCharts. The watch matches the palette shape and its splotches of paint standing in as hour indices. It’s hard to tell exactly who made Tyler’s exact piece, but it seems that a supplier produced this model for multiple brands. Some are made by a brand called St. Marin and say either “Hong Kong Movt” or “China Movt” at the bottom. Others have “Geneva” at the center of the dial and “Japan Movt” at the bottom. And what do these watches, one of which Tyler likely wore to GQ’s Men of the Year Party, typically cost? No more than $20!
While it might seem odd for Tyler to go from high-priced Cartiers to goofy quartz pieces, it’s actually a perfect middle ground in his watch journey. He started off with this type of extremely cheap non-mechanical watch before falling hard for Cartier’s unique shapes. Now, it appears he’s found something that bridges those two worlds.
