Fre$h is here to put on for this new genre of Bar&B. Having been in the rap game for nearly a decade, the Houston native is here to push the boundaries when it comes to his art and sound. In fact, he combines rapping and R&B to formulate his own category, which consists of meaningful lyrics, impressive harmonies, and bass-heavy production. Read more…

Linking with 2 Chainz and 50 Cent is a standout moment for anyone’s career. With “Petty,” Fre$h proves his ability to adhere to the mainstream while staying true to himself and his character. Formerly known as Short Dawg, real name Supreme Williams has been providing tunes for people to vibe to since the Young Money days.

Now, he unleashes a new project titled frēsh•ism.

For those who don’t know, who is Fre$h?
Fre$h is one of the most player, laid-back, dope, talented, cool, witty, and visual to be around.

Where do you fit in the realm of hip-hop and R&B?
I fit right in the middle, because I have my own style of Bar&B.

Bar&B? That’s genius.
That’s really the genre that I created, so that’s what I’m going with right now. That’s probably gonna be the title of my next project. It’s just a merger of the lyricism and the 4-part harmonies with the singing as well. ‘Cause when I grew up, I was a singer. When I was younger, I was in the church choir. My mom was forcing me to go to church. When I finally could break loose, I started rapping. I never forgot my singing background, but I’m actually dope at rapping too. I decided to use both of them.

When you were singing when you were young, did you always want to be a rapper?
I thought I was gonna be an R&B singer or someone I grew up with. I grew up in the hood and got a hold of the streets, so it kind of changed my route a little bit.

You’re from Houston, how does that play into your life and career?
I’m very cultured, that’s where I’m from. A lot of my songs are slowed down, the BMP. I still use the slow flow. I still sound country as fuck. That’s mostly what Houston is known for, so I try to rep that as much as I can.

How long have you been in LA?
I’ve been here since 2012 back and forth. Now for the last year and a half, I’ve been here full-time.

At what point did you realize this music thing was forreal?
When I got that phone call that Russell wanted to sign me when I was 19. ‘Cause I always took it serious for myself, but then I saw that people took me serious. It was like “whoa, this finna happen.”

Why the name change from Short Dawg to Fre$h?
Growth. I feel like you have to evolve as an artist. You can’t just stay the same through your whole career. I’ve been doing it for a decade now, so there’s new fans out here. There’s Fre$h fans that don’t even know Short Dawg. I get people all the time arguing in my mentions and comments like “you know who this is right?” Like “yeah, this is Fre$h.” Then “no, this is Short Dawg!”

How important is it to come to LA as an up and coming artist?
Oh, it’s definitely important. This is the entertainment mecca right here, so you gotta come out and see what’s really going on. You can’t just stay in your region and think that “oh, because I’m hot here, I’m doing it big. People are successful where they are, but I am the type of person that wants to be international. I gotta make sure that I don’t even just stay in LA, I’m trying to go to Belgium, Africa, etc.

What’s your favorite part of LA?
I love the weather, the women…

“Women weed and weather.”
Word to Kendrick. I don’t even smoke like that, I just like the fact that you can have it and it won’t be an issue.

Congratulations on the release of frēsh•ism. How has the fan reception been?
It’s been great. I was a little concerned about how my previous fans would take it, ‘cause it’s not as rap-y as I would normally be. As I was saying, the Bar&B style is more what I was delivering. But everybody gave me the same thing: from front to back, they said it’s a good listen. People love to ride to it and that’s what I go for. Music that can just sit and live with you, not something you just let it play in the background. You gotta sit there and listen to it, and catch the vibe.

“Paul Masson” with Wiz is at almost a million views on YouTube. Did you foresee it blowing up like this?
Nah, I was just happy to do a song with Wiz. Wiz has that laid-back, player style too, so I felt like us collaborating would be fun. That’s 1 of 5 songs that we got, so definitely gonna spread my Wiz collabs out for the next 5 years.

How has your sound evolved over the years?
I am more into the harmonies and the melodies. I got comfortable with my voice. I’m around better production, because the beats always lead me to whatever I am gonna talk about. So the production and the use of my voice now.

What is it you want fans to get from your story?
Just staying at it. This is a marathon. The journey is never ending until you dead. You got artists like Lil Duval who just turned what, 43? And got a #1 single. It’s just about work over time. Wayne done work himself out of that contract that he was in until the whole new situation, over time! Don’t get deterred because you see people come out of nowhere and making millions of dollars, because they went viral or something. That don’t take away from you make money. They print this shit for everybody, there is some being printed right now. Keep working and focus on what you gotta do, and everything will work out.

What did you do with your first advance?
I spent it on attorney fees. [laughs]

Legal trouble?
A little bit. I’m glad I grew up.

How important is social media for your career?
It’s everything. You gotta stay right there with the audience. They gotta be able to reach you right away, so you can see what’s going on. Being able to interact with them, that’s big.

3 things you need in the studio?
A beat, the engineer, and everybody to shut the fuck up. [laughs] I prefer to work just by myself, me and the producer or me and the engineer. When the friends or all the homies come over, I’ll probably do a song that’s just a vibe, that suits them. But when I can get solitude, songs are going to be coming from within.

What’s a normal day in the life? Walk us through.
Definitely wake up, walk my dog, ‘cause he wakes me up. Say my affirmations in the morning, brush teeth, shower if I didn’t the night before. Breakfast, emails, and plans to end up in the studio at some point if it’s not already booked. That’s my routine every day.

Favorite song to perform in a set?
Aw man, off this new project… I just did one show recently. The one song I had the most fun doing was “Balance.”

What would you be doing if you weren’t doing music?
Phew… ain’t no telling. I’d probably be doing time. [laughs] Hopefully not, but you know how this is. I don’t know, I probably would have finished school. I was very smart. I was studying philosophy. I had a full academic scholarship, and I became a rapper.

What’s the best encounter you had with a fan?
Them letting me tattoo my name on their foot. They just became fans that night so it was cool. They let me tattoo my name on their foot in the studio. I got it on YouTube, check it out. I had just met ‘em. I was in the studio one night with Wayne, and two girls… yeah. It was fun.

Who’s the most played artist on your phone?
Me, I am always listening to my music. It’s not even like I am listening to myself, I’m just critiquing it and seeing what I can change to do better. Other than me? Maroon 5. That’s my favorite. I’ve got every album.

You and Adam need a collab.
I was so mad when Kanye did it years ago. Like how does Kanye become the first rapper to use Adam Levine on a hook. I’m so mad. I need to blow up, I need to get bigger. Come on, please!

My next question was dream collab, anyone else?
I actually want to have an album produced by Pharrell. A whole album produced by him. I remember when I met Timberland at The Hit Factory in Miami, me and him worked together. He asked me who my favorite producer was, and I told him him and Pharrell. The next day, he brought Pharrell to the studio to meet me. It was cool. Timberland is the man.

What advice do you have for an aspiring Fre$h?
Just work at it. I don’t even listen to my beginning music because I feel like I’ve made such a big change of course as an artist. I sound nothing like I sounded when I first began. I can see so much growth. Anything you do and put your 10,000 hours into, you’re gonna really come out with something productive. You’re gonna come out with something. Whatever it is, just make the most of it.