Tay Keith Opens First Black-Owned Studio in Nashville, TN

Tay Keith came out of the gate with BlocBoy JB over five years ago, and the Memphis native hasn’t slowed down since.

Tay Keith sat down with the head honchos of the Earn Your Leisure podcast, where he discussed his career and opening the first Black-owned studio in Nashville, TN.

“Nashville is known as ‘music city.’ Why’s it known as ‘music city’? Because it’s the home capital for country music and pop,” Keith said during the interview. “The thing is you have all of these big pop records and big country artists blowing up out of Nashville, Tennessee. Why can’t it be a first Black-owned Hip-Hop studio in the middle of the two? So I was like, it’s a big fish, small pond.”

He added: “I feel like you spend $100,000 on jewelry. You spend 200 racks on cars. You could go buy property. You could go commercial. You ain’t got to buy cribs, the least you can do is rent them out.”

Tay co-produced Travis Scott’s “Sicko Mode,” which capped at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. He also laid the backdrop on BlocBoy JB’s “Look Alive,” which peaked No. 5 on the Hot 100, and Drake‘s “Nonstop,” which landed at No. 2 on Billboard. 

He also produced Beyoncé’s version of “Before I Let Go,” which he spoke about during an interview with HuffPo. 

“I mean, I get so much love from the Beyhive. Beyoncé fans show me so much love because it’s not just a Beyoncé record, you know? This one connects with Frankie Beverly, so it’s kind of a “Black People Anthem.” Anybody could just remake a song, but when I work with Beyoncé and remake it, that takes it to a different level. I got a lot of support from the Beyhive, and a lot of her fans always send me love.”

In 2018, as Keith was gaining fame as a producer, he earned his bachelor’s degree from Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro.

He was nominated for Best Rap Song for his work on “Sicko Mode” at the 61st Annual Grammy Awards.