Tay Keith, a Grammy-nominated producer, was found dead in his Nashville apartment on Thursday. Keith, whose birth name is Brytavious Chambers, was 29 years old.
Metro Nashville Police confirmed the producer’s death while they said they found Keith in his Martin Street apartment as part of a wellness check. The current cause of death is unclassified pending an autopsy.
Despite his young age, Keith was a decorated producer. He was nominated for a Grammy when he was just 23 years old for his work on Travis Scott’s hit song “Sicko Mode”.
In addition to working with Scott, Keith’s career also saw him work with the likes of Eminem, Drake, Cardi B, Beyoncé and Lil Baby. His collaborations “Pound Town” and “Get it Sexyy” with rapper Sexyy Red were critically acclaimed in the hip-hop community.
The music that Keith produced regularly found a home on the Billboard Hot 100 charts. Eleven of the songs he worked on became top 10 hits, including four records that reached No. 1.
Keith worked on “Sicko Mode” while also attending Middle Tennessee State University. And although he had plenty of success in the music industry while a student at MTSU, Keith chose to drop out of college. In 2018, Keith graduated with degrees in both media management and integrated studies.
MTSU’s dean of media and entertainment, Beverly Keel, said Billboard: “He understood people and how they would act and react, and that’s probably why he was such a great songwriter. He had a huge vision of the industry, the music, the culture and people. He had a difficult upbringing, and that perhaps shaped his empathy and desire to help others.”
After hearing of Keith’s untimely passing Keel also took to Facebook to share his thoughts, stating, “I was blessed to have spent time with him and was so proud of who he was as a person. He was one of those good guys. Students came to MTSU because that’s where Tay got his degree. He was the first in his family to get a college degree.”
In 2025, his career success earned him a spot Forbes’ 30 Under 30 Music list. He was also a three-time recipient of the BMI Awards’ Producer of the year.
At present, the police do not suspect that there is any injustice.
