> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.smdp.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Keeping the party going - URL: https://www.smdp.com/keeping-the-party-going/ - Published: 2008-08-29T15:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-24T20:53:37.000Z - Author: Guest Author - Tags: Entertainment, Malibu, #archive-import *Malibu rapper hits the big time* *By DANIEL ARCHULETA Managing Editor* MALIBU For most people, the party inevitably has to come to an end. For Shwayze, not only has the party never ended, but he’s somehow turned it into a lucrative recording career complete with a reality show. Must be nice. The up-and-coming rapper whose hazy, lazy lifestyle has bloomed into a lively hood, has just released his self-titled debut album last week, which hit No. 10 on the Billboard 200 chart. He and partner in crime Cisco Adler, who first met while frequenting the social scene in Malibu, effortlessly blend their party-all-night and record-all-day ways into a sound that walks the line between alternative rock and hip hop. If the early results are any indication, they appear to be successful in their attempt to keep the party going. “Malibu is a pretty small town,” said Adler, who produced and appears on the album. “Everyone comes out to the parties. He came to a party at my house one night telling me about how he’s a rapper and that we should make music together, but I told him I didn’t get down like that. “I told him to hit me up when he was sober and then we could talk.” When Adler rose from bed the next morning, he found Shwayze sleeping on his couch. When he finally awoke from his beer-induced slumber he continued to bend Adler’s ear. Adler, who has made a name for himself by producing the likes of Mickey Avalon, let the youngster hangout at his house while he worked on tracks for other artists. But it wasn’t long until the two finally made it into the studio and began work on what would become Shwayze’s debut. Along the way, the young rapper crashed on Adler’s couch while they completed the demos that later comprised the album. He’s since graduated to having his own bedroom in Adler’s Malibu home. “It was a cool experience \[making the record\],” said Shwayze, who graduated from Malibu High School in 2003\. “We’d just chill and party and come back and make music about it.” The pair landed their MTV reality show, “Buzzin’,” while they produced the album. Adler, whose previous band, Whitestarr, had been featured on the VH1 series “The Rock Life,” figured it would give fans an opportunity to learn more about Shwayze’s music. “It was like a commercial for the album,” Adler said. “If more people know about the music, that can’t be a bad thing. We needed control and we had to make sure this thing is funny and shows the business side.” He and Shwayze both worried that the show could come off as just a couple of guys trying to become famous, but Adler was steadfast in his belief that if the music was quality, people wouldn’t judge them based solely on their personas on the reality show. “No matter what, the music is solid,” Adler said. “Everything was designed for people to come to the record. I think people are digging it.” The album itself is an eclectic mix of easy acoustic guitar rifts, Adler’s laid-back vocals on most of the hooks and Shwayze’s stoner-esque rhymes. The irony is that Adler, who happens to be white, first became interested in music through his experience with hip hop. Shwayze, who jokingly claims to be the only black kid in Malibu, tends to gravitate more toward rock ‘n’ roll. “I grew up with oldies,” Shwayze said. “Growing up in Malibu, my friends listened to all kinds of different things. As far as rapping goes, I never liked rapping to hard beats. I was really into guitar.” Adler was the polar opposite. He said he wouldn’t even listen to an album if it had guitar on it. “Every 14-year-old white kid rapped at that time,” said Adler, who will soon turn 30\. “I wanted to go further. I wanted to hone every skill. It’s not like I’m a fraud jumping on \[the hip hop side of the music business\].” The two are currently preparing for their first headline tour and have plans to play with Metro Station.As for the future,both are excited to see where this music thing takes them. “I’m just a kid from Malibu,” Shwayze said, “who is lucky enough to be making music for a living.” ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/55/9f/559f9abc-8372-4a2e-8c2d-27386da4e363/content/images/2026/10/082908-04_01.jpg) CHILLIN’: Shwayze (right) has teamed up with Cisco Adler to produce his debut album. (Photo: Photo courtesy Interscope Records) *Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on August 29, 2008.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/082908.pdf?ref=smdp.com)