Walter Anthony "Tony" Bradford (born March 3, 1989), better known by his stage name Montana of 300 (or simply Montana), is an American rapper, singer and songwriter from Peoria, Illinois. During high school, he formed the hip-hop group 300, alongside Talley of 300. His debut studio album, Fire in the Church (2016), entered the Billboard 200. His next four albums — Don't Doubt the God (2017), Pray 4 the Devil (2018), A Gun In The Teacher’s Desk (2018), and Views from the General's Helmet (2019) — were each released on May 20; the significance of the date is unknown. After several delays, his sixth album, Rap God (2022) was released and announced as his final.
Early life Tony Bradford was born on March 3, 1989, in Chicago, Illinois. He has two brothers and three sisters. He started rapping at age 15, and grew up listening to artists such as Tupac, DMX, Lil Wayne, and Jay-Z. Both his parents suffered from serious substance abuse issues, his father from alcohol and his mother from crack cocaine. After witnessing his parents' struggles, Montana ceased using narcotics, not wanting to "fry his brain."
In 2008, Montana, his friend from high school, Montelle Talley (known professionally as "Talley of 300"), as well as several others joined to form the rap group "300". The name for the group was based on the movie of the same name, in which a group of 300 Spartans overcome more than 300,000 Persian Soldiers to hold on to their territory. Montana was particularly inspired by the line, "No Surrender, No Retreat, Only the hard, only the strong, Against all odds".
Career In 2014, Montana released his first mixtape, titled Cursed with a Blessing. In September 2015, Montana made a cameo appearance in the popular television show, Empire. In December 2015, Montana and Talley of 300 released a collaborative mixtape titled Gunz and Roses. Staples of this tape included "FGE Cypher" and "Mf's Mad".
On May 20, 2016, Montana released his debut studio album, titled Fire in the Church. The 18-track release, which only included features from his Fly Guy Entertainment labelmates and Kevin Gates, was lauded by XXL magazine for its "heat-seeking bars and thought-provoking metaphors". The album peaked at #95 on the Billboard 200.
On February 10, 2017, Montana released a compilation album with his Fly Guy labelmates, titled No Surrender No Retreat.
On February 11, 2025, it was announced that Montana was arrested on multiple charges; such as Criminal Trespassing, Domestic Battery, Resisting Arrest, and Theft.
Discography Albums Studio albums + List of studio albums, with selected details and chart positions Title Album details Peak chart positions US USR&B/HH USRap USInd. Fire in the Church Released: May 20, 2016 Label: Fly Guy Entertainment Format: CD, digital download 95 7 2 11 Don't Doubt the God Released: May 20, 2017 Label: Fly Guy Entertainment, E1 Music Format: CD, digital download — — 4 22 Pray for the Devil Released: May 20, 2018 Label: Fly Guy Entertainment, E1 Music Format: CD, digital download — — 3 37 A Gun in the Teachers Desk Released: November 16, 2018 Label: Fly Guy Entertainment, E1 Music Format: CD, digital download — — 10 — Views from the General's Helmet Released: May 20, 2019 Label: Fly Guy Entertainment, E1 Music Format: CD, digital download — — — — Rap God Released: January 6, 2022 Label: Fly Guy Entertainment, E1 Music Format: CD, digital download — — — 1
Mixtapes + List of mixtapes, with selected details Title Details Cursed With a Blessing Released: December 1, 2014 Label: Fly Guy Entertainment Format: Digital download Gunz n Roses(with Talley of 300) Released: December 2, 2015 Label: TSO Records Format: Digital download
Compilation album Title Details No Surrender No Retreat(with Fly Guy Entertainment) Released: February 10, 2017 Label: Fly Guy Entertainment Format: CD, digital downloadTop flow Released 2025
Singles As lead artist +List of singles as lead artist, showing year released and album name Title Year Album "Derrick Rose MVP Song" 2011 rowspan="1" "Ice Cream Truck" 2014Cursed With a Blessing "Gas Mask"(with Talley of 300) 2015Gunz n Roses "Nothing New"(with Talley of 300) "You Know"(with Talley of 300) "Mf's Mad, Pt. 2"(featuring Talley of 300) 2016Fire in the Church "Land of the Dark" "Here Now" "Wts Now" "Dirty Dancin'" 2017 Don't Doubt the God "Ugly" 2018 Pray for the Devil "Chiraq vs. NY" "Been a Beast" 2018 A Gun in the Teacher's Desk "Dip-n-Sauce"
As featured artist +List of singles as featured artist, showing year released and album name Title Year Album "Bad Combo"(Nasty Nem featuring Montana of 300) 2014 "Black On Black Everything"(Talley Of 300 featuring Montana of 300) Thanksgiving "Upstate RockStar"(Locx featuring Montana of 300) 2015 rowspan="2" "Stephen Curry"(J Real featuring Montana of 300) "Black Out"(Jax Teller featuring Montana of 300) Just Another Crazy Kraka "Like Me"(Jewelz Montalvo featuring Montana of 300, Abbie and Tatiana Carrion) 2016 rowspan="2" "Come Up"(Innocent featuring Montana of 300) 2017
Filmography + Television series Year Title Role Notes 2015 Empire Jamming Prisoner Episode: "Without a Country" 2017 The Quad Dreds Episode: "Pilot"
References
External links