Published: June 29, 1999
SWAY & TECH
Internationally
syndicated DJ's Sway and King Tech epitomize hip-hop culture. Their newest
project, This or That, is a direct reflection of their love for
the music that has brought them from the streets to creators and hosts
of the most listened to hip-hop radio show on the planet. This or That
is the ultimate documentation of the music they revere.
The popular duo, whose weekly syndicated broadcast The Wake Up Show reaches 11.5 million listeners via 17 major radio stations, isn't new to the record making business; the two have been staples on the hip-hop scene for more than a decade. However, producing This or That was a dream come true- especially the album's first commercial release, "The Anthem".
"We had a vision to put together a dream team from a rapper's perspective," Sway explains about "The Anthem." "To bring together a collaboration of artists who we like on one piece. It's just amazing to get old school heroes like Kool G Rap and KRS-One along side some of today's newest talent like RZA as Bobby Digital, Pharoahe Monch, Chino XL, Eminem, TECH N9NE, Xzibit and Jayo Felony. It is history in the making."
Having created one of hip hop's most enduring and prominent radio shows, it comes as no surprise that Sway & Tech are able to convene so many stellar artists on their project. When The Wake Up Show was created in 1991, a new era in hip hop radio unfolded as Sway & Tech introduced the sound of underground hip hop to radio listeners. Today, listeners of The Wake Up Show are the first people in the world to hear unreleased tracks, one-of-a-kind freestyle battles and exclusive interviews from hip hop favorites.
Even in an age when all-star collaborations are more common, "The Anthem" marks history indeed. It's along the lines of other special assemblies of artist such as Stop The Violence Movement's "Self Destruction" and the West Coast Rap All Stars' "We're All In The Same Gang," which also boasted such impressive lineups on a given song. At the end of the 20" century, though, Sway & Tech are taking the excitement of the collaboration record to new heights.
"The Anthem" isn't the only exclusive track on the record. Sway and Tech were blessed with original contributions from Guru ("NY Nigus") and Bobby Digital ("Belly Of The Beast"), not to mention countless freestyle raps from the likes of Canibus, Redman, Sonja Blade and Jurrasic 5's Chali 2na.
As any Wake Up Show listener already knows, the Northern California bred team never places all of its focus on established acts, and This or That makes sure to shed some light on up and coming talent. Sway says it was equally important to have unsigned new artists Ill Advised, Rasheed and Dirty Unit on the project.
Plus, there's actually a lot of mixing on the tape. "On a lot of mix albums, they don't mix," Sway says in reference to the turntable wizardry exhibited on This or That. "There's just a lot of noise over songs. Revolution is getting busy, displaying true DJ skills."
Revolution's DJing skills present the record in a non-traditional mixtape fashion. Instead of regular party chants and announcements throughout, the album includes comments from artists and Wake Up Show listeners explaining what hip-hop means to them.
"It's strictly for the preservation of hip-hop and it's the first of it's kind," Sway says of why the mix album focuses on more authentic, underground hip-hop. For this matter, he and Tech are donating their personal proceeds from the album to charities such as KRS-One's school The Temple Of Hip Hop, and the Wake Up Show Scholarship.
This or That marks one of the first major mix album releases from California, but it is a universal record appealing to the worldwide hip-hop audience. "People should know there are all kinds of talent [from various places]," Sway explains. "Hip-hop is love. No color lines. No racial boundaries. No gender differences."
The award winning Wake Up Show has maintained this sentiment from the show's humble beginnings in 1991 when King Tech won a San Francisco DJing competition which awarded him a 15 minute Ming spot on the area's KMEL. Things turned out so well that he was invited back repeatedly until he was offered a regular slot. Not surprisingly, part of the package included Sway, his partner from his rap group Sway and King Tech, who had been releasing records since 1987. In 1991, they released the album Concrete Jungle on Giant Records. Sway and Tech have since received awards from and recognition by The Source, Gavin, Impa, URB and Rap Sheet.
In 1994, The Wake Up Show was simulcast from San Francisco to Los Angeles and the following year, their list of syndicated stations began to expand. Some of the artists that have appeared on the show include The Wu-Tang Clan, TuPac, Notorious B.I.G., Xzibit, The Fugees, Outkast, Jay Z, Nas, and Big Pun.
"We think this is global music," Sway and Tech offer, "you can't localize your mentality. We always try to exceed those boundaries with The Wake Up Show."
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