Tm88

TM88, managed by and in partnership with Will Dzombak [Taylor Gang] & Andre Mullings [Taylor Gang/OMG], has become one of the most prolific and influential producers in hip-hop. "I always wanted to be involved in music in some kind of way" he remembers. Born in North Miami and raised in Atlanta, Bryan Lamar Simmons had an ear from the beginning. "I came up on Kriss Kross, Geto Boys and Michael Jackson," the 31-year-old says. "I used to record music off the radio, bring it to school and sell the tapes." That hustle took him to the studio where he was inspired by a friend's dad to make beats. "His beats weren't that good," TM laughs, "but I wanted to figure this out." His cousin gifted him FL Studio and he made his first beat at 12. "I was like, 'Damn bro! I could be like Jazze Pha or Lil Jon!'" TM sold his first beat for a mere $40--for a local rapper at 18. In 2012, he notched his first industry placement with "Lurkin" for Waka Flocka Flame's Triple F Life. It was serendipity. The year prior, TM and Southside formed the production collective 808 Mafia and Waka happened to find the beat on the group's self-titled instrumental project online. That relationship opened the door to the who's who of the South: Future, Gucci Mane and Rick Ross, to name a few. "Future played a big role in my career." The two linked through a mutual friend on Twitter and began work on 2013's Future : F.B.G. The Movie