Baby Boy da Prince Talks Katrina, Working with Mannie Fresh, & N.O.'s Other Side

In this SOHH Exclusive, Baby Boy opens up about his album Across The Water, working with legendary N.O. producer Mannie Fresh and how his faith carried him, as an artist and as a man, through one of America's worst natural disasters.

"I actually was in the midst of everything," Baby Boy told SOHH. "It was the worst struggle I went through in my life besides the rap game...I just stayed talking to the Lord everyday. The first day the storm hit, I just steady kept the Lord by my side the whole time. I just rode the storm out and I stayed here right after, and when the water went down I was still here. I was helping people in the neighborhood getting water, food, ice. It was terribly hot. I was the only one with transportation so I'd go to this place and that and bring things back to the hood."

While his rap career stretches back to his teen years, having opened for artists like Juvenile, Paul Wall and 50 Cent, it was in the aftermath of Katrina, while living in a FEMA trailer, that Baby Boy began penning material for what would become his debut.

In 2006, after "The Way I Live" became the #1 song on New Orleans station Q93 in just three weeks, Universal Republic Records signed the young rapper.

"The reason why I named my album 'Across the Water' is because they got a lot of artists from New Orleans' East Bank. I'm from the West Bank of New Orleans. I'm telling everybody to come across the water and see how I live on this side," Baby Boy explained.

Released on March 20, Across the Water boasts appearances from Lil' Boosie and Nina Sky as well as legendary N.O. producer Mannie Fresh, who collaborated with Baby Boy da Prince on his second single "Naw Meen."

"Working with Mannie Fresh was truly a blessing for me. When you are raised up in New Orleans and you've been hearing him all your life, it was like 'man I'm really doing something with Mannie Fresh?' Once he done what he done he let me have the leeway, like 'you go ahead and do what you do, this is your song.' I respect him for that. He's a veteran in New Orleans and he's been doing this for over 20 years."

The video for "Naw Meen" is currently in rotation on BET and MTV2. Across the Water is in stores now.
Sohh.com