This is the start of a new series on chhinfo. The start of stories. Stories of how christian hip-hop has impacted and changed the lives of people. From people who were rotten, hopeless and depressed, to the people who seemed normal but had their issues. So, let's not waste time anymore, let's go on to our first story.
"I'm Damian Jacobs. A poet, blogger and rapper who loves God so much and rests in the knowledge that God loves him too. But you know, it wasn't always like this. I used to be very ashamed of who I was, who I had, whom I served. I used to be different from who I am today.
Music has always been a huge thing for me. I guess God put this music nerve inside me when he started the construction. Music has always been my thing and in fact, I learned to play the keyboard as a kid. I discovered hip-hop a few years later, but I never pictured hip-hop as anything like...what's the word...clean? Or maybe godly? But I grew to love the music of Lil' Wayne. I don't know, perhaps it was because I liked the feeling I would get after listening to one of his tracks. I also loved Drake and did a few Tupac.
I was this nerdy, stubborn, nothing really special about kid when I was little. Like I wasn't really notorious or anything like that. Although I was smart and stuff.
Things began to change one day. I think it was in my junior secondary school. I had just returned from school, and I went straight to the TV and then I saw a different kind of hip-hop music. You guys remember SwagTV? That was the start of the new me. SwagTV is this TV program where christian hip-hop is played and talked about by really cool TV hosts, and that day, I heard my first ever christian hip-hop song. It was Confessions by Lecrae. It blew my mind. The lyrics were so deep and it was stuff I could relate to. It made me think about my life and where I was headed. The next one was even stronger if I can use that word. Tell The World by Lecrae too. That song began to work on my inhibitions. Like, I was a christian yes, but I wouldn't say I was bold enough and stuff. In fact, one scripture made me a little bit concerned. That scripture were Jesus said if I was ashamed of him, he'll also be ashamed of me as well. And I was already a geek. I thought talking about Jesus wasn't really cool to anybody then.
After that, I began to check out the CHH genre, and I got introduced to artists like Trip Lee, Andy Mineo, KB, and I saw a couple of young guys who were proud of what people thought was not cool. And they were passing the message in the coolest way I could think of. Rap music. They presented the salvation message, and they made Jesus and christianity so cool. Next thing I knew, I had become unashamed. Like, who wouldn't want to be like their role models? And then I felt this peace and sweet relief.
So, I decided to start reaching out to others in the way I knew how. I could do poetry besides my rap, so I began to write poems. I began to do all I knew how to do so I could get this good news to the entire world. The good news that Jesus loves everyone and he wants to save everyone.
Apart from the first songs I heard from Lecrae, there are other songs I loved and that opened my eyes as well. There was Trip Lee's Sweet Victory, WHATUPRG's 4AM, but the one song that has had the most impact on my life is Background by Lecrae and Andy Mineo. I mean, that song gave me a new perspective of how my whole life should be. It should be God taking the leading role and I just take the background. Since then, my life has been great by the grace of God.
God has worked through christian hip-hop to totally change me life. Like, I can't imagine how my life would have turned out if I hadn't listened to that first CHH song by Lecrae. In fact, there are times I was almost going astray, almost losing my way, and then I'll remember one CHH song I heard or I'll hear one and I'll be like; "Gosh, what was I thinking." It has given me a new direction. I don't live for myself anymore. I just want to change lives now
And there's the unending joy that comes up inside me when I'm privileged to be able to do that. In fact, it's the basis of what I do. Why I rap and why I write my poems and my blog. I'm now interested in God's word and I'm joyful whenever I get to see what God says about me from the Bible."
Woaw... Glory be to God
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