by Alex Shtaerman
If you still think Chicago rappers can’t come hard, just take one listen to Swing. Hailing from Chi-town’s infamous Cabrini Green housing projects, Swing might just change the way you look at Chicago MCs from this day forward. In many ways Hip-Hop has always been a territorial endeavor; if you are from a particular locale you are pretty much expected to sound and rhyme a certain way. Chicago has always been known for a more melodic and conscious style of rap; Common Sense and Kanye West come to mind immediately. However, according to Swing, there’s a reason for the well-traveled stereotype; “there is a gap between the streets here and rap,” explains the street savvy MC, “we on a whole opposite sort of culture, but we love rap, don’t get it twisted, we love the whole essence of Hip-Hop. We loved it but it wasn’t our swag man, we gangsters and pimps, that’s how we came up”.
RIOTSOUND.COM: Coming from Chicago, as far as Hip-Hop that’s a spot that’s known for more mellow and even more conscious Hip-Hop; even though you have a hard edged style how did your surroundings impact you as far as having a Chicago type flavor to your rhymes?
SWING: I would actually say like this: I think the whole thing is that it hasn’t been exposed – this style has always been around. Yea [Chicago is known for conscious Hip-Hop]; like in the beginning everyone wanted to be a conscious rapper but that was a trend, you understand what I’m saying. That was actually a trend; like Common Sense would say different things in his rhymes to let you know “I’m really street, I’m really talking about the hood ‘cause that’s all I really know”.
But at the same time there is a gap between the streets here and rap. When I do what I do it’s a shock to people; that’s the impact that I have on people – it’s a shock to people to have it so much in the forefront – like damn, it’s just in the raw, he giving it to you in the raw now; he’s not subliminally trying to give it to you, he ain’t trying to give it to you through rap, he just doing what he do.
RIOTSOUND.COM: In 2001 you were signed to Bad Boy Records. Even though it was at a time when the label was going through the Shyne murder trial and your project never came to light; did you get a chance to be around Puffy and see some key insights as far as what he does as an entrepreneur which may have allowed you to benefit today even though the deal with Bad Boy didn’t pan out?
SWING: Definitely, I tell everybody that was a win win situation for me because you never get up close and personal with a person like that who works day in and day out. Yea, I did get a chance to be around Puff and to see exactly how he works and it was definitely an experience for me and it allowed me to go in other areas and into different relationships and apply exactly what I saw him doing.
RIOTSOUND.COM: In your song Rotate you talk about being able to travel to any hood and fit right in; what kind of mindset does that take and what kind of attitude do you need to have to do that in real life?
SWING: On the real, it’s just the code of the streets man. You gotta be able to mind your business for one. It’s like anywhere you gonna be at, you gotta be able to mind your business; if them people come you ain’t seen nothing. Most of all it’s your confidence within yourself and giving respect to people and you getting that respect back; but you demanding that respect back because you giving it. The hood is only going to respect you for who you are, the hood don’t respect cowards, the hood don’t respect tricks; so if you moving around like that then you bound to get into some trouble or into some drama you can’t handle. But if you come in there and you being a man or whoever, you being a man about yourself and being hood with it then you’re going to be all good.
RIOTSOUND.COM: You just did a track with Styles P and the label you are working with now Play Hard Records has a long history of cultivating artists that came up through the Yonkers area; how did that whole situation come about with you coming back out to New York?
SWING: Actually it all ties back into Bad Boy because Earl Gaynor [the CEO of Play Hard Records] had my CD before Bad Boy even had it, he is the one who started spreading it around to the industry. From there, after the Bad Boy situation didn’t work, I met the dude like four years later, he always had my CD and always wanted to work with me. So people in the company was like “man, let’s work with some hot rappers, you know any hot rappers?” – and he mentioned me; which was a blessing. You think like four years, five years, nobody’s thinking about you.
So the dude still had the CD and he said “I wanna work with this dude named Swing in Chicago but he got signed to Bad Boy; I don’t know if the situation still exists or not but I’d like to work with him”. So a person from the company by the name of Barry reached out to Chicago to a couple of guys he knew out here. I was out one night and the dude said “hey, there’s this dude in New York who wanna work with you”. So I ended up giving him a call and it was on from there. That’s what made me want to come back out to New York.
RIOTSOUND.COM: Was there a point after the deal with Bad Boy fell through where you felt a career in rap may not materialize for you or did you keep working the whole time?
SWING: I was still working the whole time. The whole thing is, like I said – it goes back to Rotate – it’s about the confidence in yourself. Definitely the thought goes past your mind like damn I just had my foot in the door and these niggas just kicked me out [laughs], you know what I mean. Because the situation just didn’t work out due to everything like [Puffy] leaving Arista and the trial with Shyne and whatever. So you definitely feel that because you know when you on your way up and to go back down – it’s like damn, where do I go from here? But that’s the time you really gotta stand up and say – man I ain’t folding to the situation, this industry is bigger than just one label. I mean the world ain’t over pimp, as long as we breathing we going to make it happen.
RIOTSOUND.COM: Recently The Game came out to Chicago to do a show and he invited you to perform at the concert; can you talk about that?
SWING: It came about through a guy who got a satellite show that was playing my joint and he wanted to meet me when he came out here to Chicago. I didn’t know he was just that deep rooted with people and he was like “yea, Game’s here, they going to do a show and I want to take you to go meet Game”. So I met Game at the hotel and I just thought it was going to be a little walk through like people just all up, but I was up and close and personal with the dude and we just got to talking and relating to one another and I got to tell him about my resume and what I’ve done in Chicago. His personal assistant actually knew the song On My Mamma and when I told him his face lit up and then Game was like “man, why don’t you come out and do the track tonight [at the show]”. That’s love right there, no politics involved, that’s just love.
RIOTSOUND.COM: You had a near death experience where you were paralyzed for eight months and you say you actually started thinking about being an artist during that period. What was your thought process like at the time and how did you decide to pursue a career in rap?
SWING: I always used to just rap and love it just from other people’s perspective, like hearing other artists do what they do. So I think my journey actually started there but when I got shot, ‘cause I was running the streets doing what I do or whatever, after that there wasn’t no other options anyway. I wasn’t a 9-5 dude anyway, working a 9-5 just wasn’t me; it’s like I think I stick to my guns and I know that I am going to make it in life off what I do. I just didn’t see myself working no job; so it was either hustling dog or it was making it, getting rich, just rich, you know what I mean.
So bottom line is when I got popped I knew I couldn’t run from these people no more, I couldn’t run from the police no more. It’s like you paralyzed and finally you get back out here and I am still walking with a slight limp and I can’t run as fast as I used to. So if you out here you know you can’t run from the police, you can’t duck shots, you in the hood. So that would only be a dummy to go back out there and do it, so it made me think like you know what, I gotta do music. It’s like when you lose one strength – you know how you get stronger in another part of your body – I think mentally that’s what [getting shot] did to me and it led me to the point where I had no other options.
RIOTSOUND.COM: You are coming out with a new mixtape called Chicago Slang, what’s that all about?
SWING: Yea, it’s called Chicago Slang for Dummies and the whole concept is educating people on the actual slang of Chicago. So it cultivates you on exactly what Chicago is about. Like such songs like On My Mamma, that’s a Chicago slang line. Like when you put something on your mamma that means that you’re really going to do it, it’s like putting it on god. So that was a number one song here [in Chicago] that I was on and it definitely started the buzz here for me. The list of [Chicago slang] just goes on and on; buss down, lit, push on that nigga, that’s the song I got with Styles P actually.
All these songs that I have if you listen to them they are all Chicago slang, not just being put in a sentence, it’s the title of the song; and that’s just to show you that Chicago has a culture that needs to be understood and put in the forefront; not just in the rap but make it the rap, you know what I mean.
RIOTSOUND.COM: You mentioned earlier that in Chicago there is somewhat of a gap between the streets and Hip-Hop; would you say that’s part of the reason Chicago slang may not be as well recognized on a national level?
SWING: Yea, definitely, you gotta take it back, you know Chicago started gangbanging. Chicago started everything. We wasn’t doing graffiti, we was writing up gang signs on the wall, forget graffiti pimp. We on a whole opposite sort of culture, but we love rap, don’t get it twisted, we love the whole essence of Hip-Hop. We loved it but it wasn’t our swag man, we gangsters and pimps, that’s how we came up.
RIOTSOUND.COM: If you could give a young kid who is trying to get in the rap game one piece of advice, what would it be?
SWING: Never fold, stand up – that’s it, bottom line. You gotta take those two things right there and just stand. Because through every situation it’s not going to be good, and you just gotta be a stand up dude to be able to go through whatever you going to go through to make it, period. This game is not made for somebody who just want it on a silver platter, every dude who’s made it in this game has been through something to get to a certain point. So it ain’t just about rapping, it’s about building your character up as a person to be able to go through these things.
RIOTSOUND.COM: As far as Swing in 2005, what should the fans be looking out for? And also what projects are you currently working on that everyone should be aware of?
SWING: We definitely working on Chicago Slang for Dummies, that’s the mixtape. Also the album is due to drop in the first quarter of 2006. That’s pretty much it.
RIOTSOUND.COM: Will the album be dropping on Play Hard Records?
SWING: As of now, yea. We got a few things on the table right now but when it’s all said and done and if nothing else is poppin’, it’s definitely coming out independent through Play Hard Records in the first quarter of 2006. It might as well be a major situation ‘cause it’s a serious album.
RIOTSOUND.COM: As far as the rap game stands now; how do you see it – do you see yourself fitting in more as an underground artist with a lot of street credibility or are you looking to gain major exposure; in which direction do you see your career going?
SWING: To be honest with you man, I want it all dog. I ain’t gonna sell myself out. I ain’t gonna wear blazers or whatever, I ain’t trying to be an Usher or a Kanye; I’m trying to be me and I’m gonna give it to you on every level. I’ma show you how a dude from the streets can fit in on the other side but at the same time keep it gutter, keep it grimy. And that’s a challenge that every artist has to give themselves. Don’t lose yourself, but I want it all. It’s like Monopoly; I want every property on there.
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