Travis Barker

Travis Barker is an American drummer, who became famous after joining a popular band, Blink-182. He was born on 14 November 1975 in California. Travis started learning how to play the drums when he was just four years old. His parents bought him a drum set.

Barker’s mother died while he was still in pre-school. Before her death, the young woman asked her son to continue playing the drums because she saw his unique talent. Travis decided to honor his mom’s last wish and try to become a famous drummer.

The youngster didn’t stop playing the drums for a day. While he was in high school, Barker participated in local contests and attended music festivals. Soon he got a chance to shine. The artist was invited by the band Feeble to join it on a tour.

In 1993, Travis graduated from high school and started performing with different groups, including Feeble. He also worked with The Suicide Machines and Aquabats. Between 1993 and 1998, Barker worked as a teacher, helping others master the drum set.

In 1998, Travis joined Blink-198. He replaced Scott Raynor, who left before the recording of the album, Enema Of The State. As part of the group, the drummer finally became famous. He continued giving drum lessons until 2002. Then he stopped in order to devote himself fully to the music career.

In 2005, Classic Rock magazine published a list of top-50 rock drummers. Barker’s name showed up on the 32nd spot. In September 2008, the musicians lived through a terrible airplane accident in Columbia. The plane caught fire on the takeoff strip. Four people died. Travis got second and third-degree burns but managed to survive and got back to work.

In 2011, Travis Barker announced an upcoming release of his debut LP, Give The Drummer Some. He invited several celebrities to record it. The album featured a mix of styles, including rap, nu-metal, electronic music, and more. The album climbed to the 9th spot of Billboard 200. At that time, many fans realized how big of a potential the drummer had as a solo artist and tried to book Travis Barker for private events.

In 2012, Barker and a hip-hop artist Yelawolf began working on a joint EP, Psycho White. The lead single “Push ‘Em” came out in September. The album was released two months later.

While working on his music career, Travis finds the time for his clothes and accessories company, Famous Stars and Straps. He owns a label, LaSalle Records and a restaurant, Wahoo's Fish Taco, in California. Barker worked with a famous entrepreneur and actor Rob Dyrdek. He owns two clothing lines, DTA and Rogue Status.

In July 2016, Blink-182 recorded its seventh LP, California, which became commercially successful. To complete the project, Hoppus and Barker replaced the band’s founder and vocalist Tom DeLong with a guitarist and vocalist from Alkaline Trio, Matt Skiba. Barker supported Hoppus’ decision because DeLong wasn’t contributing enough to the project and delayed the release.

Soon, Barker decided to release a new LP. He acted as a producer. The drummer also released a book, Can I Say: Living Large, Cheating Death, and Drums, Drums, Drums. It came out in October 2015. In 2016, Barker appeared in a documentary, I'll Sleep When I'm Dead, which was nominated for a Grammy Award.

In 2018, the drummer helped Ghostemane record his song "D (R) EAD". He also participated in the recording of XXXTentacion’s posthumous album, Skins. He played the drums when recording the song, "One Minute".

In 2019, Barker joined a famous hip-hop duo, Suicideboys, to record a joint EP, LIVE FAST DIE WHENEVER. Before the official release, singles “Aliens Are Ghosts" and "nothingleftnothingleft" came out. The album was presented in May 2019.