Richard Frierson | |
|---|---|
 Frierson in 2014 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Richard Frierson |
| Born | (1978-07-09)July 9, 1978 (age 46) |
| Origin | New York City, U.S. |
| Genres | |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1996–present |
| Labels |
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| Member of | The Hitmen |
Richard Frierson (born July 9, 1978), known professionally asYounglord, is an American record producer. He was an early member ofThe Hitmen, the in-house production team forPuff Daddy'sBad Boy Records. He has contributed to the 1997 albumsNo Way Out by Puff Daddy andHarlem World byMase, both of which debuted atop theBillboard 200. During his work with the group, he was solely credited onBig Pun's 2000 posthumous single "It's So Hard".[1] In 2014, Frierson founded The Truth Licensing, a commercial music provider for various media.
A native of New York City, he was signed in November 1994, at the age of sixteen, toPuff Daddy'sHitmen Production Team[1] producing for the label's roster includingMase,The Lox,Faith Evans and112. He has since produced for outside acts such asVirtue,DMX,Lloyd Banks,Veronica, New Edition andConsequence. Most recently his success was with theDiddy comeback single "Come to Me", which reached Number 9 on The U.S.BillboardHot 100 Singles Sales co-produced byYakubu "Jai" Izuagbe also known asRebel.
Frierson was also partly responsible for the now infamous producerRyan Leslie's meeting withP. Diddy after Leslie was given a 30-day contract as a music production intern for Frierson. When the two producers created theBeyoncé Knowles song "Keep Giving Your Love To Me" for theBad Boys 2 soundtrack, Ryan was asked to meetP. Diddy.[2]
Frierson conceptualized an incubator system for artists, allowing creative space for growth for up and coming artists and producers. Finding such talent such as Terry "MaddScientist" Thomas (a pseudonym inspired byNicole Scherzinger's single "Supervillain [pl]") and Atozzio, he helped guide and prepare them up to the point where they would be able to sign a publishing deal withEMI Music Publishing.
Identifying and supporting burgeoning artists has been a crucial factor for Frierson. After speaking at lectures atBerklee College of Music, Frierson metKeith Harris, guiding him to LA, where he eventually became Production Partner forBlack Eyed Peas'Will I Am, working on two of the last Black Eyed Peas albums, and also working onEstelle's hit single, "American Boy".Chris Henderson, another talent under Frierson's wings, went on to write the hit record "Blame It" byJamie Foxx, and has written for R&B hit manR. Kelly.
In 2014, Frierson founded The Truth Music Licensing[2]. The Truth controls a catalog of over 5,000 songs and has licensed music to major movie studios, networks, and high-profile brands.
License To Rock is the rebranding of The Truth Music Library. This rebranding consists of a major expansion and a partnership with a high profile music label. These changes put LTR in position to build a massive catalog and become a dominant force in the licensing space. Some of License To Rock's placements have been with Mona Scott's "Love & Hip Hop" franchises,Lee Daniels' "STAR" & "EMPIRE" and commercials for brands including Gatorade, Pepsi, and AT&T.[3]
