It’s been 20 years since Mike Jones released his breakthrough hit, “Still Tippin.'” Reflecting on the song and its impact, the rapper tells Billboard his famous “Who? Mike Jones” ad-lib in the song was born with help from his mother and grandmother, who’d been there to witness when his music would get turned down in the streets and the clubs.
“I was trying to go to the club and get my music played,” Jones recalls. “People were making fun of me, like, ‘Are you Biggie?’ I’m like ‘I’m Mike Jones.’ And they’d be like, ‘Who?’ And my grandma and mom said, ‘Throw it back in their face.'”
His grandmother was also the one who suggested he connect with fans by giving them his phone number. “I didn’t want to give out my phone number at first,” Jones says. “My grandma was like, ‘Do something that ain’t nobody else doing. Be personal to the fans. Give out your phone number.’ And I was like ‘Man, I’m not finna give out my phone number.’ I eventually gave out my phone number. Thank God for her giving me that direction.”
Mike’s grandma passed away before the song’s video was released, and the number is now used as a fan hotline.
“Still Tippin’” featuring Paul Wall and Slim Thug went on to be certified Platinum and received a nomination in the MTV2 category at the 2005 MTV Video Music Awards. It’s been sampled by A$AP Rocky, Lil Uzi Vert and Normani and is a staple at functions in Texas.
“If it didn’t blow up nowhere else, we knew it was going to blow up in Texas,” Jones says. “Everybody’s big on rides and cars. We still tippin’, and people that are from where we’re from understand the lingo.”
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