When most music- and dance-loving children are at a party, they head for the dance floor. Not when Thomas LaVon “Prince” Thomas Jr. was young. He would make a beeline for the DJ. Now a 19-year-old college student living with a rare kidney disease, Thomas, also known as “DJ Young Fresh”, will be spinning tunes at the Maryland Kidney Walk for the fourth year in a row.
As a young child, it was not only at parties Thomas would head for the DJ. He would flock to the DJ equipment in electronics stores, too. His father bought him a controller when he was 10 years old, and his grandfather gave him an amplifier. He spent hours using his father’s external drive learning the ropes. He gained a reputation as his young DJ career emerged, and later that year, he was the resident DJ for the Rockville Victors semi-pro basketball team.
Since then, he has performed at weddings, kids’ and adults’ birthday parties, family reunions, school dances, family cookouts, and cookouts for other organizations. He’s appeared at DJ Con in NY, DJ Expo in Atlantic City, a birthday party in California and two weddings in Chicago, among many other events. Every summer he works two or three gigs per month, and given his school schedule, he is booked solid from November through New Year’s Eve 2025.
Now, Thomas is studying music production at Frederick Community College and will transfer to Howard University while DJing on the side. He wants to inspire people through music and eventually move to Los Angeles to become a producer. Music has been his escape from school bullying, academic challenges, and life-threatening medical issues. He even brought equipment with him to the hospital during his extended stays.
Thomas was born with a condition called Prune Belly Syndrome, which only affects around 1 in 40,000 males. His mother first learned about it when she was six months pregnant with Thomas during a routine ultrasound.
“The doctor said that Prince had no amniotic fluid and an amnionitis would be necessary, so they did that, and all chromosomes were normal, so we were left with the question of, what is wrong?” Zorina Thomas said.
After an MRI confirmed a doctor’s theory that Prince had Prune Belly Syndrome, Zorina Thomas’ pregnancy was monitored very closely.
“Throughout the rest of the pregnancy, we were very careful, having many doctors’ appointments and we had to be closely monitored because there wasn’t a lot of amniotic fluid surrounding him and that was because his kidneys were not functioning correctly,” Zorina Thomas said. “In December I was hospitalized for the whole month, and Prince was born pre-mature on January 6th via c-section. When he was born, he was immediately rushed to the NICU and intubated, I couldn’t see him until the next day.”
Zorina Thomas became a physician’s assistant and learned how to administer the peritoneal dialysis at home that Prince would need for his kidneys to function. Despite all the care she and her husband were able to give him at home, Prince did not grow at the rate he should have. He needed several surgeries, and eventually a kidney transplant. Zorina was a perfect match.
At eleven months old, Prince received a kidney from his mother.
“All our family and friends were at the hospital to show support,” Zorina Thomas said. “There were a lot of expectations, and we were all very nervous about if the transplant would be successful or not. The day after the transplant we were happy to see that Prince began urinating and showing signs that the transplant was a success. Due to the kidney transplant Prince no longer required dialysis treatments.”
Prince Thomas had other medical complications, like bilateral hip dysplasia which also required surgery at 15 months old and a hip cast, then intense physical therapy. There were also bladder issues, regular blood draws, medication maintenance, and constant doctor appointments.
“These days were hard for Prince, so we were looking for a way to ease his anxiety when we realized that he loved music,” Zorina Thomas said. “He found a love for music, and it became his outlet. As Prince is getting older and more mature, he felt that it was time for him to share his story to hopefully help other children or families who may be in the same situation as him.”
He said he didn’t understand much about his condition or begin asking questions until he was around six years old when he noticed a scar on his stomach. It was then that his parents explained Prune Belly Syndrome to him and told him about his kidney transplant.
“At that time, I don’t think I comprehended what was going on,” Prince Thomas said. “As I got older, I became to understand my condition more, understanding why I wear pull-ups and how important taking my medication is. Now as I am really understanding my condition and now that I am becoming more responsible for my condition, my medication and such, I felt that it was a good time to share my story.”
Prince Thomas will need another transplant down the road, as his kidney is declining. He needed hospitalization in December 2023, though he was able to go home on Christmas Eve. He wants to put a face to kidney disease and encourage others who might be going through what he has experienced.
“[I want] to show people who may be going through something similar that hey- I’m just like you, I understand what you are going through and I want to inspire kids,” Prince Thomas said. “My goal in life is to continue learning more about my condition and spreading awareness about Prune Belly Syndrome.”
You can find Prince Thomas, aka DJ Young Fresh Prince on social media, like Instagram, Mixcloud, Twitch, Tik Tok, and of course, at the Maryland Kidney Walk on Oct. 19 at UMBC.
The walk takes place on Sunday, Oct. 19 at University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC), held by the National Kidney Foundation Serving Maryland and Delaware (NKFMDDE). Prince Thomas serves as an ambassador for the NKFMDDE.
