Blog posts
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Jun 12 2008, 04:03 AM"I Never Knew" . (Part 3)In my initial days as a Christian the greatest stumbling block for me receiving good Gospel messages was because I had no money to afford any music. I met a Gospel MC who gave me a CD for free , not only was I blessed by his kindness but the message in the songs encouraged me to seek Jesus constantly. Free music has removed a financial block that stops the poor from being blessed (Jesus did say we have to think of the poor) , It allows those who are rich to be able to donate what the lord puts on their heart to give to allow the ministry to continue. The funding is very low cost and I see it as an offering onto the lord. I wasted so much money on earthly investments so now under Christ it just seems logical to invest lives into eternity.
In April 2007 I released my first Gospel CD on my website as a free download, allowing people from all over the world to hear the Gospel. The project received over 6000 downloads and 200 Cd's in circulation over an 8 month period. I was also given the task to lead our Church's outreach team (Light of London Outreach), being given this role has really helped me grow in faith as a Christian as I daily see people's lives changed by the Gospel.
After all that has happened in my life, I have come to realise that change in this world has to come from the man in the mirror first, But man cant change alone, we need someone to help us change. Jesus is changing me daily and I want to share this freedom through my music and life.My decision to remain an Independant artist may leave me looking small and insignificant in the societys eyes, some dont see the purpose and they say it isnt worth it, I may never be on mainstream TV or Radio but God chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful. God chose things despised by the world, As a result, no one can ever boast in the presence of God.
I'm looking forward to releasing my next EP called "Sunrise" and I am hoping to build on the foundation of the last project. I hope you have been blessed by my story,Please pray for this ministry that God will give wisdom and guidance, I would love to hear any feedback about this article, until next time, I leave you with a quote from a rapper who has inspired me greatly
"I opened up to share my life, so you could see we all need Christ, If you can understand my pain, maybe you can see we all need change, gave you my life, my pain, my hurt, man I hope this work and since Christ died for sin I'll never be the same again...i did it for you.." Lecrae
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Jun 12 2008, 04:02 AM"I Never Knew" . (Part 2)Before, I would attempt to change the world with money that I would earn from my pursuits. I ended up focusing more on making the money and changing the world became something I would work towards in the future. Truth be told, all my plans did not work out. I had invested money into a DJ firm, professional studio album, and finally got messed around by a hand full of independent record labels. It was clear the lord had put a stumbling block in all my plans. Why? I believe its because he wanted to show me another way.
My eyes were opened to the fact that people were dying in a corrupt world but they could not be saved by money. Money solved half of the problems but people were in need of something more. They needed to know about the eternal treasure in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. I was and am fully convinced the lord had signed me up to the greatest deal ever. "Spreading the word through rhyme till the end of time", He called me to fulfill the Great Commission.
I had been contemplating how to get back into music for the lord but did not want to do it the way I had always done it. In the past I followed the worlds patterns of promoting music, this included false hype, focusing time and energy on CD sales and all sorts. If I was going to get back into this, it was not going to be about my fame, or Compromise but It was going to be about spreading the fame of the one true God. It was going to be about me being explicit about Gods promises and not being ashamed of the Gospel.
So after much prayer and consideration, I made the decision to get back into rapping, I met an upcoming producer (Unixplore Productions) who helped me get my own studio set up, I also met old studio acquaintances who gave me free mic cables and quality microphones. It seemed to me that the blessings came my way once I decided to use the music for Gods glory.
In May 2006 I featured on a collaboration mix tape with an army of Christians on fire and ready to spread the word. The mix tape was called "Good bye world" and the collective was called Rhema. The aim was to give out the Cd for free for all to have an opportunity to hear the Gospel. Some people donated four times more than what the CD cost to make, others donated just enough, others took the Cd for free. Soon the seeds became fruits, people spoke of how the words helped and encouraged them to seek God. -
Jun 12 2008, 04:02 AM"I Never Knew" . (Part 1)When I made a decision to seek a record deal in 1999, the plan was to get as much fame as possible. I didn't really know what would happen once I achieved that goal. After getting my first song on national Radio , performing at school and talent shows. I had a desire to use the music to spread a positive message as I was really dissatisfied with the mainstream rap message that was mostly negative.
The plan was to use the music to make money and help with debt in the developing world. This was a need I noticed in the world, I wanted to make a big difference and was convinced that doing things on a big scale was the way forward. While shopping my first CD for a record deal, I met an "AR rep" that liked my style but there was one problem. My lyrics need more violence. Naturally I didn't like his suggestion. I became frustrated with an industry that would exalt people who compromised to sell records.
During this time I had become a follower of Jesus and in reading the Bible found that the scriptures were what the world needed to hear. The only thing was I wasn't sure that people would listen to my music anymore as I would be talking about Jesus. I was too ashamed to openly proclaim my faith. I decided I would spread Christ's teachings to the world without using the "J Word" ,then once at the top I would start speaking about Christ openly.
I remember going into an open mic in Brixton in 2005 and doing a short rap. The people appreciated what I was saying the only thing was that they gave me the praise and never really knew that it was Christ that I was trying to point them to but how would they know?, I was an undercover Christian. After spending a long time on the fence I decided to jump, this jump meant that I would give up my dream to be famous and powerful, this jump meant I had to live what I preached. I was never forced to do this, I just knew in my heart that I couldn't live a double life anymore. I let go of what the world was offering me. I got baptised in Aug 2005 and died to the dream of having a record deal and changing the world single handedly. My eyes were then opened to see what I could not see before.
