People may not realize what all goes on behind the scenes to make music reach the masses. This is the spot where you’ll see who’s who in the Industry. The people behind the scenes who makes things happen. This will be the section where we feature professionals whom we think deserve the credit and recognition for their hard work that they contribute to this business we call the RAP INDUSTRY..
Each month we’ll bring to you a new professional along with their background.
THIS MONTH’S FEATURE IS: SWISHA HOUSE
When asked their Swisha House secret the answer is simple, yet complicated… Operate like “
A Major Without A Major Deal”.
Before multi-platinum artists Mike Jones and Paul Wall moved into independently operated record label Swisha House, it was known as home to the slowed down mixes created by founder DJ “5000” Watts. In late 1995, while everyone else was calling this version of music screwed, the popular Houston native decided to be different and called his creations Swisha mixes and the company was known at that time as Swisha Blast. In 1999 the company was appropriately dubbed Swisha House. Watts is now recognized as the chopped and screwed king, lending his personal touch to chopped and screwed specialty albums released by such hip hop notables as 8 Ball & MJG and David Banner.
As Watts’ tapes received more and more recognition, they were able to single-handedly introduce the chopped and screwed genre nationally and validate Swisha House as a label that knew how to create good music and get it in front of the people. Watts’ business was growing and to help with the newfound demand he brought his good friend G Dash into the Swisha House family as Co-CEO. Dash had made a name in the industry distributing mixed tapes to various vendors and road managing early Swisha House acts Slim Thug and Archie Lee. The two worked extremely hard to financially and physically build a solid foundation for Swisha House that would eventually allow them to take on bigger projects, ultimately catapulting them to success. Swisha House’s mission is and continues to be to operate like “ A Major Without A Major Deal”!
The popularity of Swisha mix tapes gave Watts the opportunity to release them on a larger scale by securing record deals with Southwest Wholesale and Asylum Records. Each company agreed to financially back Watts’ next album and in 1999 Swisha House had its first official release, The Day All Hell Broke Loose Part One. The compilation CD featured hip hop artists Slim Thug, Archie Lee, Big Tiger, Lil’Mario and Paul Wall and helped set the pace for the future growth of Swisha House. Its success proved that the label had what it takes to roll with the major players in the music industry.
Their next project was the Houston based record “Still Tippin” featuring Mike Jones, Slim Thug and Paul Wall. It was an instant hit! In order to showcase their Houston roots, an independent video was constructed that highlighted Swisha’s slowed down music, kitted cars, voluptuous women, diamond encrusted grillz and southern landscape. The video received much love from major music networks MTV and BET with numerous spins followed by heavy radio rotation. Garnering this much exposure as an independent label is no easy feat, and their success caught the eye of some heavy hitters in the industry.
In 2004, Swisha House entered into collaboration with world-renowned music companies Warner Brothers and Atlantic Records. What followed was the national debut of self-branding genius Mike Jones with Who Is Mike Jones? on Warner Brothers and grill master Paul Wall’s The People’s Champ on Atlantic. Both Swisha House artists received enormous success on the 2005 Billboard Charts for their hit singles “Still Tippin”, “Back Then” and “Sitting Sideways”. Now Swisha House can list on its resume the ability to produce highly sought after mix tapes and successfully launch the careers of multi-platinum artists.
It must be noted that Swisha House could not have achieved such success without the help of A&R President T Farris and Senior Vice President of Marketing and Promotions Michael Clarke.
Swisha House has more plans to launch artists that provide the musical genius the industry is yearning for, while creating the blueprint for other independent labels to follow in order to achieve national recognition. When asked their Swisha House secret the answer is simple, yet complicated….. operate like “A Major Without A Major Deal”.
Swisha House Releases
Archie Lee – Da Mista Masta
Swisha House – The Day Hell Broke Loose
Mike Jones & Magnificent – 1st Round Draft Picks
Swisha House – The Day Hell Broke Loose 2 [Major Without A Major Deal]
Mike Jones – Who Is Mike Jones?
Paul Wall – The Peoples Champ
