We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Austin (Jarrell) Kemp a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Austin , thanks for joining us today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

The most meaningful project to me is the album that I just dropped Poetic Faith Chapter 1 “Seasons”. This album is inspired by my life for the past 5 years in a poetic song format that God used to illustrate him along the journey of the seasons I endured for the past 5 years. 5 Years ago I was due to be married to a woman that I loved dearly, the month that we were expected to be married we got into an altercation which resulted in a knife to my throat. I quickly realized that I had been in an abusive relationship emotionally, physically and spiritually for quite some time and never fully realized it until this moment. It’s hard looking at the person you’re supposed to love in their eyes while they have a knife to your throat and not knowing whether you’re going to live to the next day, and still trying to love them through that. After we broke up I went into a dark place in my life where I had to start from the bottom of understanding who I was and what my God Given Purpose was in life and it took a year and some change for me to fully heal and find God again. My previous relationship almost destroyed my friendships and my family ties and through God I was able to repair those bridges and even find a wife that loves me for me and shows me how a God Fearing Marriage is supposed to be. Which brings us the project Seasons! During a performance in my dark season I was pursuing secular music and actually made a hit which I was able to perform at The BlueBerry Hill Duck Room but during the performance I heard a clear booming voice in my head saying “son what are you doing with the gifts that I gave you and how are you edifying the kingdom?” After the performance I vowed to only make music for God and his kingdom and to show him in everything I do, and ever since then he has opened doors for me that I never thought were possible. He’s lead me to people who are hurting and yearning for his Love and opportunities to hear peoples stories and listen to them and pray for them. This music is my spiritual journal but God is the pen and that’s is what makes this project Seasons special to me.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

Hello my name is Austin Jarrell also known as AJ I’m an up-and-coming Christian hip-hop artist from St. Louis, MO. Since a young age, I had been interested in music in variety of forms. I started elementary school performing in choir and playing the violin. After years of playing the violin, I played in the marching band as a percussionist drummer.

During high school, I began writing poetry. Dealing with spiritual battles, I used poetry as a way to escape reality during a period of depression. Desiring to be positive, I would include positive messages in my poetry so that I could later on read it when I needed it most.

Through Christ, I was able to overcome depression and wants to inspire those who deal with similar struggles and know God and My purpose for their lives so that they may be saved. My hope is through my music and testimony, I will spread the news of the hope and Gospel of Christ.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

That you have to have everything figured out and perfect in order to be an artist. I ran away from making music for God for a long time, never thought I was good enough, always thought I needed the best equipment in order to produce good quality music, didn’t think it would be financially feasible. One thing I’ve learned is that if God gives you the vision he’ll provide the provision and that he’s with you all along this journey. I started off just listening to beats on YouTube and trying to make my own on GarageBand and it just built from that. I never knew how I was going to figure it out but I just kept being obedient to what God wanted me to do and write about. He introduced me to people who had the answers to the questions I was seeking and if not that he would give me the wisdom to figure it out myself. This makes the journey all the more sweeter in my opinion because it’s not manufactured it’s organic and real and leads to real life relationships and stories that last forever.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

I want people to see God first and foremost. Music is such a powerful tool and we often misuse it in everyday circumstances. So much violence, lust, and sin is embedded in our music nowadays and it’s hard to find a good quality song that you can sing your heart out without worrying about the lyrics being bad. I want people to understand that we can have good music good beats good lyrics and God is with music during those times you need to turn up! Or those time you’re struggling or dealing with depression. God is with us and he always wants us to turn to him.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://linktr.ee/AustinJarrellMusic?fbclid=PAAaYQm4QzxL6Bz_nx_Spe8QpiW_sozPFcieCnetpPEQdgRwl9msz3bsf9R14_aem_AfvOXDyGXGYH47xb0mIqNRTst-XonHa4wj0Feh2ym0AZSIxJr_1eKnjYF5ENRvvmLqk
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/austinjarrellmusic?igshid=NGVhN2U2NjQ0Yg%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AustinJarrellMusic?mibextid=kFxxJD
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@austinjarrellmusic?si=1dMoy7zsjnPC7TzX

Image Credits
Erica Danielle Green Gully Mark Sarah Crowder