Tay Keith

Producer Tay Keith and his lean, snaking sound crept into the mainstream in 2018 with a trifecta of Top Ten pop hits tailored for the streets. He first scored that year with "Look Alive," headlined by longtime friend and collaborator <a href="spotify:artist:4TEJudQY2pXxVHPE3gD2EU">BlocBoy JB</a>. That track featured <a href="spotify:artist:3TVXtAsR1Inumwj472S9r4">Drake</a>, whose subsequent "Nonstop" -- which Tay co-produced -- almost crowned the chart. Those were warning flares for <a href="spotify:artist:0Y5tJX1MQlPlqiwlOH1tJY">Travis Scott</a>'s massive "Sicko Mode," another Tay co-production, which not only topped the Billboard Hot 100 but earned a pair of Grammy nominations and achieved rare diamond platinum status. Since that breakthrough year, Tay Keith's collection of gold and platinum awards has grown through collaborations with the likes of <a href="spotify:artist:7gZfnEnfiaHzxARJ2LeXrf">6ix9ine</a> ("Stoopid"), <a href="spotify:artist:0QHgL1lAIqAw0HtD7YldmP">DJ Khaled</a> (including "Wish Wish"), <a href="spotify:artist:6AgTAQt8XS6jRWi4sX7w49">Polo G</a> ("Go Stupid"), and <a href="spotify:artist:7jVv8c5Fj3E9VhNjxT4snq">Lil Nas X</a> ("Holiday"). In addition to his large volume of work in support of rappers and singers, Tay has been either a lead or co-lead artist on occasion. He has teamed with <a href="spotify:artist:0d0wL41ZqFutUwco4uO1dH">Co Cash</a> for Foolhardy (2018), and with <a href="spotify:artist:37ijPPH7qiKay4QJ5ktqEU">Fast Cash Boyz</a> for Fxck the Cash Up (2020). He launched his <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Warner%22">Warner</a>-supported Drumatized label with the <a href="spotify:artist:3hcs9uc56yIGFCSy9leWe7">Lil Durk</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:2hlmm7s2ICUX0LVIhVFlZQ">Gunna</a> collaboration "Lights Off" (2022).

Born in South Memphis, Tennessee, Tay Keith (born Brytavious Lakeith Chambers) found his knack for production at age 14, learning at home while uploading beats to audio streaming platforms. After moving to Raleigh, he quickly developed a friendship and working relationship with local rapper <a href="spotify:artist:4TEJudQY2pXxVHPE3gD2EU">BlocBoy JB</a>, and was quick to provide beats for the rapper's 2016 debut mixtape, Who Am I. Mastering both the clacking drawl of local production styles and the faster pace of mainstream trap, the producer upped his work ethic through the mid- to late 2010s, working on mixtapes including <a href="spotify:artist:41klVmDluQZmGGqoidNfbe">Blac Youngsta</a>'s F*ck Everybody, <a href="spotify:artist:3tJoFztHeIJkJWMrx0td2f">Moneybagg Yo</a>'s Heartless and Federal 3X, and <a href="spotify:artist:4TEJudQY2pXxVHPE3gD2EU">BlocBoy</a>'s Loco, Grape Juice, The Purple M&M, and Who Am I 3.

After the Memphis collaborators caught the attention of international superstar <a href="spotify:artist:3TVXtAsR1Inumwj472S9r4">Drake</a>, the trio worked together for 2018 single "Look Alive," which landed at number five on the U.S. singles chart and gave both artists their first taste of the mainstream. With international eyes on the duo, they were quick to enlist <a href="spotify:artist:1URnnhqYAYcrqrcwql10ft">21 Savage</a> for remix track "Rover 2.0." Working alongside artists from <a href="spotify:artist:13ubrt8QOOCPljQ2FL1Kca">A$AP Rocky</a> to <a href="spotify:artist:02kJSzxNuaWGqwubyUba0Z">G-Eazy</a>, Tay landed production work for <a href="spotify:artist:0Y5tJX1MQlPlqiwlOH1tJY">Travis Scott</a>'s upcoming ASTROWORLD LP through his co-sign from <a href="spotify:artist:3TVXtAsR1Inumwj472S9r4">Drake</a>, whose "Nonstop" had become Tay's second Top Ten production. The result was the co-produced "Sicko Mode," the first hip-hop song in history to spend more than 30 weeks in the chart's Top Ten. The single landed Tay his first number one hit, as well as two nominations at the 61st Grammy Awards later that year.

Now an established name in the hip-hop mainstream, the Memphis producer continued to work with some of the industry's biggest names, ending 2018 with colossal hits including <a href="spotify:artist:7dGJo4pcD2V6oG8kP0tJRR">Eminem</a>'s "Not Alike," <a href="spotify:artist:5f7VJjfbwm532GiveGC0ZK">Lil Baby</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:2hlmm7s2ICUX0LVIhVFlZQ">Gunna</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:3TVXtAsR1Inumwj472S9r4">Drake</a>'s "Never Recover," <a href="spotify:artist:0iEtIxbK0KxaSlF7G42ZOp">Metro Boomin</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:1URnnhqYAYcrqrcwql10ft">21 Savage</a>'s "Don't Come Out the House," and <a href="spotify:artist:7gZfnEnfiaHzxARJ2LeXrf">6ix9ine</a>'s "Stoopid." He also made time for comparatively underground projects such as Foolhardy, a full-length with <a href="spotify:artist:0d0wL41ZqFutUwco4uO1dH">Co Cash</a>. The next year saw the producer expand his repertoire to R&B and pop. After kicking off 2019 with work for <a href="spotify:artist:6vWDO969PvNqNYHIOW5v0m">Beyoncé</a> ("Before I Let Go"), Tay worked with <a href="spotify:artist:5YGY8feqx7naU7z4HrwZM6">Miley Cyrus</a> ("Mother's Daughter") and <a href="spotify:artist:0QHgL1lAIqAw0HtD7YldmP">DJ Khaled</a> ("Wish Wish"), alongside more traditional trap rappers <a href="spotify:artist:6fxyWrfmjcbj5d12gXeiNV">Denzel Curry</a> ("Automatic") and <a href="spotify:artist:13y7CgLHjMVRMDqxdx0Xdo">Gucci Mane</a> ("Came from Scratch," "Look at Me Now," "Bottom"). Tay's triumphs over the next two years included platinum certifications for <a href="spotify:artist:6AgTAQt8XS6jRWi4sX7w49">Polo G</a>'s "Go Stupid," <a href="spotify:artist:7jVv8c5Fj3E9VhNjxT4snq">Lil Nas X</a>'s "Holiday," and another <a href="spotify:artist:0QHgL1lAIqAw0HtD7YldmP">DJ Khaled</a> hit, "Every Chance I Get" (featuring <a href="spotify:artist:5f7VJjfbwm532GiveGC0ZK">Lil Baby</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:3hcs9uc56yIGFCSy9leWe7">Lil Durk</a>). Additionally, he put together another full-length, Fxck the Cash Up, this one recorded with fellow Memphis natives <a href="spotify:artist:37ijPPH7qiKay4QJ5ktqEU">Fast Cash Boyz</a>. In 2022, Tay set up his hometown-based Drumatized label, worked out a licensing deal with major-label <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Warner%22">Warner</a>, and launched his imprint with "Take Off," a single co-produced by Grayson Beats with mike duties shared by <a href="spotify:artist:3hcs9uc56yIGFCSy9leWe7">Lil Durk</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:2hlmm7s2ICUX0LVIhVFlZQ">Gunna</a>. ~ David Crone, Rovi