Travis Barker Wanted 'Best DJ In The World' To Replace DJ AM On Tour

Lil Wayne, Nicki Minaj and Rick Ross may be getting the lion's share of the publicity on the I Am Still Music Tour, but venue after venue, Travis Barker has been rocking the stages too. Hip-hop's favorite drummer just released his long-awaited solo debut, Give the Drummer Some, last month, and he's brought a friend along on tour to help keep his album cuts fresh.

The Blink-182 drummer enlisted the Beastie Boys' DJ, Mix Master Mike, for his set. For Barker, his choice in DJ was all about finding a worthy successor to his friend and collaborator, Adam "DJ AM" Goldstein, who died of a drug overdose in 2009.

"After playing with AM so long and after he left, it was like I had to find the best DJ in the world," Barker told. "And one that I grew up on that I loved that I had something in common with. And I grew up on the Beasties. I always loved Mike's DJing. I always loved what he was about and everything, so it was a good matchup, man."

Barker's new album is a mix of rock and hip-hop, featuring contributions from acts like Lupe Fiasco, Snoop Dogg, Busta Rhymes and Cypress Hill. "Can a Drummer Get Some?" — featuring tourmates Wayne and Ross along with Swizz Beatz and the Game — is the lead single, and Barker is deciding what the next release will be.

"It's probably going to be 'Knockin,' " Barker said. "Right now, 'Saturday Night' off the album is living on rock stations, which is kind of cool. And 'Can a Drummer Get Some?' is living on the hip-hop stations. There's a new remix coming. Wayne actually has a new verse on 'Can a Drummer Get Some?,' and there's an additional Swizz verse and a remix video that's going to drop that's just bananas, stupid."

What do you think of Barker's solo album? Share your reviews in the comments!