TM88 - a fairly well-known name in the world of American (or rather world) music. Today, this young man is one of the most sought-after DJs or beatmakers on the West Coast.
The musician has recently become known to the world. It happened after working on the releases of such eminent musicians as Lil Uzi Vert, Gunna, Wiz Khalifa. There are other famous representatives of the American hip-hop scene in the portfolio.
Today, the musician's arrangements can be heard on the albums of first-rate stars, winning leading positions in the world music charts. The main genre in which the beatmaker works is trap music. He creates stylish beats that are in demand among the stars of the genre.
TM88 Early Years
The real name of the artist is Brian Lamar Simmons. The future composer was born in Miami (Florida). However, this does not mean that his childhood was absolutely cloudless. The fact is that, while still a small child, Brian and his family moved to the city of Yufaul, which is located in the state of Alabama.
Alabama is a rather specific state from a cultural point of view. It is famous for the non-standard way of life of the locals. Here the boy grew up and was brought up, absorbing different musical cultures characteristic of the state.
He developed a love for music quite early. The young man collected a collection of music of different genres, but very soon hip-hop came to the fore. In the middle of the XNUMXs, Brian began to actively hone his skills as a beatmaker, creating instrumental compositions. However, before the start of a professional career was still far away.
TM88 created music for little-known rappers, which ended up not being very popular. But that didn't stop him from developing his skills.
Interestingly, after 2007, the genre began to undergo many changes. From hard street rap, fashion began to rapidly move towards a more commercial sound. The arrangements gradually changed tempo. Rappers now needed more modern musical accompaniment.
In that sense, Brian "was at the right time, at the right moment." He quickly managed to rebuild towards more modern trends. The young man began to make rap arrangements at once in several styles.
The first fluctuations in the direction of popularity
The guy in 2009 began a collaboration with rapper Slim Dunkin. At that time, Brian was only 22 years old. The young man successfully wrote music for most of Dunkin's tracks for two years. The collaboration has been very productive.
Together they managed to create a number of tracks that managed to win new listeners. Everything went on until 2011, until the tragic death of Slim (he was killed at the end of the year).
Cooperation with 808 Mafia
However, for a long time Brian did not have to think about what to do next. Just a few months later, he meets the famous rapper SouthSide. The latter invites him to a joint recording of songs. Over the course of several months, they record a large amount of material together.
Seeing the potential in the young musician, Southside invited TM88 to join their new creative association - 808 Mafia. This is an alliance of musicians united by a common brand and periodically creating music by common efforts. From that moment on, Brian begins to create music for rappers from 808 Mafia. Gradually occupying an increasingly significant position in this alliance.
In the same 2012, Simmons became the main producer of the track "Waka Flocka Flame "Lurkin". The rapper at that time was already very popular with Western and European audiences. The recording of his album was attended by such stars as Drake, Nicki Minaj and many others.
Thus, TM88 worked on an album on which world-famous stars worked. In addition, the track itself has become quite popular among fans of progressive American rap music. Consequently, Brian managed to firmly establish himself not only in the 808 Mafia association, but also in the Western rap scene in general.
TM88 Career Continuation
After 2012, rap music continued to change rapidly. Trap music was already on the top of the charts. The TM88 excelled in this genre. Experimenting a lot, he attracted the attention of many famous rappers.
He managed to work with such musicians as Future, Gucci Mane. So, he helped the first one in recording the mixtape, actively working on the minuses for the release. With Gucci Maine (by the way, at that time he was already at the peak of his popularity), a more significant project came out. Brian arranged for the song, which later appeared on the artist's ninth album, Trap House III.
In 2014, cooperation with Future continued. "Special" became one of the most popular tracks on the Honest album. This finally fixed the TM88 on the stage, or rather on the "market" of beatmakers.
From that moment on, the musician became a recognized master of trap arrangements. To this day, he actively collaborates with leading trap artists. Despite the fact that most of the composer's work can be heard on the album of American rappers, he does not forget to release solo releases as well.
Periodically, Brian releases solo records. Most often, these are collections to which a young beatmaker invites various performers. Most often TM88 works with Southside, Gunna, Lil Uzi Vert, Lil Yachty and other representatives of the so-called "new school".
