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All last week, we were anticipating the episode of MTV’s spectacular docu-series, When I Was 17 featuring Swizz Beatz. After it aired yesterday, we now want to bring a portion of Swizz’s segment not only because it’s fascinating, but because it’s cool as well.

One of the reasons When I Was 17 works so well is because it deals with the micro, unlike shows like Vh1’s Behind The Music, which take a more macro approach to detailing the lives of artist. In the latest episode, which featured Swizz, details only die-hard fans would know were divulged and showed Swizz in a light many people probably aren’t used to seeing.

Before he became the super-producer he is today, the man who is now Alicia Keys‘ husband, hustled his way through high school by cutting hair, selling mixtapes, and DJ’ing parties. All of these stories are told with the aid of high school friends and family, which help round out who the real Swizz Beatz once was and how he came to be the man he is today.

Go to the next page to watch the brief, but informative, six-minute episode of Swizz Beatz life when he was 17.

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When I Was 17: Swizz Beatz