With Easter fast approaching, the first sun of spring in the sky and a regretful hangover in mind it seemed like a good time to go church and ask God to forgive and forget my sins from the night before. But that wasn't the only reason I decided to go to church on Sunday March 15th; that other reason has a name - Emmanuel Jal.
Jal graced the good people of London town with his presence with a small set at the Hillsong Church that takes place every Sunday at the Dominion Theatre in Central London. His unique lyrics draped over thumping hip-hop beats have won the ex-Sudanese child soldier a lot of devotees from around the world.
And I'm starting to see why...
Jal was kidnapped by soldiers when he was seven years old and grew up fighting in the civil war that has gripped the African nation for the last three decades. He was rescued by Emma McCune, a volunteer teacher, who smuggled him to Kenya and out of a life which was certain to end in an early death. This period and Jal's inspiration by God is what his music is all about. He has some powerful messages, and not done in a cheesy Christian rock band way, it really is in your face hard hitting hip-hop.
When he came out to a huge ovation I thought the crowd, myself included, would be in for a treat with a set by a man who makes church cool. Jal burst out on stage to 'War Child', the title track from his latest album, which has a ridiculously catchy chorus and a great base line backing it up. Even those who aren't into hip-hop at all started to grind in the aisles.
After a brief explanation of his life and the religious influence in his work (sadly he mentioned very little about his time as a Sudanese child soldier which is what I was interested in) he produced 'Emma'. This homage to the woman who he says 'saved his life' was a nice diversion from the high impact 'War Child'. Blending a ballard-esque verse with a soft but classic hip-hop chorus makes you realise the love he has for this woman who risked it all to save him.
You can't help but feel like his music means more than just a nice tune and a few words thrown together. He has a way of commanding your respect through the message behind his lyrics and I don't think I was the only one who felt this way. But just as I was ready to really let myself go and crowd surf to the front, he stopped...
I wanted more beats, more inspirational lyrics and more dancing in the aisles, but he just smiled, waved and walked off stage. He was only supposed to play a couple of tracks but when you hear Jal live you always want more. To say I was disappointed was an understatement.
But in the end it was a blessing in disguise because my hangover took a turn for the worse and I needed to sleep. Jal and his brief appearance might have left me slightly disheartened, but what I saw has me eagerly awaiting his next show in Londinium.
People, we have found hip-hop's new messiah - and he is Emmanuel Jal.