Interview with Trav B Ryan: A Classic Hip-Hop MC For A Modern World

Trav B Ryan is a contemporary rap fans, rapper. Delivery, flow, rhyme scheme, lyricism is all on point with this guy’s music. He has a level of authenticity, that on surface level, tells you he’s what a classic East Coast rapper should sound like. An introspective, raw, emotion-driven, storyteller. A lot of Trav’s early exposure was born from YouTube. He filmed a freestyle series titled “If (Insert comic book hero’s name) was a rapper” and alternative, amusing rap content. Not a classic origin story of a New York MC, but who wants classic?

We were intrigued to hear a little more about Trav as an artist, and caught up with him exclusively for Neon Music:

When did you write your first rhyme and why?
I wrote my first song about 20-years-ago. I wanted to be like my older sister who was rapping at the time and destroying people in battles. I saw the reactions of the crowds and I wanted to do the same thing.​

What are your other interests outside of music?​
I’m a comic book head. I love that whole nerd-realm. Other than music, that’s a place where I feel the most comfortable and the most alive.​

Who are your musical influences and how do they inspire you?
Just regular people. I find that normal people give you the most inspiration because they show you real emotion. That inspires me to create and reflect that. That reflection is what makes music great.​

How would you describe your sound to someone who hasn’t heard of Trav B Ryan before?​
I would say very emotional and intimate. It literally sounds like I’m talking directly to you. It’s aggressive but in a soothing way. You will definitely feel something when you listen to me.​

What’s the significance of star signs for you right now?​
Very important. It’s allowing me to bring the world together in a way that I never thought possible. It has been a significant part of my childhood. My mom used to read us our horoscopes every day so to be able to use that to make people happy is dope.​

You like to switch up sound and style from commercial to mellow to trap. How important is it for you to be experimental?​
That’s who I am. I get bored fast and experimenting has always been important to me. I love reinventing myself and trying new things so I do it constantly. With me, you never know what you are going to get. I love that. ​
What kind of beats/instrumentals are you attracted to at the moment?​
I’m loving lo-fi beats, trap soul beats and beats that have a strong guitar sound in them. ​

If you could jump on a track with anyone, who would it be?
Justin Bieber, Ellie Golding, Anderson Paak.​

What’s on the horizon for you that you’re excited about?​
I’m dropping an album this year that’s going to be dope and I’m dropping a lot more Zodiac content all over my social media and Spotify. I am pretty excited about that.​

How do you want Hip-Hop to remember you?​
The guy that was himself throughout. He was comfortable with himself and he wanted the world to feel the same way.

Trav B Ryan is all about embracing yourself and your identity, whatever form that might come in.

He aims to grant listeners purpose, strength and giving you goosebumps when you hear his music. Emotion is a key ingredient in what makes Trav’s music special to him. Its important as his style applies to different people of life situations.

He doesn’t specifically reach for some of the usual played-out tales and instead chooses broader themes like superheroes and zodiac signs to model music around. This means his music engages a diverse range of people from various backgrounds and also has light-hearted appeal.

You can stream Trav’s latest tune Pisces Be Like below, or click here for his YouTube channel.

Be sure to listen to studio projects ComixTape, Vol.1, Comixtape, Vol. 2: Wrath of Ryan and his most recent full-length offering All Good Things.

Look out for singles Aries Be Like and Aries Woman dropping soon.