Ahmad Nichols is officially FREER 🥳
Written by Ahmad Nichols & BL Shirelle
Published 9/9/24
After six months of in depth training, I am humbly excited to formally announce my position as Operations & Development Assistant of FREER Records. This journey has been a beautiful one; naturally organic in its evolution, painful at times, but if I had one word to sum it up - it would be FULFILLING. - Ahmad Nichols
This quest started long before I met Fury in 2018. It began with my absolute adoration for hip hop as a youth growing up in Baltimore, rapping in cyphers for hours on end. I always had a strong, compelling voice that drew the audience in, hanging on to my every word. I also had an analytical mind as a young man - very organized, always trying to think steps ahead of my competition, my enemy, even my fate. In a lot of ways hip hop shaped me. The questions always were: “How can my words paint a picture? What story am I trying to tell?” “Where am I taking my people with these leadership qualities?” Obviously, early on in my life the answers were destructive; leading me to being convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to 22 years in prison at the age of 28.
At my sentencing I had a private conversation with the family I had harmed. It was powerful and life changing. That discussion and their forgiveness made me determined to change who I was. While serving my sentence I began to exercise my positive attributes in a more intentional way, embracing my artistic talents. I began to draw and paint, make beats, and write songs. I was creating constantly. I was part of groups and programs like Toastmasters, Advanced Artist, Conflict Resolution, Business Entrepreneur, and many more that helped me not only cultivate these gifts, but more importantly stay focused and sane.
That’s exactly what I was doing on October 18, 2018 when Fury was hosting an audition for the Die Jim Crow album in the prison I resided in. Those auditions sparked a movement (THE MASSES DA MOVEMENT 🗣). Quite a few of the guys who were at the audition came together and started creating as a group called The Masses. The Masses’ mantra was “a voice for the voiceless, many a tongue - ONE SOUND.” We were a collective focused on the power of the people, spreading a message of love and unity. We were a group of majority Generation X men (plus a couple of millennials) from all different backgrounds, some serving heavy sentences for heinous acts, who all had our own story - none greater than the sum of our parts, but each beautifully unique.
Ahmad with BL and Fury at 2020 sessions for The Masses (Photo: Britni West)
Ahead of our recording sessions which took place in February 2020, on the precipice of the modern world's most devastating pandemic, I began coordinating writing sessions, rehearsals and producing beats for the group. We hosted talent shows and concerts in the gym for the Youth Offender Unit; we had a gym full of prisoners shouting, “Masses, Movement, voice for the voiceless, soldiers of fortune, the poor and unfortunate, THE MASSES!” My voice, blended with my brothers, created a chant of power and love. As mind blowing as those experiences were, I took a lot of blows as well. Navigating prisoner politics was a dangerous job; people trying to bully their way into the group, trying to meet the needs of all our participants, and making sure everyone was on the same page, were challenges that I was able to overcome as the group was losing patience due to the delay of our debut release.
“My voice, blended with my brothers, created a chant of power and love. As mind blowing as those experiences were, I took a lot of blows as well.”
- Ahmad Nichols
The Masses sessions, February 2020. Ahmad stands fourth from right in top row. (Photo: Britni West)
In February 2023 our first single “Da Movement” dropped. Our group was extremely excited - after five years of working, our dreams were finally coming true. Our only dream was to be heard. However, when the DOC got wind of our video dropping they threw a few of us in solitary, falsely claiming we were displaying gang affiliations in our music video. They threatened us until FREER was forced to wipe the internet of our work - and this was the biggest challenge of all. A thing that was all about hope and togetherness was minimized to gang activity and violence. In the blink of an eye - we were disbanded by the powers that be. Our powerful voices - SILENCED.
That culmination gave me the patience, hunger, determination and respect for this very moment. I've been home for about nine months, familiarizing myself with the standard practices of the label, creating album artwork, building a proper infrastructure for our donor records, but most of all LEARNING. These experiences have led me to this very moment and I refuse to be silenced ever again. I will speak through my leadership, my practice and my art. However, my position has not yet been fully funded. My hours are piecemeal, and I'm looking to have a guaranteed position here at FREER for the next year to come, for starters. We're depending on you and your belief that art saves lives. You have gotten us to this point and hopefully you're down to continue riding with us, as we will never take your support for granted. Please consider making a monthly contribution towards my salary; no amount is too small. You will be actively changing my life as you have already done in ways you could never imagine. I hope to hear from you soon. Thank you so much for your continued support.
Ahmad Nichols
a.nichols [at] freerrecords [dot] com
Photo: Mickey Hoover
