Media Maestro: Sway Calloway Reflects On Role In Journalism

Camera shy isn’t a term most would associate with someone who has spent the past 20 years in the public eye. But Sway Calloway has never been concerned with public recognition despite the high-profile nature of his job. The MTV News correspondent/executive producer is more focused on people knowing his work than his name.

A native of Oakland, CA, Sway’s journey began in the late 80s when he discovered Hip-Hop. Intrigued by the music, style and dance, he immersed himself in the culture and eventually teamed up with local DJ King Tech to form a rap duo that released music independently. The pair went on to host The Wake Up Show on KMEL FM, which introduced radio listeners to future Hip-Hop legends like Eminem, OutKast and The Notorious B.I.G. early on in their careers.

It was through The Wake Up Show’s success and Sway’s in-depth interview style that the critical thinker began to realize that his true purpose behind the mic was not to be a musician but to be a journalist. That was further realized in 2000 when MTV approached him to be an on-air correspondent. Since then Sway has seen both his career and influence grow as an executive producer for the cable network who has had a chance to document everything from the devastation of Hurricane Katrina and the 2010 earthquake that rocked Haiti to President Barack Obama’s historic inauguration, all while still maintaining his Hip-Hop focus.

Given Sway’s evolution from Hip-Hop spectator to daily commentator, he seemed like a perfect fit for The Gentleman’s Project, a campaign, done in collaboration with Hennessy Black, which highlights the achievements of individuals who help shape today’s culture. So Hip-Hop Wired connected with the journalistic genius to get some answers.

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Photo: Margarita Corporan

Hip-Hop Wired: Over the years you’ve built a successful brand around being an authority on all things Hip-Hop and pop culture. How did go from local phenomenon to a global one? 

Sway: I think my brand was created in the 90s when my partner King Tech and I got on the radio and started producing artists and putting out music. The Wake Up Show freestyle tapes put a lot of artists like OutKast and Eminem on, helping them secure deals. At that time, we were just the pillar of integrity and people knew that Sway & Tech are really about the culture and the passion. Back then I probably appeared a little more mean because I would really challenge artists about their craft and things they did that was anti-culture.

Hip-Hop Wired: That’s funny because from watching you on MTV most people wouldn’t characterize you as being “mean.”

Sway: I kinda grew out of doing that so much, and started growing into an understanding and building relationships. I think all those things we did in the 90s helped bring me into the new millennium. By the time I got to MTV I had created enough of a foundation through helping so many artists. No matter how much we made or how much recognition came, we remained the same and nothing changed coming to MTV. Of course the exposure got a whole lot larger and the brand built that much more equity, but I’ve stood the test of time. My objective was always not to be clumped in a category or be compared to anyone kinda like how Jay Z is in a category of his own at what he does. So I’d like to think in terms of broadcast journalism, I’m in a category of my own. Not going to journalism school or studying broadcasting, I had to create my own lane.

Hip-Hop Wired: Do you think that lack of formal training has actually been an asset?

Sway: It worked because I was so different from anybody else that was on MTV. Their audience didn’t even really know my name at first. I was just the dude with locks in the big hat. Actually, because I was so deeply rooted in radio, it took years for the people who knew me from the Hip-Hop community to realize I was the same Sway from Sway & Tech. They thought I was another person.

Hip-Hop Wired: Was there any backlash from Hip-Hop fans when you first went mainstream?

Sway: You know as soon as you work on a network like MTV some people are going to say you sold out but that’s that kind of ignorance that needed to be defunct. Because you have to grow, you have to establish success. If you think about my history growing up in Oakland, the least of my worries is what the next man thinks of me. I don’t care. I’m at a point in my life and career where I don’t feel like I’m trying to prove anything. At the same time, you know I’m not a sucker, I’m playing chess.

Hip-Hop Wired: Do you mean that figuratively or literally?

Sway: Both, because I actually do play chess.

Hip-Hop Wired: When did you learn how to play?

Sway: As a teenager, probably in junior high school. I would play friends and learned how to move the pawns, or the knights or the bishops and what their range of movement was. Then as I got in high school I learned better strategy when I met my partner King Tech, his father is from the Middle East and used to play chess. Tech and I would go back and forth and his father would teach me strategy.

Hip-Hop Wired: How often do you play now?

Sway: Now I don’t play as much. I may have played four games last year. But the strategy, you always exercise that. We all got to figure out our fields and navigate through it. In this age of journalism it’s important to have a brand. Look at someone like Elliott Wilson, who’s everywhere and he wants you to know he’s everywhere. He celebrates his relationship with artists to help promote his brand and that’s great. You see a lot of younger journalists doing the same thing. My objective is to make my brand what the artist celebrate. I want my brand to bring the artist to us instead of the artist’s brand taking me to them. I want it to be a mutually beneficial payoff.

Hip-Hop Wired: What role if any does social media play in that payoff?

Sway: I play they game in terms of taking pictures of my guest and posting it on my Instagram but not to exploit those guests or bring some type of attention to me, but just to make people aware of this is who we talked to today and show that variety. I’m not one of those guys interested in making these moments [to be famous]. I don’t have to do that. I don’t look for it, but if those things come my way, I make the most of it.

Hip-Hop Wired: As an executive producer at MTV News what responsibility do you feel you have to cater to the expanding needs of Hip-Hop audiences?

Sway: I’m working on transcending even more who we are, who we can be. I want to change the zeitgeist of our audience and open their minds to conversation beyond the perimeters that we set for ourselves. Just because we come from Hip-Hop culture there’s no reason we shouldn’t be discussing the State of the Union Address, immigration, i wage, or healthcare reform… It affects us all on a daily basis. That’s why I look at Jay Z. That’s my peer, but I look up to this dude in the sense that he is fearless in his approach to things now. And I see now that he’s found a peace and calm, and being secure and confident as a man. You know he’s embracing love in front of the world openly. He’s acknowledging his child and it’s beautiful. At the same time he’s walking in areas none of us have seen or been exposed to. In terms of Hip-Hop journalism, I’ve been able to walk in areas that a lot of us haven’t been exposed to, and not just in front of the camera but in the corporate side just navigating up that Viacom corporate ladder.

Hip-Hop Wired: How has that journey changed over the years?

Sway: They come to me now and ask me to lead the charge when it comes to selling those networks, not just MTV, when we do our upfronts and we’re talking to our clients and advertisers, I’m the guy whose at the helm of that talking about the metrics and our quarterly results and stock. That’s a whole other layer to it all. It’s just so much bigger than taking a picture next to a rapper and getting your views and your likes. You got to go through those steps and I get that but you also have to think about your legacy and contribution to it all. I never wanted to be a customer I always wanted to be a contributor.