Sometimes hard work and dedication pays off. In 2006 when Bray native Dean Earls set sail for the bright lights of Hollywood he could not have known the path it would take him. Having originally travelled to pursue a college career, Earls soon found himself working with multi-platinum producer LT Hutton at Snoop Dogg‘s studio, rubbing shoulders with the likes of Warren G, Bone Thugs and Nate Dogg.
It wasn’t long before Earls caught the bug and resurrected his own Realism Recordz, originally founded in Ireland, and signed Compton rapper Young Swayzz. Which takes us to today; the first official release for Swayzz and Realism Recordz, a proud and exciting day for all involved. To mark the occassion, Rap Ireland caught up with Swayzz in L.A for a quick interview.
Words: Kev Storrs Interview: Duan Greally
OK, for anyone who may not yet be familiar with Young Swayzz as of yet, give us a brief introduction?
My name is Young Swayzz. I’m originally from LA – Los Angeles, California. I’m dropping the debut single “Get It Up”. I have been doing music for a long time, since I was a kid really. I bumped into Dean through another producer, and from there we kind of just clicked. We made magic. I’m working on the album right now to follow the single, and everything is looking up.
You mentioned you started rapping at a young age. Who were some of your influences?
Well, out here I listened to a lot of west coast rap: I grew up listening to Bone Thugs, 2pac, Tha Dogg Pound, Snoop Dogg. I found myself rapping over them at an early age and because they had such an influence on me, it made me want to rap. So it was kinda cool, you know? Those are some of the main artist who influenced me in my music career.
You have just released your first single “Get It Up”. Tell us a bit about it.
The new single “Get It Up” is actually a club banger. It’s definitely one of those song you can dance to when ever you hear it. It’s a great track. It’s a song everybody can listen to. It’s available on I Tunes, Rhapsody, and a lot of other major sites. In Ireland you can actually text in and get it. So it’s available for everyone.
How is the single being received locally?
It’s actually doing pretty good. A lot of people out here in LA are showing us love and downloading it. The radio stations are showing us love. People really like it. It’s doing pretty good.
You are signed to Dean Earls’ Realizm Records. Our long time readers of Rap Ireland will be familiar with Dean. How did that deal come about?
We wanted to do a joint venture. We both have a complete understanding of where we are and where we are trying to get. I signed to Realizm as the first artist, and we are just going to keep making good music like we have been doing.
This is also the first official release by Realizm Records. Does that provide motivation or added pressure?
It’s actually a motivation. A lot of people ask are you nervous, are you excited. I’m very excited. There’s no pressure at all. I look at it as the beginning of something that could be great, so I’m very excited.
I guess the next step will be to follow this up with the release of a full length album. How far into that process are you?
You know what? It’s actually only the beginning. We have a lot of songs. I’m listening to the fans; I’m listening to what they like. I have been working with various people. I can’t really say (who), but I have been working with a lot of people. The main thing is just getting the right material.
You are obviously going to take your time getting the record right. Do you have any date in mind for when it will hit the shelves?
As of right now, we don’t have a date, but we expect it soon. It will be around the end of the summer.
Is there a tour in the works? Could we potentially see you in Europe?
Dean’s thinking about it. Dean has a plan, and I believe we are going to have a tour.
How can people keep up with all the latest on Young Swayzz?
People can keep in touch with me on twitter. I know a lot of people see me on Facebook and Myspace. I’m still new to the whole digital world, so right now that’s what I have. But you can hit me up on there and I will talk back. So catch me on Facebook, Twitter and Myspace.
Young Swayzz “Get It Up” dropped Fri 18th June and is available trough iTunes, Amazon and all other major online retailers. For Irish readers the single is available by texting music 5888 m to 57501
For more info:
http://www.myspace.com/youngswayzz
http://twitter.com/youngswayzz
http://www.facebook.com/youngswayzzmusic
