He loves his audience and in turn they love him back. Formerly called the Otis Redding of Guyana, Aubrey Mann is famous in his own right. Known as the “The Love Mann” by his adoring fans for the passion and intensity he brings to the love songs he performs, the singer has been captivating audiences all over the globe for more than 37 years. Born in Kitty, Georgetown, to parents who were both prominent performers, Mann was destined for the stage. His father, the late drummer Clem Thomas, played with the Guyana Police Band and one of Guyana’s top Dance Bands in the 50’s and 60’s –  “The Washboards Orchestra Band”, as well as ‘The Mighty Sparrow’, one of the Caribbean’s most famous calypsonians, on the latter’s first recording.
His mother, the late Sheila Mansfield-Grenardo, earned a name as one of Guyana’s most accomplished soprano singers, and represented Guyana at several musical festivals all over the world, performing for presidents and heads-of-state. She earned the ‘Golden Arrowhead’, the highest honor bestowed upon a civilian Guyanese citizen.
Mann began his professional singing career in 1968 with the ‘Cosmonauts’, known then as ‘Curtis & the MG’s, and as a founding member of ‘Mischievous Guys’. Then followed a two-year stint in “Combo 7’. With his unique and powerful style, Aubrey quickly climbed the ranks to become one of the country’s most dynamic entertainment personalities.
In 1971, Aubrey combined his talents with those of another artiste; Phil “Bumpy” Dino and they took Guyana by storm.  Aubrey left Guyana in 1974 for Barbados, where he joined a group called “Lunar 7”.  The very same year Aubrey released his very first single, an Otis Clay cover song, “I Can’t Make It Alone”. It was a hit that spent several weeks on the top ten and as a result of this success Aubrey travelled all over the Caribbean to perform in shows.
He left for the United States with a group called the “Cardinals”, but returned to Barbados in 1975 to open a show for the legendary calypsonian, “The Mighty Sparrow”, at the Globe Theatre in Barbados in 1975. He was invited to stay for the rest of the tour by Sparrow, but Aubrey left because he wanted to pursue a solo career.
In September 1976, he moved to Canada after being invited there by a group called Changes, who had heard of him in Barbados. Only two months later a group called “Ashiba” took him over. He left after three years to pursue his own career and got signed on to Scorpio records, where he released his album “Feeling Good”. Because of that album his life changed, as the album sold millions.
Aubrey’s new album, Forty Years of Love and Soul, is a tribute to his forty years in the business. Mann said that fans can expect an eclectic mix of music, soul, funk, reggae and soca.
Like his music, Mann’s stage performances are classy; the performer says that he wants people to listen to his voice as this is his most important instrument. So he likes to keep things classy and thus gyrating on stage is kept to a minimum.
This could be seen when Mann performed at the Miss Guyana Universe pageant last August at Princess Hotel. It was an excellent performance that sent the crowd wild, particularly the female segment. Mann had a close scrape earlier that day; he recalled a bad experience he had just before his show in Guyana. He was exiting a popular hang out spot when a torrential rain came down. His driver gallantly “took one for the team”, running out to the car and coming back with a large umbrella to shelter him.
What would he have done if he had gotten hoarse? Mann says that he could have adjusted his voice to suit the songs and some would have been none the wiser. However, this tactic might not have fooled the more hardcore fans as he said people who know his music know that he has a smooth, clear voice.
One of the songs that made a big splash in Guyana was “Stealing Love on the Side”, Mann says “When I did that song I knew I had something. There are very few people who haven’t done it. They think “That could be me”. No matter where I go, I close my show with that song.
Mann loves his job, which allows him to travel all over the world and making people happy. ‘When I leave an audience happy that is all I ask for, he says. Before a show I ask God to help me do my job correctly.
He realises that you can’t please everybody, and even though he prays before the show that he pleases his audience, he knows in his heart that it is not always possible.”But I want to at least make the majority happy, he says, because “…people want meat, they don’t want bones”.
Aubrey Mann won the Canadian Black Music Award in 1981 and the “Top Male Vocalist” award was presented to him on March 7 at Cutty’s Hideaway in Toronto.
In 1987, Aubrey formed his now legendary R & B group; “Reflections”, and in 1995 he formed his masterpiece and most exciting musical revue, “Aubrey Mann’s An Evening At The Apollo”. This fabulous show salutes the Motown era and most of the legendary R & B entertainers who have performed at the Apollo Theatre. For the past ten years, this show has been captivating audiences all over the globe and in many diverse venues like theatres, show rooms, ballrooms, night clubs and corporate facilities.
A performer who says he feels more comfortable onstage than offstage, Aubrey loves his audiences very much and always aims to please; would it be one, one hundred, one thousand or more!
In June Mann received a lifetime achievement award at the Guyana 2009 performing arts festival in Toronto.