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Stitchie...songs are for edification, glorifying God or uplifting the spirits.Tyrone Reid, Staff Reporter
MANY MUSIC observers have figured that the ingredients currently needed to whip up a secular hit have been reduced drastically in comparison to the days of old.
To make a hit these days, an artiste is in need of only two things, it would seem.
A 'wicked' rhythm and a puncline. The rest is history.
The analysts further stated that it is not a prerequisite that the body of the song make any sense - at least, not anymore.
On the other hand, many are of the view that the standards required to produce a hit gospel record are still high and quite in contrast to the route being taken by many secular acts.
An act of God
According to a few Jamaican gospel acts, composing heartfelt lyrics is an act of God - a divine inspiration from the Almighty to the songwriter.
This school of thought is supported by Lieutenant Stitchie, an artiste who has enjoyed the best of both worlds.
According to Stitchie, the motivation and motives in the secular and Christian musical realms are quite dissimiliar.
Stitchie pointed out that during the 'glory' days of his secular years, his adrenaline rushes stemmed from self-glorification and the fact that he would be more popular.
"Primarily, I think the differene is that secular songs are written just for pure entertainment, while gospel songs are written for edification, either in glorifying God or uplifting the spirits of the people that listen to the song," emphasised noted gospel instrumentalist Dennis Rushton.
However, he was quick to highlight that gospel music must still be pleasing to the ear or people will not listen to it. Stitchie, who made a name for himself in the secular music industry with his humourous lyrics and social commentary, now depends upon 'divine reasoning' to pen his songs.
"I get the revelations by reading the Word of God and songs that edify God just pop up in me," reasoned Stitchie.
He continued: "If it is not inspiration from God then it is not gospel, as gospel is the good news of Jesus Christ. It is a total dependency on the Holy Spirit, so the words that I sing are not of me but of God, so therefore one has to study the Word of God because if it is not in you it can't come out."
Mr. Rushton adapts the same approach. He too says he waits patiently for the inspiration to put pen to paper.
However, he added that there is the occasional song that is inspired by his experiences.
The promising Nichole Robinson, who won the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission's (JCDC) gospel song contest with Extraordinary God, told the The Sunday Gleaner that the song was penned by herself and Durran Boothe.
She revealed that her inspirations to write songs are divine as well. Nichole highlighted that songs have manifested themselves to her while she is seeking the face of God.
"I will be worshipping and a song will just come to me and hopefully I have pen and paper on hand to get it all out in writing," she said.
Nonetheless, the young lady begged to differ with her elder counterparts and boldly voiced her opinion that there is not that much difference between writing gospel songs and those of a secular variety.
"I think it is typically the same, but it is just that we are on different sides of the fence and the fact that we are serving two different gods, if you want to put it that way," she said.
Another difference in the making of a gospel hit and a secular hit which was pointed out by Stitchie is that every one of the former is a success, as they all achieve their purpose in glorifying God.
The same, however, cannot be said for every secular effort, since profit is the bottom line, if the project does not make a profit, it will be termed a flop.
