By: Shirley Ju (@shirju)
Tayf3rd was once close with “Toot It and Boot It” rapper YG and now the “Low Inside” rapper is the first artist to sign to Big Boy Music, the label run by Big Boy, one of the most well-respect hip-hop radio personalities in Los Angeles.
Currently residing back home in Cambodia Town, Tayf3rd puts on for the struggle, the streets and social media, as he finds music to be his outlet.
While Snoop Doggy Dogg was his idol growing up, Tay now sees him as his competitor. He knows Snoop Dogg is the best to ever do it, and he plans on accomplishing even greater heights than Tha Doggfather.
AllHipHop: For those who don’t know, who is Tayf3rd?
Tayf3rd: Tayf3rd is a real thoroughbred Long Beach dude, somebody who’s really from the Eastside. Somebody who was raised off Snoop Dogg, The Eastsidaz, raised off of Big Boy on the radio. Raised by my mom, a single parent. Tayf3rd is a dude who came from Cambodia town in the Eastside of Long Beach and made his presence with his happiness. He just made music when he got out the club.
AllHipHop: I hear you singing. How would you describe your sound?
Tayf3rd: I feel like I make music for gangbangers who go home and listen to The Weeknd. They go home and listen to s##t they’d never listen to in front of their friends.
AllHipHop: How did you get there?
Tayf3rd: If I can explain it, it’ll be a formula. But I don’t know how I got there. All I can say is the tribulations of life, that’s the only thing inspiring me. I’m not inspired by rappers.
AllHipHop: Really?
Tayf3rd: Nah, because they telling their story. Sometimes we hear that they’re not even telling their story, they’re telling somebody else’s story. I’ve never been inspired by the rapper. I’ve been inspired by the music though, the music’s different from rapping.
AllHipHop: What was the inspiration behind your name?
Tayf3rd: My name’s Tay. My last name is Kim my first name is Tay.
AllHipHop: Which one of your parents is Asian?
Tayf3rd: My dad, my dad’s full Korean. The F stands for Filthy’s, a gang from Long Beach. It was like a click, but they made it something bigger than it was supposed to be. But we was having fun. Then 3 is really where I’m from, the gangbanger s##t. I’m from the same Crip, that’s why Saviii 3rd… that 3 really stands for something. Not even on no gangbanging stuff though, 3 really stands for a family. We infiltrating the music industry now. We infiltrating ya’ll now, we coming for sure. [smiles]
AllHipHop: You got a close relationship with Saviii?
Tayf3rd: That’s my brother. I’ve been knowing Saviii since he was 12, maybe 11. That’s my love, I’d do anything for him.
AllHipHop: He’s with Cash Money West?
Tayf3rd: Not no more. He with AFG, All For Guap. That’s Filthy Guap Gang. You come to Long Beach, you gonna see people with F hats and Chief hats. We took over the city.
AllHipHop: Are you still on the streets?
Tayf3rd: Yeah… I’m still struggling. I wouldn’t say struggling money-wise, but I’m still struggling to get my people right. If my people struggling, what am I? I’m still on Raymond, you see me over there for sure. I’m on Raymond and Anaheim 1100th for sure. You see me over there probably with Stupid Young ass. I really live in Cambodia Town, that’s where I live right now literally. I welcome everybody to come over there, we have fun over there.
AllHipHop: You ain’t doing the Triller s##t?
Tayf3rd: I can’t! I can’t jerk, my bones will break. Come on. We made the jerking s##t something based off a rap and skateboarding. We kind of looked up to the Hyphy movement. For real, me and YG did — because me and YG met in a trailer park. YG’s my brother, me and YG we started this whole fast music s##t. Literally, me and YG started this s##t. If you ask him, he’ll be like “oh yeah fasho.” Actually, they got a couple interviews on it.
AllHipHop: He shout you out?
Tayf3rd: He said “oh no, we don’t have no problems.” Because when they asked him about if we have beef, he said no — because we don’t. We just went our separate ways, we wanted to do different things. Everybody thought that we had beef because we were so close. It’s like you see two close people and they break apart.
AllHipHop: What happened?
Tayf3rd: Alright so I was from Pushes. When Pushes was first made, I made “I Smoke, I Drink.” That’s what started the whole jerking s##t. YG was doing his s##t with the “Motto” joint, but he had went to jail for flocking. We was all doing that, but it was wack he got caught. When he went to jail, I had ran into Felli Fel. He was the first person to break my record.
AllHipHop: I work with Felli!
Tayf3rd: I love him. When I met him, Big Boy was still at Power 106. Felli’s like “man, I want to break that record.” He took it and mastered it himself! Felli mastered the whole record himself. Literally the record was from a garage. You know what our microphone was surrounded by? A cereal box.
AllHipHop: What?!
Tayf3rd: Lucky Charms, I’ll never forget it. And there was a hole in it! I recorded the song, the s##t went viral. Felli remastered it and put me on. Literally Felli put me on, I never said that. When he put me on, the people were like “yo YG supposed to go first.” But what am I supposed to do? Wait for him? He’s in jail. I’m trying to hold it down for us. Who’s gonna hold it down for us while he’s in jail? I’m trying to do it for us. On my song, I say “free YG.” That’s the last lyrics on my song. I can’t end this without saying “free YG.” And then they attacked me. Everybody that was from his squad, Ace, Rod, they attacked me. I’m like damn.
AllHipHop: They attacked you physically?
Tayf3rd: I mean, yeah they tried to. But I ain’t gonna lie, I’m a killer. These birds in my face [points to tats]… they was scared to see me in my face. They was definitely trying to do some s##t to me. But I’m a peaceful dude, I don’t want to fight ya’ll. Even when I defend myself, I’m still not trying to fight ya’ll. Just chill, I’ma show you what it is. What I did was I left. When they start babbling, I just shut up.
That’s why everybody said I fell off of music, because I stopped talking. I stopped talking because I’m not into all that internet beef, I’m not tryna do all that. I never was raised off that. I was raised off having fun, being cool. If you got a problem, you see each other when you see each other. You don’t make a day, you don’t say “I’ma fight this n##ga.” When you see each other, you do what you do.
When I stopped talking, the internet’s like “this n##ga got beef with YG.” Because I didn’t say nothing about it, that’s what made it a problem. I seen him at DB Lounge, I told him “I don’t know what’s going on with you, but I ain’t got no issues.” He’s like “man I ain’t got no problems with you. You help me make this music, what you talking about Tay?” When I heard him say that, I’m like “he’s still a real one.” I got the most love for him. Nobody’s heard that, you’re the first person.