After determining in my heart to honor Him with my gifts, I asked Him to open the door, praying a very specific prayer in faith. I asked Him to make a way for me to create my first professional sounding rap demo… some way… somehow. I reminded Him of my desire to dedicate this area of my life to His service. Then it happened. Just a short while after this specific prayer, I received a very specific response. I was at a party with friends when two guys from Canada began to jam in the backyard. I thought to myself, “This guy can really play the guitar. MAN!” He was good! That’s the day I met David “Lucas” Filer and his “buddy, eh?” ...bassist John Hoegg.
Damascus As Filer began to play, I started to freestyle my rhymes over the riffs. These guys were almost as dazzled as I was about what had transpired, and, as a result, they welcomed me to join them in creating a blues-style rap demo in Ontario. I was excited but somewhat skeptical at first because of how specifically these events parallelled my prayers. After burying my doubts, I agreed, and we began a new band. We named ourselves “Damascus” and began working on our first project, which took two years to complete. I was so impressed that Dave and John eagerly drove all the way from Ontario, CAN, to what they referred to as “The nutty PA,” just to pick me up!
I stayed with Dave and John for about a week while we recorded the demo. I could not have been more proud of what we were able to accomplish. After we finalized the project, I made my first copies of the demo using nothing more than stacks of write-able discs and a few sharpie markers. God had answered my prayers about the demo CD, and it was time to fulfill my end of the prayerful promise from those years prior. I had one goal: Use this new demo as a tool to evangelize.
Back then, for independent artists, sharing our music meant creating physical copies with a “CD burner” on a laptop or PC, which we delivered in-person to random people on the streets... or not at all. Therefore, “burning” CDs became a lifestyle for me for quite some time, and the music became a vital part of ministering the gospel to people. I had known many young people who would never step foot in a church, but they would listen to the gospel if it came in the form of music through their headphones. As I shared each album, I sensed God using me to plant seeds in people’s hearts.
From time to time, I could be found playing basketball at the local courts, showing off my hoop skills, and handing out CDs to everyone I knew. I kept sharing the gospel with as many as I could. Young people seemed to be inspired as they heard the love of God being expressed in a fresh, new, and creative way. It thrilled me that, for some folks, I was the very first Christian rapper they had ever heard. I kept making copies, and I was determined to continue making more music. It was only the beginning.
(The blog you've just read is actually an excerpt from JJ's new book which will be released shortly.)
Comments