Name: Shawn Maurice Mims

Born: March 22, 1981 in New York City, New York.

First memory: I was getting baptized at a church in Brooklyn -- I remember it was a bright day. I was probably under the age of three.

Biggest thrill as a child: Music. I started off DJ-ing at the age of 13. I would DJ in the midst of my own home -- friends would come upstairs to my apartment to listen to music. I was DJ Shawn.

Nickname as a child: Just Shawn. I have a one-syllable name, you can't do too much with it.

Did you sit at the back or front of the class? Depends on the class, but most of the time, teachers would sit me up in the front. I always used to get good grades, but for some reason, they always sat me in the front next to them, so I wouldn't get distracted.

First record bought: Snoop Dogg, Doggystyle -- I bought it with my own money. I was at a flea market, probably about eleven or twelve [years old], and I seen the cover of it and I remember it just looked like a cartoon, so me as a kid, I was attracted to the cover. I already knew who Snoop Doggy Dogg was, the cover just attracted me. I remember asking my mother if I could buy it because I knew it had curses and she said yeah.

First gig attended: [Jay-Z's] Hard Knock Life concert. I was in eleventh grade -- I started late. It came to Nassau Coliseum in Long Island and I went there. It inspired me. My first instinct was I want to be on that stage one day.

First date: Eleventh grade -- I was a late bloomer. Really and truly? I don't know. I just remember I had a car in high school and after school I would be able to go anywhere I wanted. Sometimes there would be track and field competitions and me and my homeboy and a couple people would hang out. That was the first time I ever even hung out with a girl.

Last book read: The Biggest Secret Ever. I believe it's non-fiction -- it's about the conspiracies of America -- it sounds weird. Like, the illuminati -- the secret society of the world. A friend of mine was reading the book and gave it to me because he thought I'd be interested in reading it.

Last movie seen: That was last night -- I was on a plane, I was watching Ben Stiller's Night at the Museum. It was alright, for a plane ride.

Favorite sandwich: It would have to be a chicken cutlet with American cheese, little bit of lettuce, ketchup and mayonnaise. Hot.

Favorite item of clothing: Sneakers. I wear sneakers that not too many people have. Right now I don't have too many pairs, I don't collect. I just buy 'em, and wear 'em. I have about 30 pairs. I have pairs that I plan on wearing, haven't wore yet, because they look too nice.

Do You Collect Anything? My collection as a kid was baseball cards. I still have a pretty big collection stored away in my house. I won't give my cards away, because I know how much money those cards become worth in the future. I don't want to be one of those people that says, "Man I used to have a good collection and now look how much these cards are worth."

Previous jobs: I used to work at the corporate office for 1-800-FLOWERS, in vendor relations. I worked for a hospital -- North Shore University on Long Island, in the billing department. And I also worked for Terminex -- I did termite inspection on homes. That lasted about four or five months.

Favorite time of day: I used to be a morning person, but because I'm on the road so much, any time I get to go to sleep.

Hanging on my bedroom wall: I have a shooting range target on my wall. I wouldn't say I'm trained, but I know how to handle a weapon. It started when I got Florida residency. In Florida the gun laws are a lot looser. I think it's a good hobby, to relieve stress.

Ideal vacation: Any given island, where there's a beautiful beach and a beautiful view of the ocean, a nice hotel room with a big bed, so that I can sleep and enjoy the sound of the ocean.

Hobbies: I love to engineer. I'm a hip-hop artist, but sometimes I just want to be behind the boards, mixing one of my own songs or recording another artist. That's the direction I came from -- at 15 I started off engineering and producing and then I started moving into the MC side.

Favorite Madonna record: Probably the original one -- Like A Virgin. That brings me back, to a special place.

What's something that surprises people about you? I was on the swimming team. I did every stroke, every last one. My favorite stroke was freestyle because it was the easiest, but my coach would always put me out there doing backstroke. I hated it, because I always got water up my nose.

Swear word you use too much: I try to stay away from curse words as much as I can. If they're not necessary, they're not necessary. If I'm angry and I want to express myself, I'll use it. I don't just say curse words on records just to say 'em. In traffic, I'm the type of person to pull up, roll my window down and flip someone off, before I scream at them.

If you could be any character from history: Albert Einstein. He was profound -- he was genius -- borderline psycho. I want to know what was in his head. He had a lot of good quotes -- "God is in the details."