Swollen Members

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Swollen Members
from left to right: Prevail, Mad Child, and Rob the Viking.
from left to right: Prevail, Mad Child, and Rob the Viking.
Background information
Origin Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Genre(s) Hip-hop
Years active Mid-1990s to Present
Label(s) Battle Axe
Website http://www.swollenmembers.com/
Members
Mad Child
Prevail
Rob The Viking
Former members
Moka Only

Swollen Members is a Canadian hip hop group hailing from Vancouver, British Columbia, consisting principally of the duo Mad Child and Prevail. They have been called "two of the most innovative people in hip-hop".[1]

Contents

[edit] Band history

Swollen Members was founded in the mid-1990s by Vancouverites Mad Child, Prevail and Moka Only. Having begun a solo career while living in San Francisco, California, Mad Child returned with Jeremy Spittle to Vancouver for some work. There they met Prevail and Moka Only, who had been working together. The four joined together under the name Swollen Members. Soon after, however, Moka Only decided he wanted to pursue a solo career and left the group.

In 1996, Mad Child and Prevail went to the B-Boy Summit in San Diego, California, where Mad Child won several rap battles and was initiated into the Rock Steady Crew. The crew is held in great respect as hip hop's highest collective - to join one must win a contest of skill against one of the highest ranked members. Swollen Members is one of only three rap groups affiliated with Rock Steady.

That same year, the duo began recording their first tracks, with help from many of their friends from the scene - MCs, DJs, and producers, including Rob the Viking. Rob would continue to work with the group through the years, eventually joining them officially. Their first releases were three 12" singles on Mad Child's record label Battleaxe Records, then came the debut album Balance in 1999.

Balance received wide critical acclaim and has been claimed by the band to have sold in excess of 50,000 copies. Featuring collaborations with artists such as Everlast, Divine Styler, and Dilated Peoples, the album also netted Swollen Members the 2001 Juno Award for Best Rap Recording.

Following Balance, Swollen Members recorded and released Bad Dreams, released on November 13, 2001, and featuring guests such as Chali 2na of Jurassic 5, Son Doobie, Joey Chavez, and former member Moka Only. It appealed to both underground and mainstream audiences, with several singles reaching platinum status in Canada.The album also earned Swollen Members their second Juno Award, and four MuchMusic Video Awards.

2002's Monsters in the Closet, their third release, brought official group membership for Moka Only and Rob the Viking. Monsters was a collection of b-sides and outtakes along with three new songs, one of which featured British Columbian Nelly Furtado. Production credits included Evidence from Dilated Peoples.

2003 brought Heavy, again released to critical acclaim and good sales, though many fans felt that Swollen Members had removed many elements of the style which had been so rewarding in the past.

In 2005 Moka Only decided to break off from the group for a second time and continue work on his solo career.

In 2006 Swollen Members released their fifth full album, Black Magic. It is understood that Mad Child and Prevail made an attempt to return to their previously critically acclaimed style and method. Their previous album Heavy was seen by the band as a disappointment, and isn't listed on their official site discography.

In August 2006, Swollen Members released their new single "Put Me On - Feat. Everlast" off of their new album, "Black Magic".

Their next CD, Beautiful Death Machine, is scheduled to be released at the end of the summer of 2007. According to the band's website, Mad Child will soon release a solo album.

[edit] Discography

[edit] Awards and Recognition

[edit] Juno Awards

[edit] MuchMusic Video Awards

  • 2002 - MuchVIBE Best Rap Video ("Fuel Injected" feat. Moka Only and directed by Wendy Morgan)
  • 2002 - MuchMusic Best Director ("Fuel Injected" feat. Moka Only and directed by Wendy Morgan)
  • 2002 - MuchMusic VideoFACT Award ("Fuel Injected" feat. Moka Only and directed by Wendy Morgan)
  • 2002 - MuchMusic Best Independent Video ("Fuel Injected" feat. Moka Only and directed by Wendy Morgan)
  • 2003 - MuchVIBE Best Rap Video ("Breath" feat. Nelly Furtado and directed by Todd McFarlane)

[edit] Additional Awards

  • 2002 Canadian Radio Music Awards Breakthrough Artist ("Fuel Injected" feat. Moka Only)
  • 2002 West Coast Music Awards Best Urban Release (Bad Dreams)
  • 2002 The Georgia Straight Readers Choice Best Urban Act
  • 2003 COCA Campus Entertainment Awards Entertainer of the Year
  • 2003 Western Canadian Music Awards Outstanding Rap/HipHop Recording ("Monsters in the Closet")
  • 2003 Western Canadian Music Awards Outstanding Video ("Breath" feat. Nelly Furtado)
  • 2004 Western Canadian Music Awards Outstanding Rap / Hip Hop Recording ("Heavy")

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ Shapiro, P: "The Rough Guide To Hip-Hop", page 53. Rough Guides, 2005
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