You know what’s really fucked up about the whole Travis Scott situation? I think I’m finally read to speak on this guy: I fucking found Travis Scott. He won’t tell anyone that, but I was the guy who set him up with every single media outlet, everyone in hip hop, everyone in magazine land, free studio time - everything.
I first started talking to Travis Scott after he sent me some music in early January of 2010. He sent me some pre-mixed stuff from before his album “Crusin” with Travis x Jason - a substandard Houston hip hop duo taking samples from Crystal Castles. I told him exactly what it was: Really bad, uncompressed, lacking in engineering, but really damn close to being special.
We stayed in correspondence, trading notes, and talking about music. I told him to study The Cars, how they structured their songs, and how their songs told stories. We’d talk on the phone every now and then, and I’d give him tips. When I started talking to Travis, he needed a lot of help. I guided him when no one else was around.
Finally, Travis sent me “That Bitch Crazy” in August of 2011 - 17 months after we exchanged our first email. That song was the first time everything finally clicked for him. Immediately, I posted it on Earmilk. I called Jeremy Yudkin with GoodMusicAllDay and said, “This is fire. Post it.” He posted it. I contacted illRoots and said, “Guys, this dude is special. Post it.” Mike posted it. I called my friends at Virgin Records and said, “This is the best thing ever. Be on it.” By the end of the first week, I had probably contacted a solid 50 big blogs, media outlets, and friends - people like Ruddy Rock from New York, with iHipHop. I would tell anyone who would listen, “Travis Scott is something special.” I remember playing his music for friends, and them just being blown away.
I’m not someone without a network in music. If I really believe in you, I will introduce you to everyone you know in order to make you successful. I did that for Travis. He had the talent, but at the end of the day, he didn’t know who to talk to, or how to write a coherent email. In this business, writing a professional email can really make a difference.
One thing I remember was just how normal he used to be. I was sitting at an IHOP with my friends Brittany and Erin, in Newnan, GA - when Travis called me up. They had heard his music, and they were really happy to talk to him. Before it all went to his head, Travis was a really normal guy.
Throughout the winter of 2011, I worked with Travis. I met up with him in mid-December of 2011, in Houston. We went out with Tony Loney, with a camera, and we talked about music. It was going to be for a documentary - and Travis would be a big part of it. I remember running into a girl who read Earmilk at a Fatburger. She recognized me, and noted to me about how Travis must have said “swag” at least 20 times in two minutes.
In Tony’s Tundra, I heard “Analogue” for the first time. At that very moment, I knew Travis would be bigger than famous. I felt genuinely happy for the guy, because he was humble, loved music, and respected the people who helped him get there.
I arrived in Los Angeles on Janurary 3rd, 2012. Travis Scott arrived three days later. Within day, Travis Scott and his friend Tony Loney had made Lion Heart Creative Group’s dungeon their second home. They got free studio time, and got to meet all my friends. I introduced him to Nelson London (The Strokes/ C O L O R), Ryan Ross (PATD/The Young Veins), Travis Graves (Mt. Egypt), 2800Stunnaman, Double 0 (aka Mic The Drums/Kidz in the Hall), Donnis, Juicy J, Ke$ha, my big brother Ashley Haber, Will Edwards, and about 1,000 other people. We all helped him. We all connected him with people, trying to get him to make art.
One day though, things got sort of weird. I caught Travis trying to steal a bounce from a session he and Nelson London were working on together. He came to my apartment in Beverly Hills and started screaming at me and Will, telling us, “I’ve got a meeting with T.I. Shane, I need that bounce. I need to show it to T.I.” I explained to him, “That isn’t your music. If you’re taking that session in, you need to go with Nelson, because he did the majority of the production on that.”
Then, he started backpedaling. “I did that. Nelson just did some little stuff. That was all me.” Since I had seen the whole thing take place, and I had watched Nelson do most of it, including playing guitar, I just said, “No, you just need to leave.” I was in my bath robe, eating fried chicken, so I propped my feet up on the table, and watched him stomp his feet, like a child.
At that point I realized Travis Scott had changed. He got one whiff of Anthony Kilhoffer, and started name dropping. He met Kesha (one of Ashley’s best friends) at her birthday party (at the Lion Heart Dungeon), and started telling people he knew Ke$ha. Of course, it all got back to me. I thought to myself, “What happened to the humble kid in Houston?”
In all these interviews, it’s all about how he did it all himself, and I think that’s total bullshit. Before he attached himself to ill.Roots like they were his parents, before Kanye, before he even left Houston, I was there when one else was . I tried to get him to do it the right way - don’t step on people. As soon as he tried to steal from my good friend Nelson, I knew he wasn’t someone I wanted to work with.
But you want a shitty character move? You want to know what low, grimy motherfucker Travis Scott is? Late one night, we were all down in the Dungeon, up late, having a party. Music was playing, we were all having fun… and then I did what all epileptic people do from time to time: I had a seizure. You know what Travis Scott did? He left. He and his friend Tony left me. I eventually ended up at the hospital that night, but Travis couldn’t be bothered.
I should mention at this point that during the week before my seizure, Travis and I were discussing me managing him. For almost two years, I had been working with him, building him up, and giving him guidance in music. To get left like that, when I’m having a medical emergency - that’s pretty cold.
So the next day, I called Travis Scott while I was driving to see my friend Jenn. He explained to me that he didn’t want a manager that would be having seizures, and he didn’t want to bring T.I. around anything like that. “How do I know you’re not just gonna be shaking on the ground and shit?”
I exploded. If there’s one thing you don’t do, it’s use my disability against me, as a reason to say I’m not worthy in my business. Travis Scott is the kind of person who discriminates based upon disability. He steals from the musicians around him. Then, he manipulates people into thinking he did it all on his own.
Anyone in The Dungeon can attest to what a truly despicable human being Travis Scott has become. Max. Travis. Stunna. Double 0. Donnis. Anyone. They all witnessed Travis’s bullshit. We all saw Travis morph into this celebrity name dropping, ego driven asshole.
I spent two months, every single day, in The Dungeon with Travis, helping him record Owl Pharaoh. I remember him rapping on his iPhone, arguing with Will the engineer. I remember when he tried to steal Will and Barry’s productions, to a point where Will decided to sabotage his entire album. No one wants to work with someone who steals from them - and that’s what Travis does.
I heard this week Travis Scott signed a 360 deal with Kanye West for $870,000. Am I happy for him? Not at all. He might be one of the most purely talented producers and rappers in the industry, but he’s a thief, a liar, and he manipulates what he wants out of people until he’s used them all up. There’s no such thing as loyalty to Travis Scott.
Personally, I can’t wait to see Travis Scott fall from grace, and be the next cautionary rap tale.
Last week I got a letter from the attorneys representing Sony and Epic Records, letting me know it was their intent to pursue legal action against me, on behalf of Travis Scott. I posted a song that he did with OG CHESS and ASAP FERG on my Soundcloud - a song they did in November of 2011. A song that he stole from OG CHESS. I know, because we still have the original session, with a timestamp. Travis wants to sue me, because I posted something he stole from someone else.
Travis Scott is a punk. I’ll stand by that as long as I live. Fuck Travis Scott.
Damn Travis
