From Red Deer to Calgary: Travis Omen on Hip-Hop, Truability & Staying True

Hailey Bell
5 days ago
6 min read

Name: Travis Omen

Talent Name: Travis Omen

Business Name: Truability

Category: Rapper / Graphic Designer / Videographer

💬 INTRODUCTION

Whatup?! I’m Travis Omen, born and raised on the north end of Red Deer. My whole life I wanted to make music, performing songs like Why Don’t You Get A Job by The Offspring and Dr. Evil’s rap rendition of Just the 2 of Us in elementary school assemblies. I guess the latter woulda been my first time rapping on stage, in Grade 4. In middle school, hip-hop began to take over my life—started writing raps but nothing too serious. Then in Grade 9 I really wanted to make my own music. Got the cheap $15 mic from Radio Shack and got to work. We were selling CDs outta duffle bags, burning 100 copies ourselves and hustling them all over the school—same with T-shirts we’d print ourselves too.

Nowadays, pretty much still doing the same shit: making music, performing in front of people, and tryna sell merch. Been a wild and long journey though, with a lot of cool things happening in between then and now.

🔥 THE PASSION

I think 8 Mile was probably the biggest turning point for me as a kid. I remember when Lose Yourself first dropped on the radio—my substitute teacher told us Eminem had new music coming out that night because he worked part-time at the station. I went home, sat by my mom’s clock radio in the bathroom, and completely lost my shit (not literally).

Then the movie was announced, and the rest was history. But that was really just the beginning. The list of rappers who’ve inspired me since then would make for a very long read at this point.

🇨🇦 COMMUNITY & CANADIAN PRIDE

It’s dope—I like repping where I’m from and keeping my music relatable to my real life, unless I’m storytelling from someone else’s perspective. Canada’s been a great place to come up creatively, from meeting other rappers and musicians along the way to touring out west. I’ve also got love for the East Coast, even though I haven’t rocked a show out there yet. Somebody tell Classified I’m open for bookings. Haha.

🚀 BUILDING THE DREAM

As far as my rap “career” goes, I’ve had a few highlights I’m really proud of. My band at the time, Midwest Mindset, was featured in the very first CBC Searchlight contest. They even had us listed as frontrunners on some television and radio spots. I don’t think they were trying to fly six guys and a full band setup to Toronto that year though—probably should’ve gone acoustic. Haha.

I also won an opening spot for Classified, which was huge for me. The show was in my hometown on a sold-out Bo’s stage, and after that night I legit felt like a celebrity—signing shirts and even some body parts. Haha.

I’ve had a few albums that were crowdfunded as well, all with really successful rollouts that I’m proud of. We raised nearly $10K for I Love Alberta Peace with Project Trybe, and another almost $6K for my solo project Dreams Come Tru / Nightmares 2.

Oh—and I almost forgot—I entered D12’s Songwriting Contest a couple years back,

beat out the competition, and ended up winning a collaboration record with Swifty McVay and Kuniva, plus some insanely valuable training sessions with them. That moment was probably my proudest. I used to have D12 posters on my wall, so shout-out to both of them. You can check the track out on their Spotifys—it’s called “It Is What It Ain’t.”

🤝 NETWORKING SPOT

Honestly, anything with Classified. He’s hands down my favourite Canadian producer and rapper. Watching his come-up from small shows in Red Deer to selling out venues in Calgary has been incredibly inspiring.

🎶 CLOSING

Finally — Edmonton, February 13th at Rendezvous Pub. Let’s make it loud.

✨ COMETS QUESTIONS

COMET: What’s one funny bar you’ve dropped that people still quote back to you?

TRAVIS OMEN: Haha. I actually just got quoted this one the other day. It was a bar from a rap battle I was in: “This ****** malls on more Balzac than Cross Iron Mills.”

COMET: You work across a lot of creative lanes. How do you balance everything you do without losing focus?

TRAVIS OMEN: I honestly struggle with this. I love writing way more than recording or mixing, so I’ll jump straight into a new track instead of finishing the list of songs I already have written. I look productive because I’m always dropping new stuff, but it’s not as focused as it could be. My 2026 goal is to actually finish my album. Haha.

COMET: You’re originally from Red Deer but built Truability out of Calgary. How has each city shaped you?

TRAVIS OMEN: Red Deer definitely shaped who I am—especially my adolescence and early days as a rapper. I was spray-painting “I ♥ RD” all over the city and I meant that. But I’ve been in Calgary for almost 12 years now, and I think my direction as a man, an artist, and an individual has been more influenced by this city. I’m really trying to make both places proud.

COMET: What does the name Truability represent to you personally?

TRAVIS OMEN: I was taking a business course and they kept saying “liability,” and my brain immediately went to “Truability.” It just stuck. Musically, I’ve always tried to keep things tru with my ability, and I think the honesty in my music reflects that.

COMET: When you’re behind the camera working with another artist, what moment are you always trying to capture?

TRAVIS OMEN: Aside from making sure the shot looks fire from a videography standpoint, I’m really trying to capture the essence of the song—just visually.

COMET: Alberta’s music and media scene is growing fast. What sets Truability apart?

TRAVIS OMEN: I’m still making music with the same people I came up with—from Midwest Mindset to Capitole D. A lot of what we value as a label is real friendships. I think some labels miss that part, and eventually the whole thing falls apart.

COMET: You work with both artists and small businesses. How do you switch gears?

TRAVIS OMEN: At this point it’s second nature. Sometimes there’s crossover where I can pull inspiration from hip-hop into client projects style-wise.

COMET: Collaboration is clearly part of your process. What do you look for?

TRAVIS OMEN: I’ve kept my collab circle pretty small over the years—mostly people I came up with who are on the same wavelength. Outside of that, I’m open to working with anyone who shares the same passion for music and is down to actually put in work.

COMET: Who’s been your favourite person to work with so far?

TRAVIS OMEN: The D12 training and collab experience definitely stands out. The verse I wrote was originally for the contest—they had us write, rewrite, and refine it—but I was hoping we’d end up doing a whole new record together instead of them hopping on that one. Still dope though. That said, my favourite collab was probably featuring JUNK. We sent him the verse the day before, he came to my basement studio, laid it down in one take, did it again just to be safe, then added all his dubs and ad-libs (he called them “monkey noises,” haha). Watching an MC of his calibre body a verse like that was wild.

COMET: What keeps you grounded as both a business owner and an artist?

TRAVIS OMEN: The last few years, I’ve really tried to refocus on what started Truability—music. I work full-time at a creative marketing agency, so that side of my brain is covered. Now it’s about carving out time for music. Honestly, music is what keeps me grounded. It’s my outlet and my therapy.

COMET: Any hidden gems that deserve more spotlight?

TRAVIS OMEN: There’s a grimey dive bar in Calgary called Vern’s—not the best date spot—but Capital Rap Battles happens there about twice a year. The talent is insane, and it just keeps growing. I’ll probably be battling on the next card too.

COMET: Any local brands or businesses you want to shout out

TRAVIS OMEN: Shameless plug for the agency I work at—Pushysix Media Group. We do some wild stuff in the construction and industrial space in Calgary. Shout-out Visions of a Thought Clothing out of Saskatchewan—my clothing sponsor. They put out quality designs for bands and artists, and they also run VOAT Mag, which is worth checking out if you can find a copy.www.voatclothing.com