Tay-K

Taymor Travon McIntyre was born on June 16, 2000, in Long Beach, California. His father, Kevin Beverly,[6] who was born in Compton, California, and later moved to Hampton, Virginia, was a member of the Baby Insane Crips gang in the Long Beach area. Beverly was imprisoned during McIntyre's youth. McIntyre's mother, who was also a gang member under the Crips, moved him and his sister to Las Vegas, Nevada, when he was eight years old.[7] When McIntyre's father was released from prison, he moved the family to Arlington, Texas, in search of a better environment. McIntyre attended Martin High School and before that he attended Young Junior High School, both located in Arlington.[8] He is influenced by Chief Keef and his favorite rapper is Soulja Boy.[9]

McIntyre started his rap career as part of the rap group Daytona Boyz alongside rappers Pimpyz and Santana Sage.[8] The group released their first track "Drift" on audio distribution platform SoundCloud in December 2014.[10] The group released a series of songs, barely getting attention as they performed at various parties attempting to create a presence in the local rap scenes.[11][9]

McIntyre released his first solo song in mid-2015 titled "BIFF XANNEN" on his SoundCloud account.[12] The song was released in November 2015, garnered local attention within the Arlington rap scene.[13][14] McIntyre's song "Megaman" was released on his SoundCloud on March 16, 2016 and, along with several other songs McIntyre released, became popular after he was arrested on capital murder charges.[14]

McIntyre released several songs while on the run from the police, including "The Race" which was recorded during McIntyre's stay in New Jersey and the music video was released on YouTube the same day as his capture.[9] The song debuted at number 70 on the US Billboard Hot 100 after a large hashtag campaign pursuing the release of McIntyre using the hashtag "#FREETAYK"[5] It peaked at 44 on the Billboard Hot 100 and has over 200 million views on YouTube.[15] "The Race" has been remixed by numerous artists including Tyga, Lil Yachty, Fetty Wap, and Rico Nasty among others.[16]

While incarcerated, McIntyre released the mixtape Santana World.[17] WorldStarHipHop released "Coolin" on September 14, 2017.[18][19] McIntyre's official Twitter account tweeted that the version released by WorldStarHipHop was a leak and not official saying "we have something major in store."[20]

On December 14, 2017, McIntyre's debut mixtape Santana World was re-released by 88 Classic and RCA Records, which was updated with a remix of his single "The Race" featuring vocals from rappers 21 Savage and Young Nudy.[21][22] "The Race" was certified platinum by the RIAA on January 19, 2018.[23] On February 2, 2018, McIntyre's official Twitter account tweeted two pictures of McIntyre, the first time he had been seen since May 2017. The following day, the song "After You" was released on McIntyre's SoundCloud account.[24]

It was revealed in March 2018 that McIntyre had earned around $600,000 to $700,000 with his record deal with 88 Classic and RCA Records.[6] Following the creation of the No Jumper music label,[25] Tay-K was featured alongside BlocBoy JB on No Jumper's song "Hard" which entered the Bubbling Under Hot 100 charts at number 14.[26][27] Tay-K was featured on the shortlist for the 2018 XXL Freshman list.[28][29]

The first criminal activity that McIntyre was verifiably associated with came when he witnessed the murder of 20-year-old Sara Mutschlechner by fellow Daytona Boyz member Eric Jamal Johnson, also known by his stage name Santana Sage.[30] McIntyre and Johnson had attended the same party as Mutschlechner; however, they only interacted with Mutschlechner after leaving the party.[31] Johnson was driving through Denton when his black SUV pulled up along Mutschlechner's car. McIntyre and another Daytona Boyz member, Pimpyz, called out to Mutschlechner's sedan, at which point a man in the sedan rolled down a window and confronted them.[32] Johnson then threatened to shoot the man, at which point Mutschlechner drove away. The SUV chased Mutschlechner and Johnson fired two gunshots, one entering Mutschlechner's head and killing her.[33] Johnson confessed, though McIntyre was not charged in the case. Johnson was sentenced to 44 years in prison.[34]

McIntyre and six other people were arrested in July 2016 on capital murder charges related to a home invasion and robbery in Mansfield, Texas.[35] On July 26, 2016, Megan Holt, 19, and Ariana Bharrat, 20, conspired with McIntyre and some other friends to rob 19-year-old Zachary Beloate. The pair planned to seduce him and then let McIntyre et al., armed with guns, into the house to steal drugs and money. One of the two women unlocked the door and the gunmen proceeded to rob Beloate and his friend Ethan Walker, which led to a fatal confrontation and the death of Walker as they were attempting to leave; two other non-fatal gunshot wounds were sustained.[36]

McIntyre was placed under house arrest, awaiting certification hearings. A few days before said hearings were held, McIntyre and another suspect cut off their ankle monitors and fled to San Antonio, Texas.[37] Just before cutting his ankle monitor off and going on the run, McIntyre wrote the following on Twitter: "fuck dis house arrest shit fuck 12 they gn hav 2 catch me on hood".[38] McIntyre made his way to Elizabeth, New Jersey where he recorded the song "The Race", which described his run from the police and his legal troubles. The song opens with "Fuck a beat, I was tryna beat a case/but I ain't beat that case, bitch I did the race".[8][39] The suspect that McIntyre fled with was captured in May 2017.[37] On June 30, 2017, McIntyre was captured by the U.S Marshal Service in Elizabeth, New Jersey.[35][40]

While on the run, on April 23, 2017, McIntyre allegedly shot and killed 23-year-old Mark Anthony Saldivar while participating in a robbery outside of a Chick-fil-A in San Antonio, Texas.[41][42] According to the allegations, McIntyre and two accomplices lured Saldivar into a black SUV to try to steal his photography equipment. Saldivar escaped the SUV and started to shout for help, which led to the SUV accelerating in an attempt to hit him. Saldivar jumped onto the hood of the SUV, kicking the windscreen until McIntyre allegedly left the car and shot him once before driving away.[41][42]

Also while on the run, on May 25, 2017, McIntyre allegedly attacked and robbed 65-year-old Owney "Skip" Pepe in Cravens Park, Arlington, Texas.[43] McIntyre allegedly held a gun to Pepe's head before knocking him unconscious in the park, where Pepe was later found by a jogger.[44] Pepe later identified McIntyre during a photo lineup.[45]

McIntyre was transferred to an adult jail on July 21, 2017.[46] A preliminary certification hearing to decide Tay-K's status as a juvenile was held on August 30, 2017. Trent Loftin, a lawyer for McIntyre, said to The New York Times that McIntyre was optimistic and that they were confident he would be cleared of all charges.[47] It was decided that McIntyre would be tried as an adult in the case. The trial was eventually pushed back due to lack of evidence.[48]

On September 20, 2017, additional capital murder charges were added to McIntyre's case involving the incident in San Antonio.[49] Police claim that McIntyre was in the vehicle during the shooting and that there is surveillance footage of the incident.[41] At the time, McIntyre was held on $500,000 bail[50] though in February 2018, the bail was set to $0.[51]

On February 28, 2018, one of McIntyre's accomplices, an unnamed minor described as a "petite, pretty blonde" was sentenced to twenty years in prison after being found guilty on capital murder and aggravated robbery charges.[52] In February 2018, accomplice Megan Holt pleaded guilty to aggravated robbery and agreed to testify against her co-defendants in exchange for a 20-year sentence. In May 2018, Latharian Merritt was sentenced to life in prison without parole after being convicted of capital murder. In August 2018, Ariana Bharrat pleaded guilty to aggravated robbery and agreed to testify against her co-defendants in exchange for a 25-year sentence. In that same month, Sean Robinson pleaded guilty to murder and was sentenced to 40 years in prison. In November 2018, McIntyre's last accomplice, Jalen Bell, pleaded guilty to aggravated robbery charges and was sentenced to 30 years in prison. McIntyre's defense attorneys argued that because McIntyre's case had started in the juvenile system — which does not have a bail or bond system in place — he was now entitled to one now under Texas law (as of March 2018). State District Judge Wayne Salvant denied McIntyre's request for bond, expressing concern that McIntyre's alleged crimes had been "glorified" and that he was a "high, violent assessment".[6]

On May 24, 2018, it was confirmed McIntyre was not facing the death penalty or life imprisonment under Miller v. Alabama and Roper v. Simmons.[53]

McIntyre was charged with possession of a prohibited item while in jail on August 2, 2018, after a mobile phone was found hidden in his sock during a search.[54][55] McIntyre was moved from Tarrant County Jail to maximum-security Lon Evans Corrections Center on August 14, 2018, where he spent 23 hours in solitary confinement with one hour alotted to go to the gym.[56] McIntyre won a legal battle on August 16, 2018 when the Texas' Second Court of Appeals ruled that State District Judge Wayne Salvant made a mistake in refusing to set a bail for McIntyre concerning his aggravated robbery case. However, he was still denied bail for the case involving the murder of Ethan Walker.[57] While there, McIntyre allegedly cursed at and threatened a Tarrant County Sheriff sergeant, threw his food tray and wet toilet paper, and went over his allotted phone time.[58]

McIntyre has been involved in two lawsuits as a result of his alleged participation in these murders.[59] In June 2018, the family of Mark Saldivar, the victim of the San Antonio shooting, filed a wrongful death lawsuit seeking more than $1 million in damages[60] and, in July 2018, the family of Ethan Walker and survivor Zachary Beloate sued McIntyre and his record label 88 Classic for the profits of McIntyre's music following Walker's death.[61]

On July 15, 2019, on the first day of his trial,[62] McIntyre pled guilty to two counts of aggravated robbery in the Mansfield home invasion case. On July 19, 2019, the jury in the case found McIntyre guilty of murder and of a third charge of aggravated robbery. He faced 5 to 99 years or life in prison for each of the four charges.[58] McIntyre's song "The Race", which was written while he was on the run from the U.S. Marshals Service, was introduced as evidence during the sentencing phase of the trial.[63] On July 23, 2019, he was sentenced to 55 years in prison for the murder charge, 30 years in prison for one of the counts of aggravated robbery, and two 13-year prison sentences for the remaining two counts of aggravated robbery. The four prison terms will be served concurrently, and he will be eligible for parole after no less than 27.5 years.[64] He was also fined $21,000 ($10,000 for the murder charge and $11,000 combined for the three aggravated robbery charges).[65]

In August 2019, McIntyre was extradited to the Bexar County Jail while awaiting trial in the Mark Anthony Saldivar murder case.[66] In November 2019, a Bexar County Grand Jury indicted him for capital murder.[42]