Mike Jones (rapper)
- For other people with the name of Michael Jones or Mike Jones, see Michael Jones.
Mike Jones (born January 6, c. 1981) is a southern rap artist from the northside of Houston, Texas. As part of Swishahouse records, he has grown to fame over his unique usage of his own name throughout his songs. Many of his songs contain the phrases "Who? Mike Jones!" or "Mike Jones!" spread throughout, resulting in a firm implantation of his name in listeners' memories. His major promotional gimmick is to sell and hand out shirts with his cell phone number on them (athletic department-style shirts reading "Property of Mike Jones"), as well as shouting out the number throughout his mixtapes and albums, encouraging fans to call him on his Motorola phone at 281-330-8004.
Jones is well known for recording in the "chopped & screwed" style popularized by DJ Screw of Houston. The slowed-down audio aesthetic supposedly mimics the effect of "sippin' sizzurp," that is, drinking prescription cough syrup containing codeine, often, though not always, mixed with alcohol; most adherents of the style claim that it has outgrown its drug-related roots. His trademark technique is to take a line from one of his songs and use it as a chorus in another, or sometimes even in the same song, screwing & chopping and repeating it (for example, the chorus in "Back Then" is a screwed line from "Still Tippin'"). Repeating a line multiple times (a line is repeated eight times in a row on the track "Back Then") in succession is said to violate an unspoken and widely accepted rap rule of repetition. He backs up his style explaining the repetition emphasizes key points that he wants to get across to listeners and declares further that he will continue rapping in this fashion.
Jones was recently signed to a major record deal with Warner Brothers Records and his first major album, Who Is Mike Jones?, was released April 19, 2005. His hit single, "Still Tippin'", which features Slim Thug and Paul Wall, and a Midwest remix featuring Young Bellz can currently be heard on various radio and TV stations. His album debuted at #3 on the U.S. Billboard 200 album charts in 2005. A second single, "Back Then," is also in rotation. His production team should be noted for their use of audio samples of artists ranging from yodelers to Tchaikovsky. He will be working with Clint Saulsberry in 2005 on a number of remixes.
Discography
Albums
- 1999 Runnin' Da Game
- 2003 Ballin' Underground
- 2003 1st Round Draft Picks
- 2004 King Of Da Streets
- 2005 Who Is Mike Jones? #3 US
Singles
| Year | Title | Chart positions | Album | |||
| US Hot 100 | US R&B/Hip-Hop | US Rap | UK | |||
| 2005 | "Still Tippin'" (feat. Slim Thug & Paul Wall) | #60 | #25 | #14 | ?? | Who Is Mike Jones? |
| 2005 | "Back Then" | #22 | #15 | #6 | ?? | Who Is Mike Jones? |
| 2005 | "Badd" (Ying Yang Twins feat. Mike Jones & Mr. ColliPark) | #37 | #19 | #7 | ?? | U.S.A.: United State Of Atlanta (album by Ying Yang Twins) |