Dame Crawford and Ishmael Ferguson form Drop Squad Entertainment.  They are a production team that originated out of South Central Los Angeles.  They have successfully parlayed their love of music and their chemistry into a spanking brand new label deal through Fontana/Universal Music Group.  The future is bright for these die hards.  They have stayed the course and time seems to have flown.  

How did you guys initially link up?

DAME:  We met in jazz band class in high school. I used to play trombone and I wanted to switch to drums.  Ish was the drummer in jazz band and the section leader in the drum line.  I was a freshman so I got put in the drum section and I used to sit behind Ish and watch him play.  He told me he had done the same switch from trombone to drums so that thing we had in common kinda bonded us.  We were both like class clowns in the band.  We ran into each other again after we graduated.

ISH:  It was at Guitar Center.  We were both trying to work on beats at that time.  Guitar Center was like our studio at that time. We’d get on the MPC on display and do beats.  We’d be in there 6 or 7 hours like a work shift.  We took client meetings at Guitar Center!! That was our spot until they started locking down the keyboards and display items.  At that time Wylde Bunch was already formed and Dame invited me by their rehearsal.  Another cat named Roscoe was playing... I don’t even remember how it happened but I became the drummer in the band.  That’s basically how we met.

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What was the first song that you guys got credit for?

ISH:  We did the Kenny Latimore song “Don’t Deserve”.  That was our first credited song that was released as a single.  That was like 15 years ago.  And during that time Shep was the R&B ballad KING so all the labels were calling every day to get their artists on his books.  So for a three year period talk about BUSY!!! And the artists, they were coming to the hood to record.  We weren’t in Hollywood or The Valley recording, they were coming to 124th and Normandie.  You never know who you’d see sitting in the living room when you come in to work... like Deborah Cox or Kelly Price chilling.  That was the kind of respect Shep was getting. 

Fast forward to today… what projects do you have in the making right now?

DAME:  We just signed a distribution deal with Fontana/Universal that finally allows us our own label imprint.  We can now A&R and put out records we choose.  So of course, among other artists, we’re gonna get Wylde Bunch in there.

How will that work?  I mean, in these days of the digital music marketplace, distribution doesn’t exist in the old sense. So how does that work?

DAME:  Well for our deal with Fontana, it’s not just distribution.  We do get distribution but with John Patella, the guy we signed with, we get the old-school label feel including promotion and advertising and product placement.  John comes from a Sales background and he’s done this same deal on the independent side for labels like Suave House and Swisher House.  With his background and connects he’s able to get us stuff like features on Pandora the iTunes front page and some of those digital looks that help advance our position.

What about club and radio promotion?

DAME:  This is also included.  We’re already started some of the set up for the first records.  For instance, John is taking me to a meet and greet with DJs from San Diego and Bakersfield and the POWER radio stations.  You know the DJs they are the gatekeepers now.  Where it used to be A&R that were key in getting a record all the way to market, now the DJs are the new gateways to market success.  Not NEW but more viral now.