B Plus is a kindred spirit.

Much like yours truly, how he came to Holy Culture felt like a true act of God- chess pieces falling into place at just the right time.

A basketball player, turn financial analyst, and accidental DJ and Host of his show- B Plus carved himself a little corner on YouTube as a pet project- only to discover his reach was going further than he thought. 

Passionate about his favorite music, he lets his technical creativity flow in a show that stands apart from the rest. 

His origin story is the perfect example of the unpredictable and serendipitous nature of the journeys that make up the fabric of Holy Culture.

A Blessed Home

B Plus came from a blessed home of loving parents fully submerged in Kingdom work. 

His mother was the superintendent of Sunday school, and his father was a deacon, which meant his family members were the first ones to arrive and the last to leave. 

He jokingly recalls Friday nights when the family would pre-game for church, going over the lesson plans, everything else being put on hold. 

But his older brother Vernard, would have the most influence on B Plus; a creative mind, an artist and producer himself, he introduced B Plus to Christian Hip Hop (CHH) in the mid-90s.

As a pair, the two became co-DJs at a skating rink in Cincinnati, OH called the Fun Factory. When pressed to find a name, the budding DJ thought quickly on his feet: 

“There’s a saying in sports ‘He brought his A game or commentators say so-n-so needs to bring his A game. In my head, this was my self motivation, no matter how well I played, I would always tell myself it was only a B+… meaning I could always play better. 

It had nothing to do with my name. When I started deejaying at a skating rink, I had to come up with a name for a flyer and I just picked it, lol and it stuck.”

YouTube

Being deeply involved in CHH, B Plus became knowledgeable about the genre. He explored the works of the founding fathers and contemporary artists alike, listening to a wide range of holy hip-hop and gospel r&b.

He was known for starting discussions with his friends over text about the latest album releases, but it was in 2015 that he took a chance and shifted his discussions from text to the realm of videos. With a knack for all things digital and his older brother’s help, B Plus launched his own YouTube channel. 

Initially, when he shared his videos with friends, the responses came through text messages. But as time passed, he began to receive comments and engagement from people beyond his immediate circle within the platform. This external validation was a testament to his effort in his work up to that point.

Consistently producing album reviews, B Plus found inspiration and established a familiar rhythm for his videos; this included highlighting his favorite 5 bars, four beats, three tracks, two features, and a recap.

In 2020, B Plus entered the world of social media, something he hadn’t attempted at this point- and he began with X, formally known as Twitter. He followed all the people he listened to, Trackstarz, TheCruise Hip Hop Corner, David Lirick, and others, and began to emulate their success. 

With his big brother by his side, he slowly built his show’s repertoire and, unbeknownst to him, began getting attention behind the scenes.

Mic Drop

2021 is where things get interesting- and it’s a story B Plus happily shares. 

“So I’m doing the same ole same ole, and I start hearing this talk about the Mic Drop Documentary. And I’m like that sounds cool. And turns out they are having a premier in Dallas and I live in the DFW area. So I was like it’s here in town, I might as well go. 

I know we are just coming off the heels of COVID. And I was COVID free at the time. 

And I said ‘I think I’m gonna go to this.’

That was the turning point, the Mic Drop event. I met Justin Sarachik from Rapzilla and Trig (James Rosseau, CEO of Holy Culture) on the same day.

So Justin doesn’t know anyone there, and we literally sit in the balcony together, off in the cut by ourselves watching the documentary, watching the show, and the performers.

And I told Justin, ‘I wanna ask a question,’ and he was like ‘go ahead bro, ask your question.’

So they had a microphone and I gave Justin my phone and I said ‘here, record me.’ I went down and I asked the question, something to the effect of: how do we bridge the gap between those who founded Christian Hip Hop to those nowadays?

The guy on stage was like, ‘that’s a lot to unpack. Trig, are you here?’ And you hear Trig say, ‘yeah I’m here.’ And he was like ‘after the show, go talk to him (Trig). We were out to dinner last night and we were talking about that very thing, so after the show, go talk to him.’

And in my head I was like: yeah I know who Trig is. That’s Holy Culture. Oh snap, he is here. And I just got introduced to go talk to him. I was like this is good. 

So after it’s over, I go over and see him over there. And I’m like oh snap that’s Trig. 

And introduce myself, maybe he remembers it differently, but this is how I remember it. 

I walked up to him, and introduced myself and he recognized me from doing my album reviews.

In my head he was like ‘I know you’ or ‘I remember you.’ And I’m like ‘me?’ At the time I had about 100 some subscribers and I was like ‘you do?’ And he was like ‘I’ve seen you around doing album reviews.’

The pair hit it off and B Plus found himself among names he had heard on the radio since he was a kid, counting his lucky stars at the turn of events and completely ignorant of what God had in store for him. 

Sirius XM

January 2022 was when the rubber met the road. 

Holy Culture signed a deal with SiriusXM and B plus was invited to be a collaborator. There wasn’t hesitation or a pause, just a resounding “of course,” from the young DJ. 

He recalls hopping on the call for all the talent before the big launch and being surrounded by CHH legends DJ I Rock Jesus, DJ Wade-o and others. A surreal and wonderful moment that was only surpassed by what happened next.

“He (Trig) is talking like all of us have a show. And I’m just sitting there like: I don’t even know how to put on a show. Or formulate a show, I’m just happy to be on the zoom call, like this is amazing.”

At the risk of getting his hopes up, B Plus texts Trig for clarification, “so you’re saying…I have a show?” To which he gets a reply, “yeah, I think you can do it.”

Trig had seen something in B Plus, he didn’t see in himself. 

“I had seen a few of B-Plus’ videos,” Trig says. “What came across to me was a person who was a connoisseur of Christian Hip-Hop with an honest desire to serve through curation, constructive critique and recommendations to would-be listeners.

Upon meeting him at the Mic Drop premiere in Dallas, TX, everything I perceived was validated.  He was both genuinely a fan and willing to serve.  As things matured with our relationship with SiriusXM and it was clear we would launch the channel, his gifts, and show made sense as I looked at the current and developing roster.”

The super fan turned YouTuber had unknowingly become a voice of authority in CHH, and now he would have an opportunity to share his passions with listeners worldwide.

The Show

With a lack of formal experience with putting on and hosting a show, B Plus had to make the creative process work for him. Besides music and radio, one of his other passions is sports radio, which he leaned to for inspiration.

His show, The Be Positive Music Show (based on Philippians 4:8) was featured Saturday evenings and was broken up into quarters, 15 minutes each. With a segment for new music, often a thematic line-up and a halftime pep talk. Halfway through the show, he pauses and talks about current events in CHH, or whatever God has laid in his heart to speak on. 

The most impactful part of his show has been a gem he brought on from his early days on Twitter, his 40 days of Prayer. 

Back in 2021, CHH was in the grips of drama, as it does from time to time. As he was cutting grass, B Plus was contemplating the reactions people were having to the conversation at hand, and a thought came to mind:

“How come prayer doesn’t go viral? When something goes wrong, we don’t automatically go to prayer. And I thought: someone should do something about that. 

That day a song by  Maverick City was playing called “Keep Praying.” And there is a line that goes ‘every prayer today, is a seed for tomorrow.’

And I thought, ‘someone should do something about it, why not me?”

That day, 40 days of prayer was born.

B Plus created a calendar where his followers would pray for CHH: DJs, outlets, and artists were all included. He would Tweet the person’s pic each day, and he and his followers would pray. 

The prayers were received, healing took place, and a wonderful tradition began- fans, artists, and everyone in between interceding for each other as it was always meant to be. 

The Future

Chatting with B Plus is a joy that only comes when a fan gets to be around the music he loves. The likelihood that a financial analyst and amateur DJ would find himself as part of the Holy Culture family is not lost on B Plus; and the awe at favor bestowed on him is palpable. 

But life is busy for the YouTuber, with a full time job and raising a young family, his hands are full, but he hopes to get back to what he does best: album reviews.

“I hope to do more album reviews this year,” he says “and interview. I like to think of them as discussions, instead of interviews. I’m not Justin Sirichik, he is an amazing journalist. But I would like to do more of that.”

Regardless of what 2024 holds for the B Positive Saturday show, listeners are bound to get a thoughtfully curated list of songs that speak to the heart of what it means to be a music lover. Whether through reviews or engaging discussions, he invites fans to be filled with hope in Christ and to grow in the understanding that God can use any art form for His glory.