Arts Professional Story: Karla “FyreMouff” Armour, T'izm Sound Productions

I own a record label. Those five words are impressive to almost any person I've uttered them to, and yet I inwardly cringe despite my confident delivery of this statement. Maybe it's because constantly writing music and shooting out electronic press kits (EPKs) are difficult tasks that I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy—if I had one. Or maybe it's that the label is like an umbilical cord conjoining me, my partner (in business and romance), and our labelmate. It could very well be the fact that the act of trailblazing is a lonesome feat.

When I met my boyfriend, DJ Jazznosis, in February 2007, I was a spoken word artist who had grown tired of the open mic circuit and longed for Ursula Rucker-like status. He had a home studio named T'izm Sound, trying to cut his teeth as a producer while dreaming of ranking among DJs like Madlib and Jazzy Jeff. Our second “date” was a studio session. A close second to friendship, music is the nuts 'n' bolts of our romance. In a cozy one-bedroom apartment in South Shore, I would fry chicken and catfish and simmer spaghetti sauce while Jazz mixed tracks. He enjoyed his meals while I recorded vocals. This went on until June 2009 when we finally felt confident enough to send my five-track demo to two independent labels (one in Miami, the other in NYC) and College of DuPage's WDCB. 

The reviews were fantastic! We got airplay on WDCB and while the labels said we had talent, they did not have room to sign additional artists. “Since you already conduct yourselves like a label, why not become one?” they both asked. The label in NYC gave us all the information we needed to get started. Armed with my PR and marketing skills, along with my savvy in legal matters, I immediately got the ball rolling on converting Jazz's living room studio into a full-fledged record label.

There's no other label that specializes in spoken word, conscious hip-hop, R&B/Soul, non-traditional jazz, or electronica in Chicago—or Illinois or the Midwest region for that matter. That's why we sent my demo out of state. Still, I researched the market one more time. I wasn't trying to assess the competition; I was simply looking for a companion, a model—someone who'd already done what we were embarking upon. No such animal.

I sighed heavily and called the IRS to get a tax ID number. Then I went to the Secretary of State's website for the incorporation form. Those were the easy steps. The big job that lay ahead was creating everything from scratch: a marketing strategy, a press kit, and a website. There was also the 300-pound gorilla that sat quietly in the corner of our studio: finding our market and pitching to it so that we could broaden our fanbase, get airplay, and get booked.

The connection between Jazz and me—between artist and producer, boyfriend and girlfriend—abruptly and simultaneously became stronger, more fragile, and more flexible. Jazz spent more and more time in the studio—editing, mixing, sampling, practicing, and just trying new stuff. I was cheating on him with GoDaddy, Google, and the entire MS Office Suite. I am convinced that any other partner, after not having seen one us for a month, would have had us investigated by Cheaters. Yet even now the physical time we spend away from each other is filled with communication—phone calls, texts, emails, Twitter updates, and Facebook postings—regarding the label's progress. An email with a new Mp3 track attached is a love letter from Jazz. Same goes for me when I text him about a press interview. We see the world from an entrepreneurial perspective with nearly everyone and everything becoming a networking or advancement possibility. 

When we started out, our to-do list was as long as Martin Luther's 95 Theses. Our budget was scribbled on a Post-It note. To call Jazz's employment situation "shaky" is a gross understatement. Being jostled between temp-to-hire jobs and left without income (while appealing an unemployment benefit termination and fighting an eviction), his life was an emotional roller coaster in summer 2009. Our labelmate, I.P. (Intellectual Poetik) the Ghost, found himself homeless, along with his wife and daughter, due to unemployment. The five-year drought caused them to relocate to Danville, IL. My financial life was less eventful as I've been drawing my unemployment since October 2008. I'm on my fifth extension. Jazz and I each have two small children and not-so-hot credit. “How are we going to pay for that?” is an ongoing question, but it's answered by small miracles in the form of a discount (we've owned our domain name for five years for $63.56), freebies, or any other breaks that the Universe cuts us.

The sweet sound of success still has yet to manifest itself in the ka-ching of a cash register, but we can hear it in the voice of the radio personality in Amsterdam who excitedly introduces our music during the morning show. Jazz and I see the growth as booking agents cease to be hesitant about our ability to draw a crowd and firmly add us to their calendars. I stand up straighter as music directors from Clear Channel and BBC Radio consider adding us to their playlists. Jazz's excitement grows as local artists are becoming accustomed to the idea that Chicago now has a record label that they can bank their talents on. We both sigh with relief as Poetik expresses sheer joy as his dream of being a musician is finally realized. Speaking of dreams, I continue to dream of when I can finally have a date with Jazz. Nothing elaborate—just me, him and a little takeout. Maybe some wine, but definitely no music, please!

Karla “FyreMouff” Armour is the product of a father from Hermandale, MO, and a mother from Guyana, South America. She grew up, and still resides, in the Rosemoor community on Chicago's Far South Side. FyreMouff is a graduate of Hyde Park Career Academy. She holds a B.A. in English from the University of Illinois at Chicago. An avid reader with career goals initially set in the journalism and public relations fields, FyreMouff dusted off her open mic poetry skills in 2004 and hasn't looked back.

Rob “DJ Jazznosis” Thompson also grew up on Chicago's South Side in the South Shore neighborhood and is a graduate of South Shore High School. There, he befriended aspiring rapper, Ron “I.P. (Intelligent Poetik) the Ghost” Jackson and together they began the journey of becoming recording artists. Holding a B.A. in TV Production from Columbia College, DJ Jazznosis started out as a self-taught DJ and musician in 1997. His accomplishments include opening for Gza of Wu-Tang, headlining at Chicago's Looptopia Festival, and serving as the official DJ for the city's annual H Games tournament, hosted by Mike Adamle.

Learn more at T'izm Sound Productions, LLC.