It's fair to say that Swishahouse is the label that truly helped put Houston on the map.  Michael "5000" Watts founded the label in 1997 and thanks to his musical background as a top DJ and ear for the next hot thing, the label rose from being known for releasing mix tapes which featured freestyles from such artists as Slim Thug, Chamillionaire, Paul Wall, to the platinum debut album success of Mike Jones.

The success of Swishahouse also helped make the chopped and screwed format a mainstream phenomenon.  The rise hasn't always been smooth and currently the future of the label is uncertain at best. Sixshot.com spoke with Michael about the music industry, the real reason why Mike Jones left the label, how mainstream success destroyed the art of chopped and screwed music, and more.

Sixshot.com:  What were some of the toughest challenges in getting Swishahouse off the ground?

Michael "5000" Watts:  Actually there really wasn't a tough challenge cause I started off not as a company—it grew into what it was.  Most people wake up one day and want to start a record company.  I didn't start like that.  I always been a DJ and did mixtapes and the mixtapes grew into a record company.

Sixshot.com:  When you started the company was there c ertain things you were unprepared for?

Michael "5000" Watts:  When I first started I knew I didn't know how to run a record company.  I did a deal with a company in Houston and I went in with the attitude of I'm gonna put out this first record and learn everything I need to know to make money out of this music s***.  So that's what happened.

Sixshot.com:  With indie labels there is a lot of hustling and cutting corners cause you're starting out small.  Is there a story of a major sacrifice or hustle you had to do for the label?

Michael "5000" Watts:  Everything is a sacrifice as far as promotions, giving products away, and going out and getting a name out there.  My situation is different.  It's not like I have to spend a ton of money for the market.  I get booked as a DJ all over the nation so I bring my product with me.  It's not as bad as some other indie labels that started off.

Sixshot.com:  What do new artists do wrong when they are tying to get discovered?

Micahel "5000" Watts:  What personally impresses me is when somebody does something that's out the box.  When it comes down to music it's like everything else that you buy: when you buy clothing you want to buy something that's different and get the new hot stuff.

Sixshot.com:  The label helped break many rappers into the mainstream.  Is there one case that makes you most proud?

Michael "5000" Watts:  I gotta say the breakthrough we had that made me most proud was Mike Jones and when he went platinum.

Sixshot.com:  I read that your business relationship with him ended over a monetary dispute.  Is that true?

Michael "5000" Watts:  Actually there really wasn't no monetary dispute.  He would say it was.  I just think he really wanted to do what he wanted to do from the beginning.  He was signed to us and we honored our part of the obligation.

Sixshot.com:  You've bee criticized in the past by Houston rappers for not acknowledging the influence of DJ Screw.  What's your response?

Michael "5000" Watts:  I've always acknowledged him and I never once said in an interview—if anybody asks me how I started doing it.  I was greatly influenced by DJ Screw.  If you can find the information where it says I created this s*** then it's all false.

Sixshot.com:  You come from a DJ background and many executives at labels don't have a strong musical background and it's just business for them.  How does your DJ background help you?

Micahel "5000" Watts:  One thing about me is that I love music and can't stand bad music.  If it's something that somebody else likes then I roll with it vs. some people that don't have a DJ background and they go by what they feel rather than what really makes people move.

Sixshot.com:  What do you think of the chopped and screwed scene today?

Michael "5000" Watts:  One thing I don't like about the scene right now is that everybody gets involved and don't know the art of it.  The market is being saturated with bad art.  For chopped and screwed nationally it's not as strong as it was before now.  Everybody is going along and putting out garbage and wearing out the style of it.  I really feel like the trash is killing the art form of it.  It's more than slowing a record down.  There's an art to it and people trying to do it are only trying to make money.I would like to have a Swishahouse station so they can hear what real chopped and screwed music sounds like vs. this bulls*** people hear now. 

Sixshot.com:  That is the catch-22 of mainstream success.  Everyone wants to begin attaching their name to a new hot style and the art becomes lost in that process. 

Micahel "5000" Watts:  Everything that people see being profitable—people will mimic it.

Sixshot.com:  The Houston rap scene is not hot as it was in previous years.  Some of that is due to the cyclical nature of the music industry but is there anything else Houston needs to do differently?

Michael "5000 Watts:  Houston needs to step outside the box and don't be scared to be different.  People are too busy trying to figure out what will make green.  I understand wanting to make music but the thing that will sell is something different.  You got to have something that's different.

Sixshot.com:  What are your future goals and dreams for Swishahouse?

Michael "5000" Watts:  I want to make it more of a branding company and buy into other things product wise. 

Sixshot.com:  I hear there's a Swishahouse reunion concert in the works.

Micahel "5000" Watts:  It's coming along pretty good.  We don't have a date for it yet.

Sixshot.com:  Who are you expecting to join the concert?

Michael "5000" Watts:  The whole cast—everybody that started from the beginning to now.  We would like to have Mario, Big T, along with Slim Thug, Paul Wall, and even Mike Jones.  We want everybody that was involved with the Swishahouse movement.  We would like to do that.  I feel like it's really possible.  It can happen.