The tour manager for hip-hop artist T.I., Claybourne Evans Jr., died unexpectedly on March 24. 

The well-known Atlanta music executive was Rubicon Brand Management’s CEO, representing stars such as T.I. and Lil Duval. Evans was a managing consultant for Travis Scott and managed tours for Scott and others, such as Big Boi. He was also vice president of T.I.’s music label, Grand Hustle Records. Evans was known for promoting young talent and mentoring up-and-coming artists, Fox News Atlanta reported. AS VP, he managed shows, handled brand management, and oversaw the development of all artists at Grand Hustle.

It has been reported that Evans suffered a stroke at his Atlanta home on March 8 and never recovered. He was born in 1969 in Cleveland. His mother introduced him to music.  

“It just came to me that I fell in love with music because my mother took me to concerts at a young age. She took me to see Michael Jackson and Prince and others at a very young age. And I didn’t know it at the time [but] that would be where my passion for music came from,” he told Rolling Out in 2018.

Evans, a former airman in the U.S. Air Force, began his music career when he moved to London.

“With me being in the military, it just taught me discipline and direction,” said Evans. “And in this game, you have to be disciplined and on time, paying attention to detail. And it helped me not just with music management but tour management.”

Returning stateside, he went to work at the famous Patchwerk Recording Studios, formerly owned by ex-Atlanta Falcon Bob Whitfield. It was there that he met then-up-and-coming Clifford Harris Jr., aka T.I.

“The blessing is that when I started working with T.I., he wasn’t a big star. He was just a young G with a dream,” Clay said.

“At that time, T.I. had just gotten a deal, and I was booking Tip (T.I.) myself in different cities. When he wasn’t actually getting booked, I booked him into cities or situations that I created. I went to the venues. I created the radio buys. I hit the city and [would] promote him. That’s officially why I call myself the ‘hustle’ in Grand Hustle,” Evans explained.

Then he launched his own business, Rubicon, where he managed careers and touring with Tip and others, including Big Boi.

Atlanta music executive Claybourne Evans Jr. Photo courtesy of Rubicon Brand Management.