Cassidy (rapper)

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Barry Adrian Reese
Birth name	Barry Adrian Reese
Born	July 7, 1982 (1982-07-07) (age 27)
Origin	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania United States
Genre(s)	Hip hop
Occupation(s)	Rapper, producer, songwriter, actor
Years active	1999 – present
Label(s)	Ruff Ryders, Full Surface, J Records(2002-2008), Kross Over Ent(2009-present)
Associated acts	Ruff Ryders, Larsiny Family, Swizz Beatz, Mashonda, Mario, Freeway, Neo Da Matrix, Carmelo Anthony
Website	cassidymusic.com

Barry Adrian Reese, better known by his stage name Cassidy, (born July 7, 1982) is an American rapper.

His most successful work to date is his 2004 album Split Personality, which reached #2 on the Billboard 200 album chart and #1 on the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop albums chart.^[1] He won BET's Rap City Best Booth.^[2]

Contents 1 Musical career 1.1 Second album 1.2 Third album 2 Murder case 3 Car accident 4 Personal life 5 Discography 6 References 7 External links

[edit] Musical career

Cassidy received some fame after he won a rap battle with Roc-a-Fella artist Freeway. Cassidy recorded his first album, Split Personality in 2003. The record is divided into three parts: The first is credited to Cassidy and reflects his pop side, the second, credited as "Tha Problem," aims at fans of his mixtapes and the third is credited to B. Reese from fans from his early days.^[3]

Cassidy recorded the lead single "Hotel" in R. Kelly's Chicago studios with a vocal contribution by Kelly - there is also a remix featuring vocals by Trina. The song became a hit, reaching the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100 in February 2004 and was nominated for a Vibe Award in the category Coolest Collabo that year.^[4] May 2004 was also the month Cassidy featured on the cover of The Source magazine, alongside Lil' Flip, Young Gunz and J-Kwon.^[5]

Split Personality was released on March 16, 2004 and debuted at #2 on the Billboard 200 album charts and at #1 on the R&B/Hip Hop albums charts.^[1] The second single, "Get No Better", featured a contribution from labelmate Mashonda but did not do as well on the singles charts, reaching #82 on the Billboard Hot 100.

In September 2004, Cassidy was nominated for "Lyricist of the Year" at the Source Awards.^[6]

[edit] Second album

Cassidy released his second album, I'm a Hustla on June 28, 2005, through Swizz Beatz's label, Full Surface. It reached a chart position of #5 on Billboards Hot Rap Tracks in the United States.^[1] The album's title track features a sample from Jay-Z's "Dirt off Your Shoulder" and the song was nominated for a Vibe Award in the category Street Anthem.^[7] A remix featuring Mary J. Blige followed soon after. In 2006, the ringtone version of his track I'm a Hustla was one of the first-ever ringtones to be certified platinum.^[8]

[edit] Third album

Cassidy's third album, B.A.R.S. The Barry Adrian Reese Story was released on November 7, 2007, featuring his lead single "My Drink N' My 2 Step," which had leaked to the radio and several internet sites^[9]. He also created a B.A.R.S. Competition Freestyle Battle on October 10, 2007 live on MTV's Sucker Free. He was featured on the AND1 Mixtape Tour 2007.^[10]

Cassidy will also be the new face of Lot 29, which featured other artists such as Juelz Santana.^[11]

Cassidy is also working on a group album with Larsiny.^[12]

[edit] Murder case

MTV News reported that according to police, three men, including Cassidy, armed with .45 and .40 caliber handguns, 9 mm pistols, and an AK-47 variant, fired on three other men during an argument that occurred in the rapper's West Oak Lane neighborhood in the Olney/Oak Lane section of Philadelphia just before 1 a.m. on April 15, 2005.^[13]

Cassidy's murder case took a turn when the primary witness admitted under oath initially lying to police and that he had not seen Cassidy firing a weapon.^[14] This resulted in Municipal Judge Marsha Neifield stating that Cassidy would only have to stand trial for third-degree murder, attempted murder and weapons violation charges. This was later overturned to the original, first degree charge - negating the possibility of parole.^[15]

On January 24, 2006, Cassidy was convicted of involuntary manslaughter and two counts of aggravated assault for a local drive-by with Larsiny Family. Cassidy shot two people that night, and was sentenced to eleven-and-a-half to 23 months in jail and was credited with the 7 months he had already served.^[16][17] Cassidy was released from Pennsylvania's Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility on March 2, 2006 after serving eight months.^[18]

[edit] Car accident

Cassidy was seriously injured in a motor vehicle accident on the night of October 5, 2006, when a commercial truck collided with Cassidy's SUV while he was a passenger. He was taken to the Jersey City Medical Center, where he was diagnosed with a fractured skull and several broken bones on the left side of his face. He still has visible scars from the accident.^[19][20][21]

[edit] Personal life

He has two sons by the name of Cassidy and Shane and a fiance named Jessica .^[22]

[edit] Discography

• 2004: Split Personality
• 2005: I'm a Hustla
• 2007: B.A.R.S. The Barry Adrian Reese Story
• 2009: C.A.S.H. Cass A Straight Hustla

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Cassidy (rapper) at MySpace

Interviews

• AHH.com Interview Part 1, Cassidy: Jail, Lessons & The State of Affairs Part 1 By Jigsaw
• AHH.com Interview Part 2, Cassidy: Jail, Lessons & The State of Affairs Part 2 By Jigsaw
• AHH.com Cassidy: Friend or Foe By Aqua
• September 2007 Interview

v • d • e Cassidy Albums Split Personality · I'm a Hustla · B.A.R.S. The Barry Adrian Reese Story Singles "Hotel" · "Get No Better" · "I'm a Hustla" · "B-Boy Stance" · "My Drink n My 2 Step" · "Innocent Man (Misunderstood)" Related articles Discography · Full Surface · Ruff Ryders · Larsiny Family