Last week, Atlanta Hip-Hop trio Travis Porter released their debut album, From Day 1, on Porter House/RCA. After several years of mixtapes, hit singles and constant radio rotation, Ali, Quez, and Strap were finally able to get their first major studio album in the hands of their fans.
Based on the success of records like “Bring It Back,” “You Don’t Know,” “Ayy Ladies”, and “Make It Rain,” fans and listeners in general should have had a good idea of the kind of music that the boys from Decatur would be providing on the album. Up-tempo beats, good vibes, and ultimately music that was created for the night club and the strip club, of which Magic City is their favorite, is what makes up From Day 1, and that’s exactly what Travis Porter set out to do.
T.P. members Ali, Quez, and Strap spoke to AllHipHop.com about From Day 1 and more specifically about the history behind individual records and collaborations that are found on the album. Check out what the guys had to say below:
On the album’s first track, “Awe Yea,” sounding like a throwback Cash Money record:
“That was intentional. and that’s what it was supposed to be. Even the video that we shot was based on a Cash Money video, which is “Back That Azz Up.” But the video was like a big block party out there in the ‘hood. It was a real good-feeling video for a real good-feeling song.”
Why “Awe Yea” kicked off From Day 1:
“I think we wanted to just turn it up from the first song, and that song was one of the most turnt up songs on the album, so we wanted to start it off with a lot of energy.”
Working with 2 Chainz on “P*ssy Real Good“:
“First of all, 2 Chainz is like a big brother. He recently hopped on the “You Don’t Know” remix with him and [Young] Jeezy, so it wasn’t the first time working with T##. We got another record we did with T## like a year ago, so it’s really family, man, and we’ve got the same home team so we sent the record over, he loved it, smashed the verse and we had to put it on the album. We’re probably going to be shooting a video for that real soon, too.”
Working with producer Diplo on “Wobble“:
“We wanted to do something that people didn’t think we were gonna do, you know? So once we found out that Diplo was a fan of Travis Porter, we had to make that happen, man. It was crazy, like he came to Atlanta, and we actually recorded five records with Diplo, so we still got stuff sitting. “Wobble” was just the one we wanted to go with to fit the album, but if we drop a mixtape or something down the line, you’ll hear way more Diplo.”
Working with Jeremih “Ride Like That“:
“I feel like it’s going to be a great single because it doesn’t sound like any of our other singles that we had. It has its own sound, and we needed something a little smoother for the ladies, because you know a lot of our stuff be club anthems so we decided to make a grown, and sexy joint without anybody feeling a certain type of way.”
Working with producer Lil C on “Ballin“:
“Man, Lil C is a genius. He did a lot of work over there at Grand Hustle and produced Dro’s “Shoulder Lean” and a couple of Tip’s records, but Lil C is a beast! He produced the record with 2 Chainz on the album, too [“P*ssy Real Good]. We actually got records with him that we wanted to be on there, like this song called “Bankroll” that we wanted to be on the album but it didn’t make it. We did like five more records. He’s crazy, and C is a genius.”
Working with Mike Posner on “That Feelin“:
“We love Mike, man. We met him at a show, and he was just saying how much he liked our music. So just like Diplo, man, he came to the A, got in the lab and did his little warm-up thing and then got straight to it, man. The only person we wasn’t in the studio with was Mac Miller and 2 Chainz, but we’ve been in the studio with both of them before.”
Working with Mac Miller on “Bouncing Like Whoa“:
“Actually, Mac sent that hook over with no verse. We thought it was cool though ‘cause there’s already three of us. But we knew Mac Miller fans wanted to hear him on it. He sounded good on that.”
Why “Thirty Bands” was chosen to close out the album:
“’Cause our show prices just went up [laughs].”
Who they need to get on their next album:
“Well, there was supposed to be a couple more features on the album but, you know, everybody’s tour was starting, so everybody couldn’t reord verses to songs. We really just focused on us. Drake will be on our next album. We’re going to make that happen for the fans. If it doesn’t happen on the next mixtape, then it’s going to happen for the album.”…“Oh man, Kells. I want to tell you the honest-to-God true story. Kells was supposed to be on “Party Time”, but he started his 90-date tour that he’s on right now, and he only had three days off, so Kells will definitely be on the next album.”
Travis Porter’s favorite record on From Day 1:
“We all say “That Feelin,” that ‘s what we thinking about and what the label is thinking about for the next single. Either that or “Party Time.”
Travis Porter’s debut album From Day 1 is available now.
