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Jason Bell is the co-founder of Haiti Empire Record, Inc., a hip-hop company that has two CDs out

Hip-hopping to the top

By: George Rowand

Warrenton native Jason Bell is pursuing a musician's dream. Composer, arranger and performer, the classically trained musician is the co-founder of Haiti Empire Record, Inc., a hip-hop company that has two CDs out and available for purchase.

"We currently offer a gamut of professional services that include studio recording, post-production, mastering, songwriting, arranging, sheet music scribing services, jingles, voiceovers, commercials, CD duplication, demo packaging, audio and video sync, publishing, and professional industry representation for demo submission to major labels," Bell explained.

Hometown

The name of the company tells something about the man.

"I grew up in Haiti [Street] in Warrenton, and I'm proud of that fact," the soft-spoken Bell stated. "It has a lot of negative stereotypes, but it was the place where I grew up, it was the place where I had fun. It had all the attributes of 'it takes a village to raise a child.' If you were acting up at the basketball court, any parent there had the authority to spank you and send you home, and then you'd get spanked again when you got home. I grew up knowing where the authority was.

"I had three brothers, one sister, a mom and a dad in the home," Bell continued, "but my father passed when I was 5, and my mother struggled to keep us all going. And when she saw how much I liked music, she found a way to buy me a piano, which I started playing when I was 7."

Music for the public

Bell said that he started Haiti Empire Records to take advantage of what he had learned in the music business as well as the talent in the area.

"We have over 15 years of experience," he said. "I've ridden the roller coaster. I've been to New York, California, D.C. ... everywhere. We are totally self-sufficient. We can produce, record and distribute from our base. I'm a throwback guy. I still practice every day, and I can write music. When I came up, we had to read sheet music, and my teachers were very hard on us.

"We have a group of musicians who are classically trained," he continued. "We have a great group of artists. There's an R and B vocal group, a jazz group ... I have some songs that sound like Beethoven wrote them, and they use a full orchestra. We just need that break. We just want to let the public know what we have."

Art may be art, but business is business. Bell has worked in finance and information technology for AT&T, MCI Worldcom, Verizon, Columbia Energy Group, and L-3 Communications.

"I like to think that I was getting ready to merge my musical talents with my financial abilities," Bell stated. "We have t-shirts, hats ... a lot of products. Everywhere I go, I'm marketing.

"Our distribution concept is unique because it involves giving back to the community," Bell continued. "Once we become famous, we want to distribute our products through mom-and-pop stores, locally owned retailers."

The company was founded with Richard Thompson, who was killed in 2005. Haiti Empire Records, Inc. currently has out two CDs, "Haiti Bible, Da Untold Truth," and "Da Mafia Story."

"This one [Da Mafia Story] could take us to platinum [representing one million sales]," Bell said. "Right now, no-one knows we exist, but when they do, we will be successful."

Bell said that the company and its groups will be performing in Manassas for the next year.

"We will have our first show at Total Sports in Manassas on Sept. 30," he explained. "We're the first company to use that facility for a concert, and we have it booked for the whole year. If it goes well, we'll follow it up with a show every week after that. My goal is to have concerts from Baltimore to Virginia Beach."

Most recording artists struggle for years, paying their dues and learning their art. Bell said that - while there may be more opportunities in Los Angeles, New York or someplace else, he wants to start his business career here, where he grew up.

"We want to stay here," he explained. "We want to show our connections to our roots here in Warrenton. This is home. This is one of the most beautiful places on the planet. I always felt this was a close-knit town. I can walk down Main Street and speak to everyone, and everyone speaks to me."

Haiti Empire Records, Inc. can be reached at (540) 219-6593.

The Web site is http://www.haitiempire.com/index.cfm, and the company receives e-mails at info@haitiempire.com .