Significance

My influences as a kid were ol' school hip hop groups like The Fatboys and Kid N Play. As I grew into adolescence, I grew a deep love for rap through 2pac, Outkast, R&B and later Eminem. Considering I did not grow up affiliated with any church, I was not exposed to the message of Christ.

After attending college, I developed a love for getting drunk and partying that eventually led to stages of depression, confusion and inadequacy. I lost all vision for my future but kept living like nothing was wrong on the inside. After experiencing tragedies where a few friends were involved in alcohol-related accidents, I began to look elsewhere for direction and guidance later turning to God for answers during my senior year in college.

At that time, I developed a friendship with someone who was a Christian...no, a real Christian. This person did not party like I did or have casual sex, but appeared very happy being single and even went to church as a preference instead of obligation--the thing that impressed me the most was "that peace" on the inside. I thought, "How do I get that?"

Long story short, I finally decided to check out that "church" thing where I felt and heard God speak to me for the first time. I fell in love with God, the Bible, and worshiping Him. Ever since then, I've tried leaving old habits behind in order to find a new purpose following Christ; helping others come to the same peace that I found in Christ.

Writing poetry became an everyday process because it helped me express and deal with the spiritual transition and inner conflict. I threw away my old music which hindered my spiritual growth and exclusively listened to Christian music. After listening to The Cross Movement albums, they inspired me to shair my faith through "spoken word" performances at student talent shows. I later learned how to rap I and fell in love with the art of sharing what God has done in my life through music.

Upon graduating college, I went to seminary in L.A. and returned to my campus as a campus missionary helping students grow in their relationship with Christ. Currently, I have returned to my home city working at a Christian-based alternative high school teaching World History and Personal Development while working on this music project to reach out to youth in the area.