Photo: Getty Images/Kinnawa Kaitibi
The late Tay Keith was posthumously honored with his own day and a key to the city of Memphis.
On Sunday, September 20, city officials held a special ceremony to honor the award-winning producer's legacy following his untimely death over the summer. Memphis Mayor Paul Young was in attendance to present the producer's family with a key to the city and a proclamation designating his birthday, September 20, as Tay Keith Day. The event also celebrated the launch of the all-new Tay Keith Music Lab.
“The funding of this music lab is an investment in the next generation of Memphis talent and a fitting tribute to Tay Keith,” said Mayor Young.
"His legacy will live on by giving young people the tools and space to create, learn, and build their own future in Music," he added.
According to the Memphis Public Library's official website, the Tay Keith Foundation donated funds to transform Cloud901 at the Benjamin L. Hooks Central Library into an updated production room inspired by the hitmaker's legacy. The Tay Keith Music Lab will also offer courses like Tay Keith Beat Making 101, where kids can learn to make beats.
The lab is the first phase of the Tay Keith Foundation's partnership with the Memphis Public Library. The two are working together to launch the Tay Keith Collection, a permanent archival collection of personal photographs, handwritten notes, studio materials, awards and other items from the producer's life, and Tay Keith in 901Voices, a series of recordings featuring memories and stories about Tay as told by his family members and others that will become part of the library’s digital archive.
"Today we keep our beloved Tay Keith’s memory and profound work alive by unveiling the Tay Keith Music Lab in partnership with Memphis Public Libraries," the producer's family said in a statement. "This space will connect his legacy to creation and focus on future generations of young DJ, producers and music moguls to come. Through an archival collection preserved as part of the historical record of Memphis and Shelby County along with 901Voices oral history initiative, all of these elements will serve as a living legacy where future creators can work, where history can be preserved, and a permanent record where Tay’s story can continue to be heard. We feel he would be so proud of this community effort and being able to continue impacting the young creatives in Memphis, which was always a big part of who he was as a person in both his life and music."
September 20 would've been Tay Keith's 30th birthday. The Grammy-nominated producer was found dead inside his apartment in Nashville in June. The medical examiner confirmed he passed away after suffering an accidental overdose. He reportedly had ketamine and mitragynine in his system. Mitragynine is found in a psychoactive medicinal plant called kratom, which is a legal substance.
Take a closer look at the Tay Keith Music Lab below.