Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Rodney Iler. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Rodney, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?

God has blessed me to build multiple businesses/endeavors over the years: the most recent one being, the Great Exchange Worship Collective. The Great Exchange Worship Collective is a space providing college students with a safe space and trusted community to help them strengthen their relationship with Jesus. 2 Corinthians 5:21 speaks about how God made Jesus a sin offering so that when we fall short, we can regain righteousness in the sight of God. This safe space was created for you to exchange your imperfect ways for God.

With the current state of our society and how this generation is presented, there’s this false belief that there are no young people seeking God’s heart. But I have witnessed with my own eyes, the exact opposite of this belief. This generation is filled with imperfect people looking to have a closer relationship with the perfect God we call Jesus which is why the Lord had me to create this space. Since launching in September, we have been able to travel all over the Metro Atlanta area to help young people express their love for God through worship.

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

My name is Rodney Iler. I am 19 years old and am a student at the illustrious Clark Atlanta University. In August 2021, I released my very first debut project entitled “Secrets.” Releasing this project opened up the door for so many other opportunities such as TV interviews, and collaborations with amazing artists in the Atlanta area. After pursuing this journey throughout high school, I decided that I didn’t want to go to college and that I’d spend the next 3-4 years of my life, building my career and graphic design business while also being a worship leader at my church, Excel Church Worldwide. 1 year into that journey, I changed my perspective on school and started attending the Atlanta Institute of Music & Media. Being at AIMM, was an amazing experience and taught me so much. But after being there for 2 terms, the Lord gave me instructions to transfer to Clark Atlanta University. At the time of receiving the instructions, I was under the assumption that it was for educational purposes. After getting into the process of becoming a student, it became very clear to me that the reason for my transition was so much bigger than education. The group of young people that I spoke about in the last question, were all at Clark Atlanta University waiting for someone to create the space for them to worship and I was very sure that it was my assignment to be the hands and feet of this movement but I had told myself that I’d wait until I was smoothly balancing my new class schedules, assignments, etc. before trying to launch either. Well, a week after having this conversation with myself, I auditioned for the school choir and my audition turned into an encounter with Jesus that ended up going viral for 3 days straight. It was at this moment that I realized, I had no time to waste with launching this safe space. This is how the Great Exchange came about and the rest of our story is being built out more and more every day.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

As a new worship collective, it’s extremely vital for us to be consistent in the way we present ourselves. Whether that be from how many of us show up, what we wear and how our outfits complement each other, our sound, and how clean it is. Everything we do has to remain consistent and get better each time you hear us. One thing that has helped push us into our market is simply how we are rooted in the AUC (Atlanta University Center) which is a combination of Spelman College, Morehouse College, Clark Atlanta University, Morris Brown College, and Interdenominational Theological Center. Having students come from each one of these campuses, pushing and promoting this vision, we’ve been able to build connections with so many people in positions to help catapult this movement by booking us to be a part of their events, conferences, worship services, etc.

Do you have any insights you can share related to maintaining high team morale?

For anyone looking to manage or oversee a group of people, the best advice I could give is to make sure that you build relationships and community with your team. I oftentimes tell my team, there are no little u’s and big I’s. This understanding has helped us to truly love and enjoy the idea of being around each other, not just when it’s time for us to minister but even outside of ministry work. This leads me to another point of advice which is, to make time to fellowship with your team outside of the work you all do. A part of building community is balancing your work and social life. Though what we do is ministry, it still requires a level of professionalism that we may not necessarily showcase if we were out bowling. So, creating space for both can help create solid relationships and community within your team.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.rodneyilerministries.com/thegreatexchange
• Instagram: @thegreatexchange & @rodneyiler__
• Facebook: Rodney Iler & the Great Exchange AUC