Initially formed as a 4 piece at Ft. Hood army base by drummer Rich Burgos the band soon evolved with members shipping out to other locations. Singer, Jason "String" Atwood joined the band after a chance meeting with Burgos at a tattoo shop owned by String. After a short time the band's DJ Akira MC found himself in the fold and the band was completed with Jason Quintero on bass and Spanish and G. Dell, lead and rhythm guitarists respectively climbed aboard. "Downsiid's early years had hardcore roots until String's writing and voice developed a new sound that consisted of hard rock with soulful vocals," related drummer, Rich. "As the band matured over the years, strong musical and big singing hooks became a huge part of our sound. Today the commercial side of Downsiid has surfaced and hooks, musicianship and creativeness are the number one priority in the writing process."
Putting themselves through a relentless touring schedule, playing events at Ft. Hood, Battle of the Bands contests, talent shows and really, any hole in the wall club that would have them. The band were a fine tuned unit by the time they entered the studio to track their debut album, 'Karma: The Rebirth'. The band was just finding itself and moving towards branching out through the rest of Texas and they started exploring label opportunities and radio airplay. Songs 'Simple Man" and 'I' were being played all over Texas and the latter all over the country - even topping R&R magazine's chart. Released in 2001, 'Karma' went onto sell a few thousand copies, all burned on computer and hand labeled.