Tay Keith, the Memphis-born producer whose fingerprints are on some of the most important hip-hop records of the last decade, including Travis Scott's Sicko Mode and Drake's Nonstop, was found dead in his Nashville apartment Thursday.
He was 29 years old. Metro Nashville Police confirmed the death after officers performed a welfare check on Brytavious Lakeith Chambers, as Tay Keith was legally known, at his Martin Street apartment.
No foul play is suspected. The cause of death has not been determined.
He made his name in 2018 with a run of production that changed what hip-hop sounded like. Look Alive with BlocBoy JB and Drake was the opening statement.
Nonstop, which he co-produced for Drake, nearly topped the chart. Then came Sicko Mode, the Travis Scott record that went to number one on the Billboard Hot 100, spent more than 30 weeks in the Top Ten, went diamond platinum and earned two Grammy nominations.
Tay Keith's producer tag, the shouted "Tay Keith, buck these n****s down!" that opens that record and dozens like it, became one of the most instantly recognizable sounds in rap. You heard it and you knew what kind of record you were about to experience.
The productions that followed extended his reach across the genre. Eminem's Not Alike. Beyoncé's Before I Let Go. Lil Baby and Gunna and Drake on Never Recover. Polo G on Go Stupid. Lil Nas X on Holiday.
He earned Grammy nominations. He built a label. He completed a degree at Middle Tennessee State University while producing chart-topping records.
He was 29 years old. He was found in his Nashville apartment. No cause of death has been released.