Messy Mya

Messy Mya was an American rapper and comedian from New Orleans, Louisiana, known for his flamboyant bounce music persona and viral YouTube videos. Born Anthony Michael Barre, he gained local fame as a diss artist and street comic, performing at clubs like Fusions and the Red Velvet Room. His catchphrase, "Now who gonna pop me?" became tragically prophetic after his murder at age 22. Posthumously, his voice and video clips were featured in Beyoncé's 2016 music video "Formation," introducing him to a global audience and cementing his legacy in New Orleans bounce culture. [edit]

Barre's childhood was marked by tragedy. On September 26, 2001, when he was 13, his mother Chrystal Janice Barre was fatally shot by her abusive boyfriend while Barre and his older sister Anjelle were in the house. This trauma stayed with him; a close friend said he coped by drinking, smoking, and playing all day, but never wanted to harm anyone.

He created his YouTube channel in 2008 and began posting comedic dances and raps in June 2010. His videos featured him interacting with people in public places like the Lakeside Shopping Center, adopting a brash persona. He was well known in New Orleans as a flamboyant bounce MC with regular gigs at local clubs. [edit]

Messy Mya's career breakthrough came posthumously in 2016 when clips from his YouTube channel were featured in Beyoncé's music video "Formation." The video opens with his voice asking, "What happened at the New Orleans?" This exposure caused his videos to gain millions of additional views; his most popular video, "Messy Mya | Booking The Hoes From New Wildin," earned over 2 million views after the Beyoncé feature.

Before his death, his videos were receiving tens of thousands of views. He performed regularly at New Orleans clubs from 2008 to 2010, building a local following with his fluorescent hair shades and caustic barbs. His legacy continues to be discovered by new audiences through "Formation" and his YouTube channel. [edit]

Messy Mya was known for his distinctive style featuring fluorescent hair shades and a brash, comedic persona. His content was raw, unfiltered street comedy where he would insult those around him for laughs. He was both beloved in his community and made enemies through his caustic barbs. His catchphrase "Now who gonna pop me?" became iconic after his death. No official fandom name is documented, but his legacy is celebrated in New Orleans bounce culture. [edit]

The community surrounding Messy Mya operates without a formal, branded fandom name. While an Instagram account known as Team Messy Mya functions as a digital memorial hub to preserve his legacy, the broader audience consists of organic groups and individuals who engage with his content through social media sharing rather than organized campaigns or rituals. The collective attention for the late rapper was ignited entirely by Beyoncé's 2016 music video Formation, which sampled his voice in the track's introduction. This single moment transformed him from a regional New Orleans figure into an international subject of internet folklore, driving global queries about his identity and sustaining a niche following of approximately 2,300 monthly Spotify listeners over a decade after his death. The narrative of his life is defined by the tragedy of his murder at age 22 during a baby shower and the subsequent legal battle filed by his estate against Beyoncé seeking $20 million in damages for the unauthorized use of his voice. These events have become the primary pillars of his modern mythology, discussed widely in media coverage regarding artist rights and the ethics of sampling deceased voices. Despite this enduring cultural footprint, iFANN's Global Fame Engine has evaluated this person but they do not currently hold a placement in the published rankings. Consequently, no specific numeric rank or score is assigned to Messy Mya in the current scope of the database.[edit]

On the day before his murder, Messy Mya posted on Facebook about a friend who had been killed, writing that he would be there soon. In one of his videos, he hinted that his death was imminent, noting that young men in New Orleans often face short life expectancies. A cell-phone picture of his body was uploaded to Twitter within minutes of his death. Both he and Magnolia Shorty were renowned New Orleans-born rappers who died in the winter of 2010. His catchphrase Now who gonna pop me? proved tragically prophetic. A story fans still retell involves his violent death occurring while attending a baby shower for a friend, an incident that shocked the local community and ended his rising career. Another defining legend occurred six years later when Beyoncé released her song Formation, introducing his voice to a global audience of hundreds of millions and sparking a viral search for his identity. This posthumous fame led to a major legal chapter where his estate filed a lawsuit against Beyoncé, seeking $20 million in damages for copyright infringement regarding the use of his voice.[edit]

Messy Mya's mother, Chrystal Janice Barre, was killed by her abusive boyfriend in 2001 when Mya was 13. He had two sisters: Anjelle and Shante. His grandfather, Stan "Pampy" Barre, was a prominent New Orleans businessman convicted in a City Hall kickback scheme in 2008 and imprisoned. Mya had a son, Juelz Omarian Anthony Barre, born about a month after his death. [edit]

Messy Mya is most famously associated with Beyoncé, who used his voice and video clips in her 2016 'Formation' music video. He was also associated with fellow New Orleans bounce rapper Magnolia Shorty, who died in the same year. His girlfriend DeJaun 'Minicat' Kendrick was the mother of his son. Jason Baptiste Hamilton was initially accused of his murder, but charges were later dropped. [edit]

Messy Mya had one confirmed relationship. He was dating DeJaun 'Minicat' Kendrick at the time of his death. She was pregnant with their son, Juelz Omarion, who was born about a month after Barre's murder. He attended a baby shower for their unborn child at Pampy's restaurant shortly before he was killed. As of 2026, no further relationships have been documented. [edit]

Messy Mya left the 2000 block of North Roshave Street in New Orleans late on a Sunday night while departing a baby shower for his unborn son, an event that marked his final public appearance before the incident. He was shot and killed at age 22 during this shooting, with official records consistently describing the fatal injury as a gunshot wound sustained in a homicide. A police investigation followed the killing, leading to a high-profile murder trial that commenced but was halted in September 2012 after the defense raised procedural issues, leaving no final conviction or acquittal on record. The legal aftermath extended beyond the criminal case into civil litigation concerning his intellectual property rights. In February 2017, the estate of Anthony Barre filed a $20 million lawsuit against Beyoncé and her record label, alleging copyright infringement over the unauthorized use of his voice in the song Formation.

The family continued to pursue these claims years later, including a subsequent filing in August 2026, asserting that his spoken words were sampled without permission or compensation. Public reaction to his death evolved from immediate mourning within the New Orleans bounce community to renewed global attention following the 2016 release of Formation, which introduced his voice to a worldwide audience. While specific details regarding the funeral service, burial location, or memorial gatherings remain unrecorded in public sources, tributes from peers and institutions solidified his status as a focal point of local culture.[edit]

Per iFANN's editorial analysis, Messy Mya's net worth stands at $2 Million. Going by 2026 estimates, his estate continues to generate revenue through YouTube ad revenue from his videos, which gained millions of additional views after Beyoncé's Formation featured his content. Posthumous streaming royalties from his music and merchandise deals also contribute to the total. Specific current estate value figures are not publicly available beyond this estimate, though his net worth at the time of his death was previously estimated at around $1-5 million. The estate is likely managed by family members.[edit]