Audiences will hear a lot of the songs Mannie Fresh is best known for when the New Orleans producer and rapper performs with the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra on Friday, Nov. 21. But Fresh is a DJ at his core, and he’s approaching his show from that point of view: What’s going to get the people dancing?
“It’s a DJ set with an orchestra,” Fresh says. “I’m putting some of my songs in there, but I’m also doing some of my favorite songs that I like, that I think will move the crowd and are special to people and special to me. So it’s all over the place, from the Bee Gees to Barry White to trap music.”
In recent years, the LPO has collaborated with several New Orleans musicians for concerts performing those artists’ original music. The orchestra has backed bounce icon Big Freedia three times in the Orpheum Theater, performed with Tank and the Bangas, and the recording of the LPO’s concert with the Lost Bayou Ramblers won a Grammy Award.
The LPO’s unique Market Nights (formerly Music at the Museum) series has had an LPO ensemble back pop musician Dawn Richard, rapper Alfred Banks, folk musician Leyla McCalla, electronic project IFE and synth-pop band People Museum.
Those concerts have closely followed the guest musician’s original music orchestrated for a fuller sound with the LPO’s strings, brass and percussion. Fresh’s concert, though, is a little different, says LPO Executive Director Anwar Nasir, as the DJ and the LPO reach into not just Fresh’s music but his influences.
“He’s an artist, producer and DJ, all in one. You’re going to see all three of those worlds come together,” Nasir says. “And because he has such a creative mind, we’re rethinking how the orchestra plays a part of that. He’s seeing the orchestra as, ‘Now I have all these instruments to play with.’”
Fresh was the in-house producer for Cash Money, rapped in the duo Big Tymers with Bryan “Baby” Williams and on Hot Boys records, and has produced his own albums and songs for artists like T.I. There are a lot of hits to pull from, and Friday’s show will include Juvenile’s “Ha,” Lil Wayne’s “Go DJ,” Big Tymers’ “Still Fly” and more.
In 2023, the LPO’s Hannah Yim and Jacob Fowler joined Juvenile and Fresh on NPR Tiny Desk to perform the instantly recognizable strings in “Back That Azz Up.” Now, the full LPO will play the dance floor staple.
“I’m excited about doing it this way,” Fresh says. “Normally when you’re at something like an orchestra, you think tuxedos and people sitting down. This one is not that. This is the energy orchestra.”
A New Orleans legend, Fresh has been DJing for more than 40 years. Collaborating with an orchestra, though, presents some unique challenges, he said, like coordinating turning, timing and pitch between the ensemble and his DJ equipment. But it’s also a rare opportunity to swap digitally produced sounds with live instrumentation.
“The way I was brought up, coming from New Orleans, we love musicianship,” Fresh says. “We love live instruments, but some things [just aren’t possible]. That’s what’s good about doing it with an orchestra. It feels like home.”
Mannie Fresh performs with the LPO at 8 p.m. Friday, Nov. 21, at the Orpheum Theater. Tickets start at $50 via lpomusic.com.