The duo of Baby and
Mannie Fresh, collectively known as the Big Tymers, have been able to change clothes
and go. From white T’s and Reeboks, to throwback jerseys and Air Force 1s,
they’ve kept it fresh to death amid the departure of three-fourths of the
Hot Boy$ and the arrival of out-of-towners to the Cash Money roster.
Now with the upcoming
release of their fifth album, Big Money Heavyweight, the twosome is taking
it back to where it all started: No outside production, no outside guest artists.
AllHipHop caught up with the Big Tymers to discuss
beef, business and lawsuits.
AllHipHop.com:
When you do the Big Tymers albums, it sticks to the script but it’s fresh
every time—no pun intended.
Fresh: That’s
the whole purpose of it. We always say that it sticks to the script. Don’t
expect no special ass sh*t, it’s gonna be a Tymers album.
AllHipHop.com: Baby, your solo album was a departure from the regular Cash Money
release since you worked with a lot of different producers and artists….
Mannie Fresh: Yeah,
that mu’f*cka [laughs]
AllHipHop.com:
Is the new Big Tymers going to be like that? Or are you taking it back?
Baby: Nah, Bird
Season, ain’t nobody producing on that but Fresh. Maybe R. Kelly gon’
get one or two on that. But, me and Fresh bout to tie it up. I don’t want
nobody else on that mu’f*cka.
AllHipHop.com:
R. Kelly is on the next single, right?
Baby: Yeah
AllHipHop.com:
How did you link up with him? Cause y’all doing the Best of Both World
2, right?
Baby: It just happened,
dog.
AllHipHop.com:
At first when you signed Boo & Gotti….
Baby: That’s
the connection (with R. Kelly).
AllHipHop.com:
At first it looked like beef, like y’all stole them or something, because
he was promoting them and everything.
Baby: Nah, it was
something he asked me to do. He got caught in a situation and was like ‘I
don’t want to hold them up and they fit y’all.’ And right from
there a vibe grew and that’s how the Best of Both Worlds sh*t started.
AllHipHop.com:
Fresh, are you going to be contributing to the Best of Both Worlds 2?
Fresh: Yeah.
AllHipHop.com:
Do you have much input? Or does R. lead and you follow?
Fresh: I mean,
it was his project anyway. You know dude was like, ‘give me a couple of
tracks.’ Songs that I gave him so far—they love.
AllHipHop.com:
And how many tracks are going to be on that album?
Baby: We doing
a double CD, dog. It should come out in February. It’s a wrap. After that
I’m not doing anymore group albums—straight solo.
AllHipHop.com:
Fresh, are you putting out a solo album?
Fresh: f*ck no.
Baby: We gonna
do a group thing every now and then.
Fresh: I’ma
stand in the back and get 50 percent of his sh*t.
AllHipHop.com:
Y’all got Juvenile back now, right?
Baby: Juvenile
got us back now.
AllHipHop.com:
What about Turk? He just had an album drop.
Fresh: I see Turk
all the time. We still cool.
AllHipHop.com:
You gonna buy his album?
Fresh: Yeah, I’ma
check it out.
AllHipHop.com:
Baby, does BG still have a lawsuit against you?
Baby: Man, him
and a bunch of more mu’f*ckas got lawsuits.
AllHipHop.com:
The Wendy Day one still going on? (Day, founder of Rap Coalition claims she
helped broker the deal between Cash Money Records and Universal Records.)
Baby: Nah, that’s
been dead.
AllHipHop.com:
How did that go down? Because it seemed clear, she helped y ’all get the
deal and….
Baby: She didn’t
help me, man. How the f*ck she gon’ help me?
AllHipHop.com:
Nah?
Baby: That b*tch
ain’t been in the projects grindin’, putting in no work with me. I
don’t even know that woman.
AllHipHop.com:
Y’all never met?
Baby: Maybe once
or twice, but she ain’t help me. She ain’t catch no bullets or spit
no fire out there.
AllHipHop.com:
She made it sound like she helped y’all broker your deal.
Baby: C’mon,
man. Well then that means she had put in 7 years worth of work.
Fresh: Featuring
Wen-dee [laughs]
AllHipHop.com:
Baby, now that your going to be putting out solo albums, how does that affect
you handling day-to-day business?
Baby: It’s
better for me to do solo sh*t, because me and this group sh*t ain’t working
out.
Fresh: I’m
about to take that spot, dude. The day-to-day business.
Baby: I’ma
do the solo sh*t and I’ma give him half of my sh*t (ownership).
Fresh: It’s
gon’ to be some cuts around this mu’f*cka [looks at entourage in the
room]. Y’all better get everything y’all can get.
AllHipHop.com:
Fresh, since you gonna start handling day-to-day business, when are we going
to see some of the other artists on the label? Like TQ, and do y’all still
have Gilly (of Major Figgas)?
Fresh: Yeah, we
still have all them. We working on Gilly’s album right now. It’s just
the Cash Money way. We just don’t throw artists out; you know what I’m
saying? You got to be here for a while
AllHipHop.com:
So when can we start expecting those albums to be released? Is it gonna be next
year? Or are they gonna fall back?
Fresh: It ain’t
that long. Probably next year. We really don’t care about…even though
it is a big issue. It ain’t about the sales. It’s about the loyalty;
you know what I’m saying?
AllHipHop.com:
Fresh, everyone recognizes you have a good sense of humor. What kind of stuff
do you do when you’re not in the studio?
Fresh: I like comedy
sh*t like American Pie. I’m about to go with Nick Cannon, man. [Points
toward flat screen TV in the room] Nick Cannon is SAFE, he don’t want no
problems in life. All y’all rappers shooting at each other and sh*t….
Nick Cannon is safe. Y’all should get up and walk outta of this b*tch with
me right now. [Gets up and fakes toward the door]
AllHipHop.com:
Fresh, are you gonna be involved on the Teena Marie album?
Fresh: Yeah.
AllHipHop.com:
Is that something that you and Jazze Pha going to work out?
Fresh: Actually
we’re kind of going to let Teena do her thing. You know, however she calls
it then that’s how it gon’ be. She knows better than anybody. So if
she wants something from me, I’m doing it. But however she wants the tracks
to go that’s how it’s going to go.
AllHipHop.com:
Have you laid anything down yet?
Fresh: Yeah, I
did a couple of songs for her.
AllHipHop.com:
How is it producing R&B? I know Cash Money had that one group Official.
Fresh: They pretty
much did they own songs. R&B is pretty much the same to me anyway. But when
it comes to Teena Marie—that’s R&B. You know right now, R&B
is just hip-hop music. But Teena Marie is true R&B.
AllHipHop.com:
So you don’t want to do a compilation album at all? A lot of people feel
your beats, but you haven’t done much work outside of Cash Money, with
the exception of projects like Biggie’s Born Again.
Fresh: I might,
you know? If I do a compilation it has to be new cats. f*ck the established
dudes. That’s already done. I’m trying to get some kids that want
to do something.
AllHipHop.com:
Do you have any say on the cats y’all sign?
Fresh: I really
don’t trip on that because that’s not my job.
AllHipHop.com:
Well, with you moving to the business side is that something you’re going
to look to do?
Fresh: Yeah, definitely.
Cause I know where the game is going.