photo by DV Photo & Video
One of the most exciting events of the day was saved for last as A3C hosted a live beat making session with Cash Money legend Mannie Fresh. Fresh is an OG in the game, he met Birdman in 1993 and became an in house producer with Cash Money, working a lot with Tha Hot Boyz. He would go on to produce chart topping albums and singles for them including ‘Block Is Hot.’ At A3C we got to see what he does best in person and it was beautiful.
photo by DV Photo & Video
Mannie Fresh produced numerous loops during the beat session. He gave us plenty of sounds too. He made a Louisiana bounce loop, showing us his homegrown roots, something that could definitely be heard in the club. Another loop sounded just like the beat of ‘Uproar’, the Carter V cut that has gone viral and sparked the Uproar Challenge. One of my personal favorite beats was one of the last he produced and it was a very upbeat loop, reminiscent of Pharrell sounds. Watching Fresh produce was exciting, seeing him zero in in front of a full room of people, and it didn’t stifle him one beat. The same focus he brought to his studio sessions with Wayne and Birdman, he brought to A3C and it was truly an honor to watch his process.
photo by DV Photo & Video
He showed us his processes in making beats and he even added a classic twist too. Instead of producing on the programs most producers use today, he brought his own SP 1200, the beat machine he produced all his hits with back in the day. Fresh spoke on how the SP 1200 only has eight sounds and how it proved really how talented and creative producers use to be. He also gave some advice to all the producers in the room “Focus on one unique different sound and master that.”
