Jonathan Sway Calloway Biography

Fast Facts

• Was a correspondent for MTV's Choose or Lose campaign in 2004, a program to inform young people about politics and convince them to vote
• Was a news reporter for MTV's daily hip-hop show "Direct Effect," for which he interviewed rappers like Diddy, Mystikal, Scarface, and DMX
• Started out as a rapper in the late 1980s, when he and partner King Tech would perform their break dancing and rap routines in their home town of Oakland, California
• The release of his and King Tech's album "Concrete Jungle" in 1990 resulted in the two co-hosting "The Wake Up Show" on KMEL
• Quote: "(On his celebrity status): "Having the ability to affect and impact others in a positive way, I'm trying to utilize this platform to do as much as possible․ And especially in the black community because we don't have a lot of role models․""
• Best known as a rapper and reporter for MTV News, as the co-host of "The Wake Up Show," and as the host of "RapFix Live․"
• Was the first DJ to give radio airplay to rappers Eminem and Notorious B․I․G
• Was the co-moderator for a panel called "Hate Crimes and How to End College Racism" at the NAACP Annual Convention in July 2004