Gym Class Heroes' Travie McCoy an artist too

By Maddy Marr12/5/2012

Though many local fans of alt rockers Gym Class Heroes may not know this, lead singer Travie McCoy lives among us. In Aventura for the last four years, to be exact. McCoy, originally from the Finger Lakes region of Upstate New York, who formed the fun-loving band in high school, is also an artist. The 31-year-old will be exhibiting some of his sketches and tattoo-inspired works at the Air Traffic Control store in Miami Beach Friday night. Most people know him as a singer and not as an artist. "I went to art school in Utica, N.Y., and I thought, ‘When all is said and done, I can either be a starving artist or an art teacher,’ so I decided to go for something more structured [with Heroes]," he says. "If it hadn’t been for music, I definitely would have chased a career in the art world."

The “Rich Event” is 7 p.m. Friday at Air Traffic Control. 1601 Washington Ave., 305-531- 2000.