The art and skill of blending faith with hip hop music has been a part of the rap genre since the days of the Sugar Hill Gang. Over the years, the hip hop genre has been peppered with groups like DC Talk, and PID (Preachers in Disguise). These days even secular artists like Kanye West add a religious message to their music (Jesus Walk).
Granted, there have been many arguments made against putting religion in hip hop music. Everything has been said from that’s not real hip hop to the music sounds too worldly for the believer.
Like all poetry, hip hop comes from the heart. Christian rap is no different. At the center of the music is the message and the purpose of the artist is to get that message out. Over a series of weeks, I corresponded with a Christian hip hop artist who goes by the name of BBC B-Boy for Christ. Here is some of what he had to say about himself and his music.
How did you come up with name BBC B-Boy for Christ?
I have always been into hip hop. Since I was 7. I loved the whole culture, the graffiti, djing, breaking and of course rapping. It means break boy because of break dancing but it expanded into all things hip hop. That’s b-boying. I’m gonna always be a b-boy, but now when I do it, its to glorify Jesus. B-boys were rebels so was Jesus. In a sense, being a Christian is pretty rebellious.
Your music has an old school sound to it that real hip hop heads can appreciate, but your message in your music has a biblical basis. Some would still argue that you can't mix a secular sound with the gospel. How do you respond to that?
I think when you go the Kirk Franklin route, using old secular songs as gospel songs, like Stomp, is when it gets cloudy. People use to get high to George Clinton. So when Stomp first came out we're all like hey that’s One Nation Under A Groove! There is a certain spirit there. Your singing gospel over a song people use to or still get high too. Just like when Christian rappers do a mixtape and rap over a Kanye or Lil Wayne beat. If you go perform it and the people in the crowd only hear the Lil Wayne song and not the message that your trying to give out. So to me when you mix secular and God in that sense, it gets cloudy. But as far as rapping the gospel, its a form of ministry. Just like praise dancing, spoken word preaching, its all ministry. We're not ministers by any means, but this is ministry and this is our way of doing it. We just want to bring Christ to the forefront.
When people hear your music what is the main thing you want them to take from it?
Christ. See Christ and want to know more about him. I want people to not be afraid to love him and show him PDA. People will defend the lyrics and actions of their favorite rapper and question if God is real or if the bible is a true story. Jesus is real, he's coming back, deal with it and get right or get left behind.
Who do you listen to when you are not recording your own music?
I love the Red Ink Army. Yaves the Street Pastor, Bizzle, Mouthpiece, there’s so many. I still listen to old R&B like Stevie Wonder and Frankie Beverly. But mainly its other Christian mc's and I also listen to CD's of my Bishop's messages from random services.
You listen to "Champion" a song by BBC by clicking this link.
Follow B Boy for Christ on Facebook. Also check out more of his music and fan him on Reverbnation:
BBoy 4 Christ
