INDEPENDANT MAGAZINE INTERVIEWS BALIVA
Written by Sue Bryant
Whilst many of today’s bestselling hip hop artists have expressed religious beliefs or made religious themed tracks e.g Jay-Z “Kingdom Come” and Kanye West “Jesus Walks” they are not considered to be Christian rappers as they have not adopted the philosophy of Christianity in its entirety.
In 1985 the first commercially distributed Christian rap album was released. “Bible Break” by Stephen Wiley, a youth minister in Oklahoma, paved the way for other artists such as S.F.C (Soldiers for Christ), P.I.D (Preachers in Disguise) and T-Bone. As mainstream rap became more popular throughout the 1990s so Christian expanded too with artists like D.O.C (Disciples of Christ) and Gospel Gangstaz gaining popularity and the first Gospel rap DJs and record labels appearing.
From 2000 onwards successful gospel singers started to acknowledge the popularity of Gospel Rap and started collaborating with Gospel rappers, the most notable collaboration being Kirk Franklin’s album with 1 nation Crew “Kirk Franklin Presents INC”
Fans of Eminem will know Christian rapper KJ-52 as in 2002 he wrote a track as an open letter to Eminem called “Dear Slim” as a response to “Stan”. In the track KJ-52 appealed to Eminem to turn to Christianity and whilst KJ-52 maintains it wasn’t a diss track it achieved notoriety on MTV and other channels at the time.
The most commercially successful Christian rapper at the moment is Lecrae shoe albums frequently top the Billboard Gospel chart and whose single “Far away” reached number 32 on the iTunes hiphop chart, the highest position by any Christian rapper.
In 2010 (the last full year for which data is available) Christian/Gospel music as a whole out should both Latin and Jazz with sales of physical albums reaching 24.2 million and digital sales increasing by 28.3 %. The Christian Rap/Gospel music industry is clearly a lucrative one and Christian Rap is estimated to make up 25% of the total sales.
With a little more insight into the genre I asked 3 unsigned Christian rappers about their music and their beliefs. Baliva is originally from Zimbabwe but now lives in London, Anthony is from South Carolina and Calik Stillsik is from Detroit
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Baliva’s Interview is below but you can also read the full magazine issue here
Sue : How did you get into making music?
Baliva: My friends and I spent a lot of time reciting raps from our favourite artists during school breaks. This led to us writing our own lyrics and eventually we recorded our first cassette mix tape in 1999. We recorded our first single that received airplay on Zimbabwe’s national radio station which motivated me to pursue more opportunities to make music. Two years later I was living in London and was introduced to the Islington Community Music project where I was able to use a professional studio at an affordable cost to record my first demo.
Sue : Did you start out making gospel rap or did it evolve ?
Baliva: I have always written songs about what I felt passionate about. When I started out I wrote a lot about love and relationships. As I got older I wrote more about social justice issues, and when I became a Christian I began to write more about my experience as a Christian. My new music will hopefully be a combination of all three.
Sue : Do you think you deter potential fans by being so open about your religious views ?
Baliva: Yes, I think there are people who are not interested in hearing songs about God and would not be interested in what I have to say. Equally I truly believe there are people out there who are hungry to hear music that causes us to reflect on our life and eternal destiny so I write for them.
Sue : How do you feel about the excessive bad language and sexual imagery used in a lot of rap/hiphop these days ?
Baliva: Artists have a great privilege and responsibility to make music that affects our culture and future generations. I think artists that make music glorifying immorality are selfish as they desensitise current and future generations to these things. Rap/hiphop was not always this way and it would be good to see this turned around again.
Sue : Who or what inspires your lyrics ?
Baliva: I’m inspired by lots of things - people, life experiences, conversations with friends and things I read in the Bible.
Sue : What is the main message behind your lyrics ?
Baliva: That’s a hard one. Each song has a message of its own, but they are all connected in the sense that I would like people to pause and reflect on their lives and their perceptions of the world.
Sue : If a label wanted to sign you but wanted you to drop the Christian image/lyrics how would you react?
Baliva: The idea of being signed is quite exciting as it would mean that my work would be recognised to a greater extent. However, I would have to turn down the offer because I would not like a deal that restricts me creatively. When I started out, getting a record deal was the only way to get heard but thanks to the growth of the internet, it is now possible to start an independent label with a small team and get an audience to hear our message.
Sue : Why do you think it is so hard for gospel rappers to become commercially successful?
Baliva: I think it’s difficult because the gatekeepers are generally not interested in religion, so they do not push it as much. I also think this is a problem because I have found that Christian music is more commercial in places like Africa and some Asian countries than in Western countries. Another reason is that Christian rappers are less likely to compromise for the sake of money. We are driven to make good music that promotes the gospel message. If it goes commercial that is great, if not thats ok, its all about faithfulness to the craft.
Sue : What projects are you currently working on?
Baliva: I am working on a brand new album that will be released on my newly formed label. What does 2012 hold for you? I have a few new songs that will be released in the summer. I am also an avid writer and will be writing articles on Christian living for a few Christian publications.
Sue : What advice would you give to up and coming gospel rappers?
Make sure Jesus is your constant treasure, do a regular motive check because there is a lot of temptation to do this music purely for money, power and fame. Always remember we are a team working together to bring glory to God. I will be writing more articles and posting guest articles on my website to help other gospel artists who are looking to learn more about music ministry.
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Do check out the full magazine issue here
