Sho, take this time to introduce yourself to our readers and share how you were led into using Hip-Hop as apart of your ministry.
I grew up in what we would call the Hip Hop culture. I loved the music, the dress, the lingo, everything about it. If they told me to dress a certain way, I dressed that way. If they told me to smoke a certain weed, then I smoked that type of weed. It was lord of my life. I had a group in high school that was pretty serious and we began to connect with high profile industry people. When that all fell through I decided to go to college. Then I went to school in Alabama and that’s when things began to change. My brother, who became a Christian some years before, would call and share with me. At the same time, I meet these guys from this college ministry on campus, so GOD began to work in my heart. Once I made the decision to give him my heart, all my affections had to go with it and that meant hip-hop. Now I did not immediately begin rapping because I wanted to have something to say. So, I began to grow in my relationship with GOD and my brother and sisters, then I began to promote the same GOD I used to shame on the campus of Tuskegee.
How did you end up being signed to Reach Records?
Well, we all (excluding Trip) were friends before Reach Records. We became close through our college ministry Plumbline. We would do shows and concerts around the local area but nothing to serious. From there Lecrae decided to take the music stuff seriously and I decided to focus on film and school. Fast Forward four years later I decide that maybe I should drop a cd.
Reach Records is involved in quite a bit of outreach ministries. Share with us the things Reach Life Ministries are involved in and what has been your role in them.
We have a heavy dosage of curriculum coming within the next year or so….pretty soon the 13 Letters series will be released. Next year we will have a manhood curriculum. So, we are all about providing churches and organizations resources to help build individuals and churches. The biggest role I am playing right now is the editing and directing of the video curriculum.
There are many things pulling young people away from God. What do you as the greatest influence on young people today, drawing them away from God?
Well I don’t ever think there was a time or will be a time when young people will gravitate to God or righteousness. However, I think the biggest issue is Significance and Identity. Youngsters want to feel something. Whether that’s love, respect or fear, they struggle with finding these things in the wrong places. GOD desires relationship with his creation, and until they understand that their significance is in him then they will continue to get pulled away by anything appealing.
If you do not mind, share with us your testimony on how you were led to God.
All my life I had a hunger to know God. I think the major dilemma with me was, identifying with him on a personal level. I was never one to be coy with talks of the divine. Mainly because I believed I had all the correct answers, without having the lest bit off bible knowledge. I remember for Halloween, dressing up as a minister going door to door with my bible in hand. There were times in grade school when people referred to me as reverend. I say all this to show that there was an unhealthy comfort that was beginning to culminate in my spiritual life. This cogitation became consistent for me. Although my life in that current state was sending me to a eternity without God, I began to experiment more with earthly pleasures. The potency of social drugs and nightlife showed it's preeminence in my daily activities. After having no grip of my spiritual life, I was now losing grip of my moral person. I began to behave in ways that were not like the "The Mee "(childhood nickname) that my parents raised. My grades were uncharacteristic of my mental capabilities. Hopes of playing college football were moribund. The last option for life after high school was to pray my way into college with poor grades. He gave me what I asked for! God set me up! Tuskegee University was the only school I applied to. I went there to escape the accountability of family. Especially my older brother Dhati, who had came to know and serve the LORD once he left California. At Tuskegee, I became strongly involved in a relationship that was not in the least bit Godly. The constant demands of her, school and remaining the cool cat from Cali, began to weigh too heavy on me. I began to drown in disappointment and wanted rescuing but I did not know how to go about it. So, one day during my sophomore year I meet a guy name Byron Johnson who was the Directional leader of a ministry called Campus Outreach. He gave an invite to the students at a bible study to go to an event called Impact. I had recollections of my brother speaking of this conference with high regard. I approached this man instantly after the meeting and emphasized my desire to go. There was only one problem. I did not have 200 dollars to cover the fees. With no idea who I was this man gave me a two hundred dollar scholarship to take care of all the fees to attend the conference. At the conference, I hooked up with my brother and his click of friends, "gotta move baby.” I saw men and woman worshiping together, brothers loving brothers, sisters loving sisters, and everybody loving the LORD. I saw a group of young adults handing God all their cares and burdens. I realized that moment I never had a personal relationship with Jehovah. I faked my way through life. The rescue that saves men from drowning themselves was revealed to me. And that was the true sincere surrendering of my life over to the LORD. No more saying I understand Jesus Died for my sins and not being accountable for it. I wanted a life change. I wanted to be like those cats at the conference that did not have to fake for respect. I wanted to be like my brother and his friends, who were excited about the love and service of God. But, I knew that some things would be hard. How will I handle the girl that I live with? How will I handle the boys that I hit the block with? Do I really want to have to explain to people why "I don't do that anymore"? All I knew is I wanted to represent him in all I did. So I decided that week that I would trust and surrender my life unto him. I went back to school and broke up with the girl I was living with. Then I moved back into the dorm with some guys from the ministry on campus. My desire since has been to know him and make him known. I will say that God has not promised me a perfect painless existence, but he has promised me a perfect and painless eternity. For a sinner like me, it is an eternity more than I deserve. We all earned death, but Christ offers us life from here unto the next.
Your album, Turn My Life Up, is dropping soon. What was the thought process of having that as the title?
I want Christians to live in the abundance that Christ called us to live in. We are a walking promotion of heaven on earth. Some of us live at a five …some at a seven…but we should live at a ten. Now his love for us will not change but this should be our desire because of the sacrifice that was given unto us. So, I pray we stop low living and Turn our Lives Up.
Be on the lookout for Sho Baraka’s debut album, Turn My Life Up, to be released November 20, 2007 on Reach Records. |
