b. Michael Jones, 6 January 1981, Houston, Texas, USA. Owing to a carefully cultivated media campaign, Jones shot into the US mainstream at the end of 2004 with the excellent single ‘Still Tippin’’. After seeing his childhood dreams of becoming a professional basketball player crumble, the young Jones threw his energy into a music career. In 2001, he created his own Ice Age Entertainment label and began to hustle his music around the street scene. His tireless self-promotion paid off when he came to the attention of the local underground company Swishahouse, and after signing with the label he began firing out mixtapes. Ballin Underground, 1st Round Draft Picks and Runnin’ The Game were packaged in normal and chopped and screwed versions, and sold over 250, 000 units on the Houston circuit. A major label recording contract was inevitable and in 2004 Jones signed a distribution deal with Warner Brothers Records. His debut for the label, Who Is Mike Jones?, included choice cuts from his earlier mixtapes, including the aforementioned ‘Still Tippin’’. The title of the album was inspired by the reaction Jones used to receive from producers and writers when he first began in the music business.
