Drezus, born Jeremiah Manitopyes, is a Plains Cree-Anishinaabe rapper from Calgary, Alberta in Canada. His music career began at 17 when, inspired by Compton rappers like N.W.A, he snuck into a Jamaican club in Calgary and performed for the crowd. Later that year he was spotted by members of War Party, a Native American hip-hop group which later became Team Rezofficial.

He released some music with Rezofficial and the group was poised for a big break, but his career was halted in 2010 after getting arrested for drug distribution. Shortly after being released in 2012, Drezus found salvation through a rehab course taught by an elder.

The elder sent him on a spiritual journey, but quickly fell back into his old habits. Noisey explains the incident that ensued:

[Drezus] robbed a crew in a Winnipeg. The crew eventually caught up to him, snatched his jewelry and stuck him full of knives… It was only then, when he sat in the house he was renting, pondering whether to retaliate, that he decided he was done with this life forever.

Drezus then reconnected with his family, including his son, and began to get involved in political activism for issues faced by his community.

In 2015, Drezus won Best Hip-Hop Album of 2015 for his release “Indian Summer” and the title of Indigenous Entertainer of the Year at the Indigenous Music Awards.

His third son Ryder was born December, 4th 2017.