The Genius of Sway
“Sway’s a legend…” — Eminem
I. Hip-Hop Royalty
On a chilly Manhattan day, I spotted hip-hop royalty…
…Sure, his longtime partner is DJ King Tech, but we can’t all be DJs. Somebody’s gotta do the dancing, right? And for over 30 years now — Sway Calloway has been dancing to the beat of his own drum.
When an interviewer asked him about his iconic, now retired, dreadlocks, he smiled. “When I first got my locks in the 90s,” he recalled, “people didn’t understand it.”
Indeed, the first time I saw Sway on TV, my uncle Mike blurted: “Hey, I like that Jamaican guy on MTV with them big ole dreads!”
Years later, now that locs have become a staple of Black-American culture, perhaps I’ll no longer have to remind my uncle — Sway’s from Oakland.
Here lies the genius of Sway…
…With a whopping 7,837,000,000 people living on the world’s stage, clearly whoever wants to stand out from the crowd must first stand in isolation.
To be a “genius,” then, is to be different. And given that you can only make a difference by being different, perhaps each genius intuitively grasps this:
Might as well be indifferent to a world in which you’re different.
In short, long before Lil Wayne or I started rockin’ & dreadlockin’, Sway had already told the world:
What I brought to the table had nothing to do with my hair; it had everything to do with us being innovative and creative […]. It just so happened that I had ‘locks. When I first got to MTV, it just seemed like the locks is all that people identified with. For me, it was fun.
They’ll never see me coming. They’ll never know where it’s coming from. But the foundation was already laid before I came to MTV. The ‘locks became a part of the brand. And I let it. I rocked it. I made it work for me.
II. The Science of Genius
As a child, I cringed whenever Mama called me “Leonardo.”
Grrr…
Especially when my buddies were around. But today, I embrace the name. After all, Leonardo da Vinci has become synonymous with polymath.
The notion of genius has traditionally been restricted to cognitive abilities. But in How to Think Like Leonardo da Vinci and Discover Your Genius, Michael Gelb argues genius wears multiple masks.
I enjoyed Gelb’s books mainly for adding light, not originality per se. After all, the genius merely removes the letter ‘K’ from what people Knew yesterday and repackages it as new today.
In short, Gelb skillfully repackaged Professor Howard Gardner’s famed theory of multiple intelligences.
As a researcher at Harvard, Professor Gardner had a flash of genius.
He recognized the traditional definition of intelligence was incomplete. After all, just as there are multiple kinds of fruits, the fruits of knowledge spring from multiple kinds of intelligence.
In fact, he pinpointed eight different types of intelligence.
As an undergrad, I counted Professor Gardner among my heroes. And so, when he spoke glowingly about my Psychological Code — I was delighted. I was especially thrilled he recognized my work extends his theory somewhat, resulting in a quasi-science of genius.
Take for instance Serena Williams. Her intensity, competitiveness and sheer power on the tennis court reflect having bodily-kinesthetic genius.
Mozart’s sublime symphony №1 in E♭major, K. 16, composed at the tender age of 8, reflects having musical genius.
Despite being 74, Gandhi’s still mustering enough willpower to fast for 21 days reflected having intrapersonal genius.
(*Note: I’m conceptualizing genius as a verb, not a noun.)
As for having interpersonal genius — a gift for communicating with people or “people smarts” — a few names abruptly come to mind…
…Oprah (Winfrey). Barbara (Walters). Howard (Stern). Sway (Calloway).
III. Imitation is What Influence Looks Like in Public
“People open up more when they know someone is sincerely listening to them,” body language experts say.
Oprah has rightfully been crowned the “queen of reflective listening.”
Sway is the king!
Though seeing is believing, some of the facts we keep denying were revealed by our very own eyes. Thankfully facts are stubborn lil things.
Ellen DeGeneres started out primarily using Joan Rivers’ comedic approach. But as Ellen evolved, she gradually incorporated Oprah’s reflective listening into her personal style.
Indeed, imitation is what influence looks like in public…
Charlamagne tha God started out primarily using Stern’s “shock jock” blueprint. But as Charlamagne evolved, he gradually incorporated Sway’s reflective listening into his personal style.
Indeed, imitation is what influence looks like in public…
(*Fun fact: just as Ellen and Oprah celebrate their birthdays the same week, Charlamagne and Sway celebrate their birthdays the same week.)
IV. Sway’s Gift Displayed in Real Time
When I spotted Sway across the crowded room, we locked eyes.
I’m tall with dreadlocks. And so, when I approached him smiling from ear to ear, I’m sure he sighed and thought — here we go again. After all, every famous person eventually wishes fame came with a switch.
But if New York City’s gray day felt cold, Sway’s warm smile brightened things up.
Sure, he didn’t know me from a breath of oxygen inhaled years before, but his genuine bro hug was a breath of fresh air. “From the locs to the hats,” I told him, “you’ve influenced me, bro.”
He graciously nodded, oozing an almost namaste vibe.
“Biggie did his last freestyle on your Wakeup Show,” I gushed. He leaned in a bit, so as to offer his trademark reflective-listener ear. It takes a great man to be a great listener, after all.
Sway may be the only mortal that can boast of speaking into existence a peace treaty between 2 of the 3 icons mentioned in Jay-Z’s famed lyric — “Who’s the best MCs … Biggie, Jay-Z and Nas.”
And then, years later, the prophecy came to fruition during his classic interview with both GOATs.
Perhaps Sway’s insight into the nature of trios reflects his birthday (July 3). As for the magical number 3, whoever knows my scribblings knows my Law of Three — birthed from my work in pure mathematics.
When I mentioned Biggie in our chance encounter, I was but three seconds away from adding how that iconic freestyle occurred on my birthday — the first day of the third month.
But of course, given that 3 out of 4 years I lack an actual birthday, not to mention being born at 3:03 in 3rd Ward, that symbolic day and Biggie’s untimely death on 3/9 —together — always shoot chills down my spine.
Especially when considered in light of my Tesla 369 article.
But the above was only a passing thought. I never mentioned my name. Or scribblings. Besides, there’s a correlation between how silly a man is and how patient he is with a man who wastes his time.
Sure, celebs are expected to wear badges of noblesse oblige, but that line is thin. In short, though our exchange was thin, in a flash he somehow made me feel as if I’d known him forever in a minute.
What a gift!
In fact, such a gift strikes at the very heart of the genius of Sway.
V. The Takeaway
I first made a name on this platform with an article about how Jay-Z’s artistry can improve your writing.
“Rapper,” I noted, is just a nickname for poet. And instead of troubadours humming lyrical couplets, emcees now rap lyrical “bars.”
As for sonnets, they’re now called “16 bars,” though the structure holds.
As a youth, I inhaled Shakespeare’s couplets and exhaled Jay-Z’s bars. Armed with my encyclopedic knowledge of wordsmiths, years ago when I first heard “In Control” — I was surprised…
…Pleasantly.
In Sway, here’s a guy who made a name for being a great interviewer of great emcees. But, at the root, was himself a great emcee.
Decades before the triplet flow was dubbed the “Migos flow,” Sway was in control of the famed triplet rap style. After all, when he spit acapella on “In Control,” even the originators Jay-Z and Jaz-O tipped their caps from afar.
As for opening the track, Sway had a flow so mean and a presence so cold that, dare I say, it reminded me of a prime Ice-T.
“In ’88 when Ice-T mumbled ‘Yo Ease let’s do this…’ ” as my uncle once explained, “that was like seeing Mike jump from the free throw line or seeing the other Mike jump on Spinks.”
In short, though a true MC, Sway wisely honored Ed O.G.’s insight:
“If the opportunity was to present itself/
I might just have to go and reinvent myself/”
“Sway, before we get started … will you please sign this for me.” Eminem handed over a vinyl record of “In Control.”
Sway graciously signed the copy.
Perhaps Eminem — arguably the best to ever touch a mic —merely wanted to pay homage to the man who helped launch his career.
Heck, had Sway and Tech slept on Em instead of embracing him on the Wake Up Show, perhaps Slim Shady never gets to tell us “My Name Is.”
“I think those sessions were like his training, and he eventually found his voice and who he would become as an artist,” Sway recalled.
The more I think about it, the more clearly I see the genius of Sway.
His unassuming vibe reminds me of how Einstein once described his own interpersonal style. “I speak to everyone in the same way,” he said, “whether he is the garbage man or the president of the university.”
Despite not knowing me, Sway’s showing me love strikes at the very heart of his interpersonal gift…
…And this rare gift whereby a Somebody’s mere presence makes a Nobody feel like a Somebody, too, results in this:
Somebody’s presence elevating to the point of becoming Somebody’s present.
Bingo!
Here lies the genius of Sway.
