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His life hasn’t been charmed, though this songwriter, producer, singer and actor is now
experiencing a season of favor at Xist Worldwide, his rapidly growing urban Christian media and
entertainment empire. His name is Sean Simmonds and he and his longtime friend turned
business partner, T. Black, took a leap of faith and launched one of urban music’s fastest
growing companies.
Recently, Simmonds and Xist Music made headlines for signing two of Christian Hip Hop’s most
respected rappers, The Ambassador and Da’ T.R.U.T.H. (also featured on this year's 10 Men
Leading the Way list), who have burst back onto the scene with a holy vengeance after separate
sabbaticals.
These days, this husband and father of three has come a long way since leaving a six figure
secular deal on the table at 17, and opting instead to finish school. Now with all his Kingdom
success, Simmonds isn't resting on his laurels. Rather, he's in the studio cooking up his third
album, The Genesis, slated for a Spring 2012 release. He also hasn't forgotten his early days of
struggling through rejection and failure. His triumphant story is what lands the rising media
mogul on EEW's list.
So how did Simmonds and partner, T. Black, get their start?
"We started working in the capacity of management, you know, artist management type
relationships," he recounts. "And I started working on a little demo, doing little showcases here
and there. And the demo was growing. When I say growing, [I mean] as far as 4 songs became 6
songs. 6 songs became 8 songs. And we were trying to shop the demo and see if we could get
somebody to bite. But everybody that heard it wanted me to do [something different]. It was too
aggressive for them. All the labels were saying, no, it’s not something we can work. Can you do
something like this? And you know, it wasn’t really what we wanted to hear."
Although Simmonds wasn't hearing anything promising related to his music, he and his partner
didn't give up. In fact, remarkably, his friend T, then a bachelor who owned his own place, chose
to make a huge sacrifice and put his house up for sale to launch the business. Simmonds tells
EEW, "He said, 'Look man, I’ma sell my house,' and I’m like, what? He had equity in his house,
so he said, I’ma sell my house, get the equity back, and we’ll, you know, we’ll launch this label. I’
m like, nah, nah, nah. You’re not gone put that on my head!"
But T had already made up his mind. "The next day, it literally happened so fast," Simmonds
remembers. "Before I could even tell him no, he went and put his house up and he already got a
buyer. When he got the buyer for the house, he was basically dealing with a mortgage broker to
close the deal. But then there was a little hiccup in the deal. And the mortgage broker kept
asking, you know. Why are you rushing? Why are you trying to get this thing closed so fast? So
he just ended up telling him what he was trying to do. So the mortgage broker called him in and
said, okay, come meet with me. They had lunch and the mortgage broker said, okay, why don’t I
give you the money out of my pocket and when I close the house, I’ll take the money back that
you owe me? So the mortgage broker gave him the money and we started a label. And then, we
put the record out. And we realized, okay, the record’s finished. It’s out but we ain’t got no
money to promote it," Simmonds recalls laughing.
Incredibly, the mortgage broker cut T a check for $100,000 and Xist Music was born.
At the time, Simmonds had no idea of all the plans God had for his future beyond his personal
ministry. The Lord, who brings people together for seasons and reasons, knew the business
savvy artist would be instrumental in the advancement of the urban movement God is using to
establish His kingdom in these end times. When EEW Magazine asked Simmonds where he sees
himself in 5 to 10 years, he said, "We want to be that brand that people recognize for uplifting,
wholesome, great, positive, Christ-centered things. We just want to set that standard and
eventually become like gospel Def Jam where people hear Xist and know what to expect."
Thus far, we are all expecting great things, especially with the Indie label's impressive roster.
And with what Simmonds calls the "two-headed monster"--the merging of excellence in video
and music production, unquestionably, Xist Music is poised to make a Kingdom impact. "When
you put things together with a touch of quality, they are able to stand with everything else that’s
out there [in the mainstream], and I think that’s what was lacking in the past, which is why the
urban Christian movement didn’t get the attention it deserved. There was not a happy medium,
meaning message and quality. It was just one or the other, you know. And really, quality was the
element that was ignored, or that was compromised. So now you have these artists that are
coming out. You have the Lecraes and Reach Records and you have all these independents that
are coming out, but now they’re able to come out presenting music on a platform that stands
almost toe-to-toe with what’s out there mainstream wise, and you’re also bringing the message
along with it. So you’re appeasing to those who are desiring and needing a message, and you’re
appeasing to those that have the need for something they can use as an alternative to what
they’re accustomed to. So now it’s, it’s a win-win situation.
Indeed, it is. And this win-win in the urban movement is winning souls to the Kingdom of God.
For more information about Sean Simmonds visit him online at XistMusic.com. Twitter:
@SeanSimmonds
Article & Interview by Dianna Hobbs, EEW Magazine Founder & Editor In Chief
experiencing a season of favor at Xist Worldwide, his rapidly growing urban Christian media and
entertainment empire. His name is Sean Simmonds and he and his longtime friend turned
business partner, T. Black, took a leap of faith and launched one of urban music’s fastest
growing companies.
Recently, Simmonds and Xist Music made headlines for signing two of Christian Hip Hop’s most
respected rappers, The Ambassador and Da’ T.R.U.T.H. (also featured on this year's 10 Men
Leading the Way list), who have burst back onto the scene with a holy vengeance after separate
sabbaticals.
These days, this husband and father of three has come a long way since leaving a six figure
secular deal on the table at 17, and opting instead to finish school. Now with all his Kingdom
success, Simmonds isn't resting on his laurels. Rather, he's in the studio cooking up his third
album, The Genesis, slated for a Spring 2012 release. He also hasn't forgotten his early days of
struggling through rejection and failure. His triumphant story is what lands the rising media
mogul on EEW's list.
So how did Simmonds and partner, T. Black, get their start?
"We started working in the capacity of management, you know, artist management type
relationships," he recounts. "And I started working on a little demo, doing little showcases here
and there. And the demo was growing. When I say growing, [I mean] as far as 4 songs became 6
songs. 6 songs became 8 songs. And we were trying to shop the demo and see if we could get
somebody to bite. But everybody that heard it wanted me to do [something different]. It was too
aggressive for them. All the labels were saying, no, it’s not something we can work. Can you do
something like this? And you know, it wasn’t really what we wanted to hear."
Although Simmonds wasn't hearing anything promising related to his music, he and his partner
didn't give up. In fact, remarkably, his friend T, then a bachelor who owned his own place, chose
to make a huge sacrifice and put his house up for sale to launch the business. Simmonds tells
EEW, "He said, 'Look man, I’ma sell my house,' and I’m like, what? He had equity in his house,
so he said, I’ma sell my house, get the equity back, and we’ll, you know, we’ll launch this label. I’
m like, nah, nah, nah. You’re not gone put that on my head!"
But T had already made up his mind. "The next day, it literally happened so fast," Simmonds
remembers. "Before I could even tell him no, he went and put his house up and he already got a
buyer. When he got the buyer for the house, he was basically dealing with a mortgage broker to
close the deal. But then there was a little hiccup in the deal. And the mortgage broker kept
asking, you know. Why are you rushing? Why are you trying to get this thing closed so fast? So
he just ended up telling him what he was trying to do. So the mortgage broker called him in and
said, okay, come meet with me. They had lunch and the mortgage broker said, okay, why don’t I
give you the money out of my pocket and when I close the house, I’ll take the money back that
you owe me? So the mortgage broker gave him the money and we started a label. And then, we
put the record out. And we realized, okay, the record’s finished. It’s out but we ain’t got no
money to promote it," Simmonds recalls laughing.
Incredibly, the mortgage broker cut T a check for $100,000 and Xist Music was born.
At the time, Simmonds had no idea of all the plans God had for his future beyond his personal
ministry. The Lord, who brings people together for seasons and reasons, knew the business
savvy artist would be instrumental in the advancement of the urban movement God is using to
establish His kingdom in these end times. When EEW Magazine asked Simmonds where he sees
himself in 5 to 10 years, he said, "We want to be that brand that people recognize for uplifting,
wholesome, great, positive, Christ-centered things. We just want to set that standard and
eventually become like gospel Def Jam where people hear Xist and know what to expect."
Thus far, we are all expecting great things, especially with the Indie label's impressive roster.
And with what Simmonds calls the "two-headed monster"--the merging of excellence in video
and music production, unquestionably, Xist Music is poised to make a Kingdom impact. "When
you put things together with a touch of quality, they are able to stand with everything else that’s
out there [in the mainstream], and I think that’s what was lacking in the past, which is why the
urban Christian movement didn’t get the attention it deserved. There was not a happy medium,
meaning message and quality. It was just one or the other, you know. And really, quality was the
element that was ignored, or that was compromised. So now you have these artists that are
coming out. You have the Lecraes and Reach Records and you have all these independents that
are coming out, but now they’re able to come out presenting music on a platform that stands
almost toe-to-toe with what’s out there mainstream wise, and you’re also bringing the message
along with it. So you’re appeasing to those who are desiring and needing a message, and you’re
appeasing to those that have the need for something they can use as an alternative to what
they’re accustomed to. So now it’s, it’s a win-win situation.
Indeed, it is. And this win-win in the urban movement is winning souls to the Kingdom of God.
For more information about Sean Simmonds visit him online at XistMusic.com. Twitter:
@SeanSimmonds
Article & Interview by Dianna Hobbs, EEW Magazine Founder & Editor In Chief
SPECIAL VIDEO PRESENTATION
EEW Magazine's Founder & Editor In Chief, Dianna
Hobbs shares her thoughts on the Christian Hip Hop
movement and EEW's 2011 "10 Men Leading the
Way" list. Watch below.
EEW Magazine's Founder & Editor In Chief, Dianna
Hobbs shares her thoughts on the Christian Hip Hop
movement and EEW's 2011 "10 Men Leading the
Way" list. Watch below.
SHARE:
Press Announcement:
OFFICIAL PARTNER:
SEAN SIMMONDS
CEO OF XIST MUSIC WORLDWIDE
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