Travis Barker

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Travis Barker
Background information
Birth name	Travis Landon Barker
Born	November 14, 1975
Origin	Fontana, California, USA
Genre(s)	Punk rock pop punk Third-wave Ska Alternative rock Hip hop
Occupation(s)	Musician, drummer
Instrument(s)	Drums, keyboards
Years active	1994–present
Associated acts	+44 Expensive Taste Blink-182 Transplants Box Car Racer The Aquabats
Website	TravisBarker.com

Travis Landon Barker (born November 14, 1975) is an American drummer, who achieved most of his fame by drumming for the band, Blink-182. He currently is the drummer for +44 and has also played for side projects Box Car Racer, Transplants and Expensive Taste.

After initially playing for bands such as The Suicide Machines and as "Baron Von Tito" for The Aquabats, his career took off when he joined up with punk pop band, Blink-182 in 1998. Barker became known for his mohawk and his tendency to perform without a shirt, revealing a multitude of tattoos. Barker has since established himself as a versatile drummer, producing and guest appearing in music projects of numerous genres including hip-hop, punk rock, alternative rock, ska rap, pop and even country music.

As vast as his musical interests are his business ventures. He founded a clothing company, Famous Stars and Straps in 1999, LaSalle Records in 2004, as well as a Wahoo's Fish Tacos restaurant in Norco, California. Companies such as DC Shoes and Zildjian cymbals have co-designed products in his name.

Barker's marriage to former Miss USA, Shanna Moakler, was featured in MTV's Meet the Barkers (2005–2006). After filing for divorce in 2006, his marriage trouble and personal life have been scrutinzed in the media following a public MySpace battle^[1] with his wife and a brief relationship with Hilton Hotel heiress, Paris Hilton^[2].

Contents 1 Early life 2 Blink-182, 1998–2005 3 Side projects, 2002–2006 4 Influences 5 Discography 6 Business ventures 7 Tattoos 8 Relationships 9 Equipment 10 Film and television 10.1 Filmography 11 Videos 11.1 Videography 12 Trivia 13 References 14 External links

[edit] Early life

Travis Barker was born in Fontana, California. Barker received his first drum set from his mother at the age of four. He began taking drum lessons at the age of five, when he studied with a jazz teacher, and was exposed to many different styles of music.

The day before starting high school at Fontana High School, FOHI, his mother died. After her death, Travis became more serious about drumming. He joined marching band his sophomore year and made the snare line. During highschool he performed at regional competitions and festivals. During his senior year of high school, Barker passed up drum corps tryouts to tour with a rock band.Travis's good friend, Brendan Taylor helped Travis to become more involved in drumming. After graduating from high school in 1993, he gained more experience as a rock drummer in a few early bands including Feeble, The Suicide Machines, and The Aquabats^[3].

[edit] Blink-182, 1998–2005

Main article: Blink-182

In 1998, Travis Barker was touring with his band, The Aquabats, under the stage name "Baron Von Tito". During this tour, the original drummer for Blink-182, Scott Raynor, left the band. Travis was asked to fill in, requiring him to learn the entire set (over 20 songs) in less than two hours and perform them at that night's show. Travis' efforts earned him much appreciation and respect, and an offer to join Blink-182, which Barker accepted.

With Barker, Blink-182 released their best selling album to date, Enema of the State (1999), followed by Take off Your Pants and Jacket (2001), and Blink-182 (2003). After 7 years of drumming with Blink-182, in February 2005, the band announced they are taking an "indefinite hiatus".

[edit] Side projects, 2002–2006

Barker says he has always been interested in many genres of music outside of punk rock, especially hip-hop. In a 2002 interview with MTV he says, "I probably listen to more hip-hop and drum'n'bass than I do punk rock music, and same with Tim and Rob..".^[4] Not being able to explore these interests within Blink 182, Barker participated in several side projects during the time he was playing for Blink-182 including Box Car Racer, Transplants, and Expensive Taste.

Box Car Racer is a side project begun with Tom DeLonge of Blink-182 in 2002. This project resulted in one self-titled album which was released that year. Tom said he asked Travis to play drums so that he wouldn't have to find and pay a session drummer to come in.

Transplants is a hip-hop induced punk band for which Travis partnered with Tim Armstrong of Rancid and Rob Aston (former roadie for Rancid). Transplants released two studio records as well as a remixed version of their second album which was chopped and screwed by rapper and hip-hop artist, Paul Wall^[5]. The first album released by Transplants was their self-titled album in 2002. The second Transplants record, Haunted Cities, was released by LaSalle Records in June of 2005.

In 2006, Travis and Rob Aston joined Paul Wall in forming a new hip-hop group called Expensive Taste.

Barker has produced for or worked on albums with the Black Eyed Peas, P!nk and Pharrell Williams. He appears on Bun B's album, Trill (2005) with Skinhead Rob for the bonus track, "Late night creepin". In 2006 he was a producer on T.I.'s fourth album, King. Also in 2006 he played drums for a few songs on Avril Lavigne's third album ^[6].

In late 2005 Travis started a new band, +44 with fellow Blink-182 member Mark Hoppus.

[edit] Influences

His influences include everything from Run-D.M.C. to King Diamond to the Clash.^[4] He has stated that a few of his favorite drummers are Stewart Copeland of the Police, Tommy Lee of Mötley Crüe, Ringo Starr of The Beatles, Tre Cool of Green Day, and Keith Moon of The Who.

When Barker was a teenager, he was apparently treated rudely by veteran drummer/producer Bill Stevenson of Descendents, whom Barker admired. Barker has since repeated this story, omitting Stevenson's name. This experience helped to shape how he relates to his own fans now. He is well known for being generous with his time - signing autographs and taking pictures with fans for extraordinary lengths of time.

[edit] Discography

Cover	Year	Album Title	Band	Record Label
		All Dressed Up And No Where To Go	Feeble
	1997	The Fury of the Aquabats!	The Aquabats!	Golden Voice Records
	1999	Enema of the State	Blink-182	MCA Records
	2000	The Mark, Tom, and Travis Show: The Enema Strikes Back	Blink-182	MCA Records
	2001	Take Off Your Pants and Jacket	Blink-182	MCA Records
	2002	Box Car Racer	Box Car Racer	MCA Records
	2002	Transplants	Transplants	Hellcat Records
	2003	Blink-182	Blink-182	Geffen Records
	2005	Greatest Hits	Blink-182	Geffen Records
	2005	Haunted Cities	Transplants	La Salle Records/Atlantic Records
	2006	When Your Heart Stops Beating	+44	Interscope Records
	2007	TBA	Expensive Taste

[edit] Business ventures

Barker owns and contributes to several businesses in addition to his musical interests. He founded an accessory/apparel company called Famous Stars and Straps in 1999 which sells street/skate style clothing and gear. Travis has said the brand's trademark "F" for the logo was chosen for its resemblance to a car logo but mainly for the fact that it can stand on its own.

He also co-founded LaSalle Records, a record company to which his band, Transplants, are signed^[7]. He has also dabbled in the restaurant industry, opening a Wahoo's Fish Tacos restaurant in Norco, California.^[8]

Travis has also developed a shoe for DC Shoe Company called the "Alias Remix" and is endorsed by Orange County Drum and Percussion and Zildjian. He also has his own line of drumming products, sponsored by Zildjian^[9].

In 2006, Barker began the process of filing for the trademark "The Phenomenons". The trademark application indicates the name will be used for a band and possibly a clothing line but that remains to be seen.

[edit] Tattoos

Travis' first tattoo was the word "BONES" (a nickname when he was a kid) on his leg which he got when he was 17 years old.^[10] Another notable addition is the phrase "SELF MADE" spelled out across his knuckles which he got in 2000.^[10] Some of Travis' numerous tattoos include religious art as he says he was brought up Catholic^[10]. He has a portrait of Jesus above his left biceps, hands in prayer on the left side of his head (visible with his signature mohawk) and a Sacred Heart. He has a few tattoos that symbolize his love for cars and Cadillacs in particular - two racing flags on the side of his neck with the number 66 which symbolizes the year of his favorite Cadillac and a Cadillac emblem surrounded by mudflap girls on his chest as well as a pair of spark plugs^[10].

Much of his body art is devoted to his love of music such as the phrase "Can I Say" which is the name of Dag Nasty's first album, a microphone, and a boom box on his stomach for his love of breakdancing when he was growing up.^[10] He also has the word "HOPE" on his back because of the Descendents' song and something positive after his mother's death. He has another tribute to the Descendents on his leg - the cover art to the album, I Don't Want To Grow Up, drumsticks and musical notes on his right arm.

Travis also makes several tributes to his family with the phrase "familia" on his arm, Japanese flowers on the back of his neck with a heart that says "Mom", and another heart with "SHANNA" on the banner.^[10] He also has the name of his first wife, "Melissa," just above the racing flags on the side of his neck.

He considers his right arm his "good luck arm" and so has many luck emblems tattooed on that arm such as a deck of cards, dice, a dollar sign, his lucky number seven, a skull with the number 13 in the eye sockets (13 is a lucky number in the tattoo culture), and a rabbit's foot, in addition to a martini glass, his initials, a devil from Black Label Skateboards, and a spider web surrounding his elbow^[10].

In explanation of his large number of tattoos Travis has said, "I tattooed my body so I couldn't fall back on anything. I purposely did that so I couldn't get a normal job and live a normal life. I did it so I had to play music." Travis claims to have spent over $50,000 on his body art^[11].

[edit] Relationships

Travis has married twice and also divorced twice. He married relatively long time girlfriend, Melissa Kennedy, on September 22, 2001. The couple divorced August 6, 2002 after 11 months.

Barker married actress and Miss USA 1995, Shanna Moakler, on October 30, 2004. The couple had a Gothic-style ceremony inspired by the Tim Burton film, The Nightmare Before Christmas, which was held on the eve of Halloween.^[12] Barker and Moakler have two children together, Landon Asher and Alabama Luella. Atiana Cecilia de la Hoya is Moakler's daughter with former boyfriend Oscar de la Hoya. The foursome appeared in a reality television series, Meet the Barkers, which aired on MTV from 2005-2006.

On August 8, 2006, Barker filed for divorce from Moakler after nearly 2 years of marriage,^[13][14] The couple's divorce was made public as the couple each used their MySpace pages to air their feelings on the matter^[1]. During their separation, Barker had a brief fling with Hilton Hotel heiress and socialite, Paris Hilton in September, 2006^[15]..

Despite their divorce, it seems as if Travis and Shanna are quietly trying to give it another go as they were reportedly seen autographing a fan's book, with a heart around their names. ^[16] As of March 19, 2007, Shanna has admitted to People magazine that she and Travis are indeed back together, but denies pregnancy.

[edit] Equipment

Drums: Orange County Drum and Percussion in Glowstick Green Acrylic

• 24 x 22" bass drum
• 14 x 6.5" snare drum
• 10 x 5" snare drum
• 12 x 10" rack tom
• 16 x 14" floor tom

Cymbals: Zildjian

• 14" Mastersound Hi-Hats
• 11" K Custom Hybrid Splash
• 20" K Crash/Ride
• 24" K Light Ride
• 21" A Sweet Ride
• 20" Oriental Crash Of Doom

Hardware and Pedals:

• DW

Heads:

• Remo

Sticks:

• Zildjian

Percussion:

• LP

Electronics:

• Roland

[edit] Film and television

Travis has appeared in numerous films and television shows, most notably his own reality show, Meet the Barkers, with ex-wife Shanna Moakler which debuted in 2005. In 2003, he appeared in an episode of MTV's Punk'd, a Candid Camera-esque television show, in which he took part in a set up bareknuckle boxing match. In 2006 Barker starred in a Boost Mobile commercial,^[17] which was detailed in an episode of Meet the Barkers. He's also played a few guest starring roles such as a rapper on the popular crime drama, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, and a voiceover for an episode of The Simpsons. He's been a presenter for several award shows such as the Much Music Awards in 2002 and the MTV Video Music Awards in 2000. In 2001, he appeared with Tom Delonge and Mark Hoppus in the skit "Leave it to Blink-182", a parody of "Leave it to Beaver", on the late night TV show MADtv.^[18] In a slight departure from his usual genres, he made an appearance on the 41st annual CMA Awards in 2006, performing a medley of songs by country icon Buck Owens with a group of artists including Dwight Yoakam, ZZ Top guitarist Billy Gibbons, and former Byrds bass player Chris Hillman.^[19]

[edit] Filmography

[edit] Videos

In addition to his own work with Blink-182, Box Car Racer, Transplants, and +44, Barker has made numerous guest appearances. In 2001, Barker appeared, playing drums, in P. Diddy's video, "Bad Boy for Life",^[20]. In 2003 he played the drums in Bubba Sparxxx's video for "Back In The Mudd". He was featured in the opening sequence of the Dem Franchise Boys music video, "Ridin Rims," in 2006. Travis appeared in Xzibit's music video "Hey Now (Mean Muggin')", T.I.'s video "What You Know", and Three 6 Mafia's "Side 2 Side (remix)" video. He was also featured on the Outkast music video "Morris Brown" and can be seen playing drums in The Game's AOL Session.

[edit] Videography

[edit] Trivia

• Barker collects Cadillacs.^[21]
• Has been on the cover of DRUM! magazine twice.
• Barker is left handed but plays drums right handed.
• Travis Barker is featured in the Video Game Tony Hawk's Project 8 for PS2, PS3, Xbox, PSP and the Xbox 360 as a hidden character.
• Travis Barker had a poster mugshot of Sex Pistols bassist Sid Vicious in the frontroom of his house that he lived in during season 2 of Meet the Barkers
• In the cover of Enema of the State, Travis Barker is the only band member (and one of two people) that is not barefoot. This has lead some people to believe that he is self-conscious about his feet.
• Travis Barker has a fish named Scooter.
• Travis is colorblind.
• He is 5'11

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Famous Stars And Straps (Travis' Clothing Co)
• Travis Barker Drum Videos
• Travis Barker's MySpace Profile
• Famous Stars And Straps' MySpace Profile
• +44's Official MySpace Profile
• Expensive Tastes's myspace
• Travis' Drum Set Info
• Travis Barker at the Internet Movie Database

Blink-182

Travis Barker | Tom DeLonge | Mark Hoppus

Scott Raynor

Discography

Studio albums: Cheshire Cat | Dude Ranch | Enema of the State | Take off Your Pants and Jacket | Blink-182

Demo tapes: Flyswatter | Buddha | Enema of the State Demo

Live Albums and compilations: The Mark, Tom, and Travis Show (The Enema Strikes Back!) | Greatest Hits

Videos and DVDs: The Urethra Chronicles | The Urethra Chronicles II: Harder Faster Faster Harder | Riding In Vans With Boys | Greatest Hits

Singles: Carousel | M&M's | Wasting Time |Dammit | Apple Shampoo | Josie | What's My Age Again? | All The Small Things | Adam's Song | Man Overboard | The Rock Show | First Date | Stay Together For The Kids | Feeling This | I Miss You | Down | Always | Not Now

Related articles

Box Car Racer | Transplants | +44 | Angels and Airwaves | Expensive Taste

This box: view • talk • edit

Box Car Racer

Travis Barker | Anthony Celestino | Tom DeLonge | David Kennedy

Discography

Albums: Box Car Racer

Videos and DVDs: Box Car Racer

Singles: "I Feel So" | "There Is"

Related articles

Blink-182 | Transplants | +44 | Angels and Airwaves | Expensive Taste | Hazen Street | Over My Dead Body

This box: view • talk • edit

+44 v • d • e
Mark Hoppus | Craig Fairbaugh | Shane Gallagher | Travis Barker
Carol Heller
Discography
When Your Heart Stops Beating
Singles
"Lycanthrope" | "When Your Heart Stops Beating" | "Chapter XIII" | "Baby Come On"