Byron Otto Thomas (born March 20, 1969), better known by his stage name Mannie Fresh, is an American record producer, DJ and rapper from

New Orleans, Louisiana New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

. He is best known for his production work for Cash Money Records releases, as well being half of the hip hop duo

Big Tymers Big Tymers (also stylized as Big Tymer$) is an American hip hop duo composed of Cash Money Records co-founder Birdman (rapper), Baby (later known as Birdman) and the label's in-house producer Mannie Fresh, both of whom originate from New Orlean ...

with the label's co-founder, Birdman. Beginning as the label's sole in-house producer in 1991, he received credits on the near-entirety of the label's output from 1998 until his departure in 2004. This resulted in 17 songs receiving gold, platinum, or multi-platinum certifications by the

Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

(RIAA) and 19 ''Billboard'' Hot 100 entries—which includes his 2004 debut single as a recording artist, " Real Big".

Life and career

Thomas was born and raised in the 7th Ward of New Orleans. Influenced by his father DJ Sabu, Thomas became a DJ for New Orleans hip hop crew New York Incorporated in 1984 at age 15. In the late 1980s, he began a partnership with New Orleans rapper MC Gregory D. They released their first album together ''Throwdown'' in 1987, with Mannie Fresh producing and MC Gregory D rapping. They would release two more records together in the late 1980s and early 1990s. After their last album together, in 1993, Thomas met Bryan "Baby" Williams, who gave him an opportunity to become the in-house producer of his record label Cash Money Records. With Williams' help, Thomas made chart-topping albums for the Hot Boys, which was composed of Lil Wayne, B.G., Juvenile, and Turk, producing all of the group's albums. He also produced all tracks on the members' solo works as well. Later, Thomas formed the

along with Williams, as Mannie Fresh and Birdman respectively, bringing him fame, and released five albums. In 2004, he released his own debut solo album '' The Mind of Mannie Fresh'', which consisted of 30 tracks and featured the single " Real Big", which peaked at #79 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. In 2005, he split from Cash Money for financial reasons, and later joined Def Jam South. On October 27, 2009, Mannie Fresh released his second solo album, '' Return of the Ballin'''. The album was entirely produced by Fresh himself and featured prominent guests

Rick Ross William Leonard Roberts II (born January 28, 1976), known professionally as Rick Ross, is an American rapper. An influential figure in modern Hip-hop, hip hop music, Rick Ross has become known for his "Wiktionary:booming, booming" vocal perfor ...

and

Lil Jon Jonathan H. Smith (born January 17, 1971), better known by his stage name Lil Jon, is an American rapper, DJ, and record producer. Regarded as a progenitor of the club-oriented hip-hop subgenre crunk, his production and voice presence were inst ...

Awards and honors

''OffBeat'''s Best of The Beat Awards

Discography

Studio albums * '' The Mind of Mannie Fresh'' (2004) * ''Return of the Ballin (2009) Collaborative albums * '' How You Luv That'' (with

) (1997) * '' How You Luv That Vol. 2'' (with Big Tymers) (1998) * '' I Got That Work'' (with Big Tymers) (2000) * '' Baller Blockin''' (with Cash Money Millionaires) (2000) * '' Hood Rich'' (with Big Tymers) (2002) * '' Big Money Heavyweight'' (with Big Tymers) (2003)

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Fresh, Mannie 1969 births Living people Cash Money Records artists African-American male rappers 21st-century American male rappers 20th-century American male rappers African-American record producers People from Destrehan, Louisiana Rappers from New Orleans Def Jam Recordings artists American hip-hop record producers Southern hip-hop musicians American trap musicians Musicians from New Orleans African-American songwriters Songwriters from Louisiana 21st-century American rappers 21st-century American male musicians 21st-century African-American musicians 20th-century African-American musicians American male songwriters Cash Money Millionaires members