When he was a teenager, gospel deejay/singer Minister Blessed would often get into fights due to his temper. After accepting Christ as his saviour, his life changed.

“I got baptised at the age of 10 but didn’t take Christianity seriously. I had a bad temper and was always getting into fights, not to mention following the wrong crowd due to peer pressure. My true rebirth came in 1999, at age 14, during an ISCF [Inter-School Christian Fellowship] prayer meeting which I can only describe as an ‘upper room’ experience, as the Holy Spirit filled me, among others. It was then that I rededicated my life to Christ and soon after began writing songs inspired by Him,” shared the artiste.

He said he has got stronger along the journey.

“For 20-odd years since I have kept the faith and not looked back. There have been some ups and downs, with a suicidal episode being one of my lowest moments, but God saw me through and from that experience I learnt to appreciate and depend on Him more, realising that He is above all. Where family or friends may forsake you or fail you, He never will,” Minister Blessed disclosed in an interview with the Jamaica Observer last week Thursday.

Minister Blessed, who is the recipient of several accolades for his work, is gearing up to release his second EP in July. The project explores several themes, most of which are chronicled from his life experiences.

He offers a preview to the project with the song Again and Again which features gospel recording artiste Ryan Mark.

Again and Again was released on April 26.

He shared how the collaboration with Ryan Mark came about.

“I met Ryan Mark back in 2002 while on a bus from Half-Way-Tree to Portmore going to attend the same band rehearsal. We first collaborated in 2007 with a track called Alright Then. Fast-forward to 2024, it felt like another collaboration was long overdue. and when I started putting pen to paper for this new song, the Holy Spirit revealed to me that Ryan would be the perfect fit to work with on this song… In addition, I wanted an exhortation to be given at the end of the song and his additional role as Pastor made this a no-brainer. When he heard the song and the idea, he was fully on board,” said Minister Blessed.

Again and Again was produced by ZJ Dero of PRM Sounds in Kenya, and it encourages listeners to be confident that God will continue to come through for them in spite of how bleak their circumstances may be.

The forthcoming EP will have six songs and is his first since the release of Glory in 2022.

Other producers include Newlyfe Records (UK), Stand Firm Productions (USA), DaJourney Production (Canada), DJ Marc Production (Jamaica), and Shado Vijon Records (Jamaica).

“…I have come out of the comfort zone of the easy to ride dancehall gospel rhythms and tried my hand at one drop reggae and worship genres adding a bit of diversity to the project and my catalogue,” he said.

The artiste told the Observer there are three collaborations on the project with 85 per cent of the songs exclusively self-written.

Minister Blessed was born and raised in Portmore. After completing school at Wolmer’s Boys’ he earned a degree in psychology at The University of the West Indies and later a master’s degree in general management at the Mona School of Business.

Commenting on Again and Again, Minister Blessed said: “Sometimes when you’re going through certain situations, you feel there is no way out; you may even feel that God has forsaken you. This song is a reminder that if God brings you to it, he will bring you through it. And if he has come through for you before, he will do it again and again. Many of us worry about what we’ll eat, what we’ll wear, how we’ll cover the bills, but as the bible declares our heavenly Father knows all our needs and will take care of us much more than he does the birds and the lilies of the fields.”

Minister Blessed previously scored success locally being awarded gospel deejay of the year in 2015 and 2016 consecutively by the Love Gospel Awards.

In 2017 he migrated to a small island called Guernsey (which lies between England and France) before relocating to the United Kingdom late 2023.

Although living overseas, Minister Blessed has consistently released one single per year and kept the connection with Jamaican audiences making previous returns to perform at local gospel concerts such as We a Come from Far (2018), Genesis Praise Fest, Gospel Tenacity and Praise Break (2019).

He won the Dancehall Gospel song of the year in the Antigua and Gospel Music Awards in 2023.