Made In the SWATS

About Made In the SWATS

I give you me and only me, that’s all I can give! Those are words that give me the strength to do music. Born Gabriel Tyrone Mathis (expired link). Vegazz. Music was never my first choice of a career but it was always in the blood. My early musical influences were like every other kid growing up in a single black household, soulful rhythm and blues artists pouring their hearts out over great melody’s, established musicians and a whole life of pain. I’m what people would, call a dreamer; I could make the most outrageous stories and make them seem real. So with that my life was headed for something in the arts (film books, commercials, etc…). But something changed in me when I was introduced to this thing called hip-hop.

Hip hop changed the way I saw things, it was young cats saying things that I could relate to. The music was soulful but at the same time raw. The snapping of loud snares, the thickness of the bass lines and vocals that had distress of young kids trying to change their lives for the better. That moved me more than the glamour of it all. Pete Rock and (expired link). Smooth with “(expired link).”, music that had meaning. That beat, with cracking drums and deep bass. That lit the fire in this young kid trying to find out where he fit. With the rawness of the east coast street sound and the soulful arrangements of R&B artists and my own pain, this is where I needed to be. I wanted to create great arrangements, tell my stories and let my voice be heard too! Most importantly paint my emotions sincerely.

My journey begins, working, saving money, asking mom for money and stashing it. Working on my first drum machine, going to my first studio session, writing my first song. High school became my battle ground, battling (expired link).’s, beating on tables and performing in talent shows. Every day passing, I became more and more confident abut what I was doing. I’m doing the right thing. As a freshman in high school I was introduced to (expired link). Toomp (producer for hits for (expired link)), by my cousin. He took me under his wing and showed me how to operate the young generation version of a guitar, “AKA (expired link). Workstations”. Sampling drums, looping records, sequencing songs and counting bars everything that was taught to me by a local hero. Through time of meeting more people in the music industry and a couple of bad deals gone sour, I was able to manage to work with the likes of Lil Jon, Trillville, George Clinton, Jazze Pha, Bone Crusher, Chyna Whyte, Jim Crow, Dirty Boys, The dream,Polow the Don,Young Joc, etc. A local country boy on a quest not to be the greatest, but on the road to being the best he could be. A well rounded producer who could adapt and appreciate music as a whole.