Kingdom First

The New York DJ, curator, A & R, and Hip Hop enthusiast says wearing so many hats in the music industry requires a level of mindfulness as a Christian.  Meaning, “I can love Hip Hop but first and foremost I’m a follower of Christ.  [thinking about the audience] I’m trying to balance being cool, being lit, and really hunkering down with the culture but navigating it in a way where it doesn’t make the testimony of Christians look like ‘Are you in or are you out?’  Nah I’m in,” explains Mykael V.

So, who is actually listening to Christian Hip Hop?  Who are the people who make up the genre’s audience?  How has it evolved over time?  Did CHH follow the same path as Hip Hop?  Meaning, in its early years, it had a depth of sound that resonated physically.  It spoke to a particular struggle, became a voice for young folks to explore and express themselves emotionally and spiritually, and empowered a generation. 

Over time as it “gained” crossover appeal and mainstream popularity, the deep waters were now shallow puddles where culture suffocated.  Hip Hop lost its soul while giving birth to the “fan”.  This brings us back to square one.  Who is listening to CHH?  Are they CHH fans?  Are they Hip Hop fans?

“With CHH fans a lot of them grew up homeschooled or raised a certain way to listen to people like Lecrae, KB, Trip Lee, and Tedashii and it’s not a bad thing.  But their introduction to Hip Hop was through them.  And there’s no context of what came before or what’s coming or what happened even during when Lecrae and them were first coming out,” the Bodega Boy says. 

The distinguishing factor between the two is how the “fan” was introduced to the culture.  “The entry point that someone has into something will influence their appreciation, their knowledge of, and their relationship to it,” Marcus elaborates. 

Side note: Some of us aren’t fans at all.  We are family.  We are the community.  And we are contributors to the culture. 

New York East Coast Hip Hop

Back to the Bodega.  Mykeal V says he and 95 wanted the album, “to encapsulate the east coast experience, how we grew up and allow people to feel welcomed into it.  For people who are from the east coast, we wanted it to feel like an embracing hug and an affirmation for people who are from where we’re from.  And we also wanted it to feel like a door opened and welcome mat for people who are not from that necessarily.”

It was also important to the Hip Hop connoisseur to remain authentic to himself and his love of boom bap on his new project.  “I want to lean into this because I love this sound.  I would love to contribute to the existing narrative of what boom bap is and what New York and east coast rap is.  I don’t that boom bap will ever go out of style,” declares the New York DJ.    

It wasn’t easy.  Taking a leap of faith comes with high risk says Mykael.  “Being innovative hurts.  Because either it hits and hits hard!  Or it doesn’t hit at all because people just don’t understand it.  Sometimes it gets lost in the fold.” 

Game recognizes game.  One of the things Marcus learned from his mentor was to be skeptical of a high success rate in innovation.  After chewing on it for a minute he understood, “If you’re truly innovating then there’s going to be some failure because that’s a part of it.  Failing and learning.”

You can catch The 116 Life every Tuesday at 8 pm est. on Holy Culture Radio Sirius XM Channel 154.  The video version drops the next day on Wednesday at 8 pm est. on our Holy Culture YouTube Channel.  Remember to hit subscribe bell to stay tapped in.  And hit us up on Facebook, Instagram, Tik Tok, and Twitter and join the conversation.