Today we’d like to introduce you to Xavier Brandon.
Xavier, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I’m from Charlotte, NC by way of Brooklyn, NY. I’ve been rapping since I was 12 and I have been in love with hip-hop and soul music since I first heard The Jackson 5 as a kid. Hip-Hop has always been a vehicle for me to express myself, let my emotions out, and connect with others who felt the same way I did. My mother was a single parent and kept my sister and I in church. I’ve always had a very strong connection with God and my faith and became very active in my church as I grew up. I knew that I was a leader and that I wanted to be developed and at the time there weren’t many outlets for youth in Charlotte to pursue their dreams so I moved to Atlanta to attend Morehouse College in 2006 with hopes of pursuing a rap career however God had other plans for me.
Once I came to Atlanta, I got involved with the Outlet College Ministry at New Birth and accepted my call to ministry. I almost gave up rapping, music and everything to pursue my relationship with Jesus of Nazarath, however God spoke to me and said that He didn’t give me the gift of rapping to throw it away, but to bring Him glory. So I began to make more inspirational music, became a leader on campus and eventually graduated in 2010 with a B.S. in Computer Science. During my senior year, I asked God what he wanted me to do next and His reply was, “Do what I called you to do.” So I enrolled in Candler School of Theology at Emory University to pursue a Masters in Divinity. While at Emory, I met my soon to be wife, Ifie, through a spoken word/hip-hop ministry at Destiny Metropolitan Worship Center. During my time at Emory, I discovered my voice and solidified my passion for both Hip-Hop and faith. I graduated in 2013 with my MDiv with a concentration in race & religion and got married to Ifie Natasha Brandon in the same week.
I had another similar conversation with God about my next steps and his response was still the same. So I started a non-profit called Zek’s Dream Center to help young people identify, cultivate, and manifest their dreams while connecting their dreams to their God-given purpose. I created a camp at my church to kick off Zek’s and then became an after-school teacher in Marietta while developing the Zek’s curriculum. I noticed that my after school students had older siblings that no one was mentoring so I began to mentor the middle and high school students around me. While doing I got hired by a nonprofit called Young Life to introduce young people to Jesus and help them grow in their faith. I moved to Campbellton Rd to do ministry in an apartment complex and then was placed back at Morehouse to bring Young Life to the Atlanta University Center. While there, I was having a lot of conversations with students about Hip-Hop & Jesus and decided to create a YouTube show with one of my mentees called The Culture Shock Show where we talked to college students about campus news, hip-hop, issues of faith and culture. Once I left Young Life, I decided to revamp Zek’s and with a partnership with the Andrew & Walter Young Family YMCA, the AUC, Shamrock Gardens Apartments & The Rise Schools I was able to bring Zek’s Dream Center to Southwest Atlanta and help middle, high school, and college students with their dream development.
But with every business/nonprofit, it takes a while to grow and scale so I asked God what can I do to make some money because at this time, my family of two had grown to a family of 4. People had always asked me if I were a DJ and I said, “No” but after a while I thought about it. So I asked my aunt to invest in me and I started DJing. That landed me to be an emcee at Stars and Strikes in Sandy Springs and eventually I was able to fulfill a lifelong dream of working in radio by becoming a producer for Larry Tinsley at V-103. While working at V I remembered my experience of having the Culture Shock Show and still wanted to facilitate conversations around Hip-Hop and faith. So with a little help from coworkers and my wife, I created the Crowns Up Podcast the #1 spot for Hip-Hop, faith and culture. So now I curate dope conversations with dope people about what’s going on in the culture, issues of faith that we deal with and their top 5 of any subject.
Has it been a smooth road?
It hasn’t been a smooth road. Some of the challenges for me has been consistency and dependency on others. Because the show is interviewed based, I have to rely on others for the show to be good. I’m constantly having to work around other schedules as well as my own. I’ve also had to push through my own inconsistency of not recording, editing and releasing the show on time. I also had to develop the skill of content creation, video and audio editing, journalism & interviewing. All of these individually take a long time to learn, but learning them all at the same time can be a challenge. Lastly, I think I had to overcome my insecurity of whether the show would be dope enough, impact enough and meaningful enough. I pride myself on producing quality content, but I was never going to know whether my insecurities were right or wrong unless I tried.
Please tell us about Crowns Up Podcast.
The Crowns Up Podcast is a show that explores the intersection of hip-hop, faith, and culture. We have real conversations with real people about real life. We give our audience content that is raw & uncut. There are many millennials and other people who have a faith component but also love to engage in hip-hop culture. But many people feel like they have to be in one world and not the other. We try to be the bridge that allows people to be their whole self without compromising. I think we’re known for our Top 5 segment which at times can be very controversial because everybody has a different top 5 about anything and everyone believes that their top 5 is the best. Our crossroads segment I believe helps to facilitate some hard conversations that deal with the soul of a person that many are having but not speaking about. I think what separates us is that in the secular world, I don’t think many shows are dealing with the faith component to life. We try to show that it’s a part of all of us and its ok to have it on display with your enthusiasm for your favorite artist and their lyrical prowess. I’m most proud of that people are tuned in and engaged and desire to be a part of the show. I think we must be doing something right for people to want to be a part of something like this when there’s plenty of content to choose from.
Is our city a good place to do what you do?
I believe that Atlanta is the mecca for black culture in the South. I believe there is plenty of room for black content and black stories because we as people are so diverse. We have many perspectives, specialties, interests, niches, etc. that someone will be able to connect with you. We are not monolithic. So if someone wanted to start a show, podcast, etc. Atlanta is perfect soil for something amazing to blossom in. You’re only a few degrees away from your connection to your dream.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://linktr.ee/Profezzorx
- Phone: 704-301-4291
- Email: crownsuppod@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/crownsuppod
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/CrownsUpPod
- Other: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/crowns-up-podcast/id1501230857
Image Credit:
The professional ones were shot by Takia Lamb of TK Consulting & Design. The one with me in between the speakers was shot by Noble Woods. The other ones were shot on my iphone
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