Barker was born on November 14, 1975, in Fontana, California. When he was four years old, his mother gave him his first drum kit, which he would keep until he was fifteen. Barker began taking drum lessons at the age of five with a drummer named Michael Mai, who introduced him to a variety of playing styles. He also started taking trumpet lessons around this time. Barker learned to play the piano in junior high and briefly tried singing, joining the madrigals men’s and women’s choir.
Where did Travis Barker go to college and high school? Did Travis Barker go to high school?
During his time at Fontana High School, Barker described himself as a stoner. His mother died the day before he started high school, three months after being diagnosed with Sjögren syndrome. She encouraged him to continue playing music and to pursue his dreams. Barker played the drum set in the jazz ensemble and the snare drum in the marching band at Fontana High School.
He gained valuable experience by competing in regional competitions and festivals. Barker experimented with various styles, including military and jazz rhythms, but was drawn to the driving rhythms of hip-hop and punk rock.
Barker worked as a trash collector in Laguna Beach after graduating from Fontana High School and joined the Fontana-based punk rock band Snot and Feeble, where he met Chad Larson. Larson later co-founded the ska-punk band the Aquabats in 1994. Barker was recruited by the band through Larson’s connection after local shows and demo tapes. Barker, who was “sleeping on a friend’s couch” and still working as a trash collector, was supposed to fill in for a few days but ended up joining the band.
The Fury of the Aquabats! was then recorded in the studio with veteran producer Jim Goodwin. Barker’s quickness and accuracy meant that once his parts were recorded, he could go off and rehearse (and sit in with other bands). With the Aquabats, he acquired the moniker “Baron Von Tito,” the origins of which are lost to history as none of the members recall.
