Jor’dan Armstrong Profile
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Giving & Partnership |
"I think it’s so important that, if you believe in something, you should support it. I support God and I support everything Jesus. And, I also love gospel music. I love the fact that I get a chance to spread the message of Jesus. I think that’s important as well.”
“Who is Jesus to me? Jesus to me … I would definitely say He’s my anchor. He's the one who keeps me grounded. He keeps me sane. I would probably lose it all the time – just from things that happen in my life … just on a daily basis. Without Him, I don't know where I would be. I really have no clue. It’s just amazing being able to serve a God like Him.
Now that connects to my gospel music because, with Him being my anchor, I develop a heart for Him. I develop a desire for Him all the time. I try my best to display that in the lyrical content of my music – to show people that God is not just this book of rules. He's not this person with all of these rules that just tries to keep our lives from being fun. I do want people to know that God [Jesus] enjoys laughter too. I’m sure God laughed all the time and had a good time with His friends and you know, they got together. There were a couple of times God was at a couple of parties. So that shows that He enjoyed a good time.
We definitely have to of course, live our lives as godly and as Christian as we can. But a lot of times, when we think of fun, people think of so many terrible things. There’s a lot of great fun that we can have as Christians. There's a lot of good times we can have as Christians. I think that it is important that we let people know that Jesus is love. But, He's also happiness. He’s also fun. He’s also joy. So, I’m about that too. In a lot of my music, I try to let people know that we can dance, we can have a good time, we can hang out with our friends, and still love Jesus.”
Now that connects to my gospel music because, with Him being my anchor, I develop a heart for Him. I develop a desire for Him all the time. I try my best to display that in the lyrical content of my music – to show people that God is not just this book of rules. He's not this person with all of these rules that just tries to keep our lives from being fun. I do want people to know that God [Jesus] enjoys laughter too. I’m sure God laughed all the time and had a good time with His friends and you know, they got together. There were a couple of times God was at a couple of parties. So that shows that He enjoyed a good time.
We definitely have to of course, live our lives as godly and as Christian as we can. But a lot of times, when we think of fun, people think of so many terrible things. There’s a lot of great fun that we can have as Christians. There's a lot of good times we can have as Christians. I think that it is important that we let people know that Jesus is love. But, He's also happiness. He’s also fun. He’s also joy. So, I’m about that too. In a lot of my music, I try to let people know that we can dance, we can have a good time, we can hang out with our friends, and still love Jesus.”
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"Now that connects to my gospel music because, with Him being my anchor, I develop a heart for Him. I develop a desire for Him all the time. I try my best to display that in the lyrical content of my music – to show people that God is not just this book of rules."
The contemporary soloist shared where he hails from, telling the story of his cultural and familial ties, and how they connect to his own musical account.
“Baton Rouge, Louisiana. That’s my hometown. Yes, “The Boot” is what they call it. I was born and raised there, you know. I grew up on soul food. My mom's side is where more of the singers are, and my dad's side is where more of the entrepreneurs and pastors are. Everybody’s a pastor. My life was strictly church every day, almost every day of the week. We had rehearsal, we had mid-week service, we had choir meeting, we had everything – and then Sunday. Yes, I was at church every day of the week, just about. I went through that phase of, ‘Why do I have to come to this place?’, to actually loving it.”
“Baton Rouge, Louisiana. That’s my hometown. Yes, “The Boot” is what they call it. I was born and raised there, you know. I grew up on soul food. My mom's side is where more of the singers are, and my dad's side is where more of the entrepreneurs and pastors are. Everybody’s a pastor. My life was strictly church every day, almost every day of the week. We had rehearsal, we had mid-week service, we had choir meeting, we had everything – and then Sunday. Yes, I was at church every day of the week, just about. I went through that phase of, ‘Why do I have to come to this place?’, to actually loving it.”
"I think that it is important that we let people know that Jesus is love. But, He's also happiness. He’s also fun. He’s also joy. So, I’m about that too."
When it came to gospel music, he let it be known his path began at a young age, figuratively and literally following in his predecessor’s footsteps – right onto the stage.
“I grew up as an only child. My mother was a singer. She's a well – known singer in our hometown. Everywhere she went, I went. My mom never left me with anybody else. As a little kid, every time she had to sing, I was there. That is where I feel my love for music was created, just traveling with her. Eventually, she started bringing me on stage. I started singing more. Then I opened up for everyone that came into town – from Shirley Caesar, to Yolanda Adams, to Kirk Franklin – everybody. I was opening for them, singing cover songs, and the rest was history. That really birthed my musical career.” |
"I'm getting emails and text messages from people saying, ‘Man I never thought that I wanted to have anything to do with the Church anymore. I never thought I wanted to even go to church. I never thought that I even wanted to know who Jesus was until I heard the way that God is using you to do your music.’ Those are the things that keep me going every day."
He went on to share his desire to follow a path in step with his musical roots, while setting that same trail ablaze with his own sound.
“I always knew I wanted to do gospel music. I grew up a church boy. I always thought that there was a void of a certain sound of gospel music. We have our traditional sounds. I grew up on the organs and you know that good ole’ Clark Sisters, Albertina Walker, The Hawkins sound and all of these greats.
Yet, for me, it’s important to be a leader for a younger audience. I think that it’s important in that God instilled in me music that can cross over into reaching teenagers, while reaching those who are the age of my grandmother and my mom as well.
I always felt that there was a different sound, yet with the same message. I felt like God really gave me this sound that was a bit more crossover. And you know, many people use that word ‘crossover’ a lot. It’s kind of becoming cliché. But when I use it, I think of reaching people beyond the Church. And that's what I mean when I use the word crossover. Basically, people have stereotypes of what they believe church is and stereotype what they believe a Christian is. You come around and you say, ‘Hey, I'm doing gospel music.’ They already think they know what that sounds like. They already have in their mind, ‘Okay, that’s something I don't want to listen to. Nobody listens to that.’ I think that God has given me a gift to reach people that aren’t interested, at the time, in the things of Christ.”
Providing an illustration, Mr. Armstrong delved deeper into how he reaches out and hooks his audience through his music.
“I feel God - He uses me as bait. My music is pretty much bait to bring people into the Kingdom. I'm that guy that goes out and they hear my good beats, they hear the good melodies, they end up hearing it again, and then they're like, ‘Wait, this is Christian music? Did you just say something about Jesus? Did you say something about God? Wait a minute, now! I thought, you know, gospel music sounded like this or that?’
“I always knew I wanted to do gospel music. I grew up a church boy. I always thought that there was a void of a certain sound of gospel music. We have our traditional sounds. I grew up on the organs and you know that good ole’ Clark Sisters, Albertina Walker, The Hawkins sound and all of these greats.
Yet, for me, it’s important to be a leader for a younger audience. I think that it’s important in that God instilled in me music that can cross over into reaching teenagers, while reaching those who are the age of my grandmother and my mom as well.
I always felt that there was a different sound, yet with the same message. I felt like God really gave me this sound that was a bit more crossover. And you know, many people use that word ‘crossover’ a lot. It’s kind of becoming cliché. But when I use it, I think of reaching people beyond the Church. And that's what I mean when I use the word crossover. Basically, people have stereotypes of what they believe church is and stereotype what they believe a Christian is. You come around and you say, ‘Hey, I'm doing gospel music.’ They already think they know what that sounds like. They already have in their mind, ‘Okay, that’s something I don't want to listen to. Nobody listens to that.’ I think that God has given me a gift to reach people that aren’t interested, at the time, in the things of Christ.”
Providing an illustration, Mr. Armstrong delved deeper into how he reaches out and hooks his audience through his music.
“I feel God - He uses me as bait. My music is pretty much bait to bring people into the Kingdom. I'm that guy that goes out and they hear my good beats, they hear the good melodies, they end up hearing it again, and then they're like, ‘Wait, this is Christian music? Did you just say something about Jesus? Did you say something about God? Wait a minute, now! I thought, you know, gospel music sounded like this or that?’
At times, people may not understand the message when presented with what may be considered the orthodox. But there are people coming to the Kingdom and people whose lives are changing because of the music I present. I'm getting emails and text messages from people saying, ‘Man I never thought that I wanted to have anything to do with the Church anymore. I never thought I wanted to even go to church. I never thought that I even wanted to know who Jesus was until I heard the way that God is using you to do your music.’ Those are the things that keep me going every day.
They’re confirmation for me. They’re motivation. It motivates me. When I do it in this city, I can't wait to go to the next city and tell people about how amazing God is to me. And they actually like it as well, and they agree. That's what it’s all about, charging them up to go out and reach other people – just like God is using me.
That's the important thing to me. This is my ministry. I call it a ministry. Some people may call it something else, but this is ministry for me. This is my church. My listeners are in my congregation. I'm talking to them. Every time, I can give them something they can take with them, and even change their lives through the ways of Jesus Christ.
Of course, I get crazy emails every once in a while, from people telling me I'm something else. But, I really believe God has given me this gift. This is what I call my ministry. My ministry is for the lost. My ministry, my job, is to bring them in. After that, it's the church and the pastor and everybody else. Now y’all take care of them once I get them in there.
They’re confirmation for me. They’re motivation. It motivates me. When I do it in this city, I can't wait to go to the next city and tell people about how amazing God is to me. And they actually like it as well, and they agree. That's what it’s all about, charging them up to go out and reach other people – just like God is using me.
That's the important thing to me. This is my ministry. I call it a ministry. Some people may call it something else, but this is ministry for me. This is my church. My listeners are in my congregation. I'm talking to them. Every time, I can give them something they can take with them, and even change their lives through the ways of Jesus Christ.
Of course, I get crazy emails every once in a while, from people telling me I'm something else. But, I really believe God has given me this gift. This is what I call my ministry. My ministry is for the lost. My ministry, my job, is to bring them in. After that, it's the church and the pastor and everybody else. Now y’all take care of them once I get them in there.
That's what I believe God has given me. I am a fisherman and I love it. I mean, I’m about it every day. Every day I try to do something or ‘let my light shine’, as my grandmother used to say. I will always try to let Jesus shine through me, even in my decisions, or as I feel led by Jesus. I love my job. Man … it’s amazing.”
The millennial artist noted, over the span of his career, he was not without hardship.
“I would say professionally, I have been working in this industry … 10 years. I started in 2008 professionally, and I was just telling my best friend … he produces a lot of music for me.
We've definitely had some hardships. One of my hardships was rejection. I think we all got to go through that. I got a lot of that. I got a lot of no’s … plenty, plenty of nos. You know, just pressing forward is what kept me going. As far as my great times, it's just been, God showing up in situations – especially with my music. To hear that people enjoy what I have to say, and what God has given me, is great.
To hear everyone singing the words back to me, just hearing what God has given me and seeing that it's actually reaching people – absolutely got me through my hardship.”
The millennial artist noted, over the span of his career, he was not without hardship.
“I would say professionally, I have been working in this industry … 10 years. I started in 2008 professionally, and I was just telling my best friend … he produces a lot of music for me.
We've definitely had some hardships. One of my hardships was rejection. I think we all got to go through that. I got a lot of that. I got a lot of no’s … plenty, plenty of nos. You know, just pressing forward is what kept me going. As far as my great times, it's just been, God showing up in situations – especially with my music. To hear that people enjoy what I have to say, and what God has given me, is great.
To hear everyone singing the words back to me, just hearing what God has given me and seeing that it's actually reaching people – absolutely got me through my hardship.”
Wittily, he described how content he was with his current work conditions, letting it be known, he could not have a better boss.
“I just continue to do work and God takes care of the rest. This is all that I do. This is my livelihood. He makes a way. He makes sure that I'm taken care of. He makes sure that the bills are paid. When you work for God, there’s a lot of perks you get. We get perks … come on now! We get all these great things. Great insurance – all of that. This is a great thing. God is so awesome that I would not work for anybody else – the best CEO I could ever work for.”
As he continued to convey his experiences, he noted the distinction – from beginning to present – in the reception of his music, and its connection to a broader change of sound (and its reception), within the realm of gospel music.
“I think now, gospel music is really changing. The sound is becoming a bit more urban. You got, “I luh God” by Erica Campbell, and you got the Walls group. You’ve got Kirk Franklin and all of these folks. I remember a time, when I first started, I was doing that same type of sound, and I was definitely being turned away by people. People said, ‘This is the devil's music.’ I thank God so much because He would always send somebody to encourage me that I didn’t think enjoyed my music. It was always somebody coming to encourage me. It was that confirmation that kept me going.
“I just continue to do work and God takes care of the rest. This is all that I do. This is my livelihood. He makes a way. He makes sure that I'm taken care of. He makes sure that the bills are paid. When you work for God, there’s a lot of perks you get. We get perks … come on now! We get all these great things. Great insurance – all of that. This is a great thing. God is so awesome that I would not work for anybody else – the best CEO I could ever work for.”
As he continued to convey his experiences, he noted the distinction – from beginning to present – in the reception of his music, and its connection to a broader change of sound (and its reception), within the realm of gospel music.
“I think now, gospel music is really changing. The sound is becoming a bit more urban. You got, “I luh God” by Erica Campbell, and you got the Walls group. You’ve got Kirk Franklin and all of these folks. I remember a time, when I first started, I was doing that same type of sound, and I was definitely being turned away by people. People said, ‘This is the devil's music.’ I thank God so much because He would always send somebody to encourage me that I didn’t think enjoyed my music. It was always somebody coming to encourage me. It was that confirmation that kept me going.
Honestly, in these 10 years, I might have just switched over. I could have easily sung a certain style of song – the Marvin Sapp type of records. But I really felt that God had called me to an urban audience – not just an urban audience, but a lost audience, or an audience, like I said, that has stereotyped what Christian lifestyle is and what Christian music is. So, that's all I'm about. I love it.”
The effect of his music, he noted, was not lost on him. He spoke of personal songs that had an everyday bearing on his life.
“There’s this one song: “Stronger” – it’s actually the title song of my second project. This song … I listen to it often because it still encourages me. God gave me the words. I was just like, ‘oh my God, this is so powerful. Thank you so much.’ In my sessions, when I'm recording, and a new line comes in, I'm like, ‘oh, that'll be so great to say that.’ I just thank God for giving it to me because it’s all coming from Him.
But this song, “Stronger” just basically – infinitely – encourages you to stand and believe and trust in what God promised you. I think it's so important that we let people know that God is still here. At times, when it may seem like it's dark and there’s no one around, God is there. Anything that you go through is to make you a stronger person. That’s what this song is about. So that's definitely one of my favorite songs.
There's another song, it's called: “What You’re Made Of”, which is on that same project. This song is basically a cry for help. You're waiting for God to show up – you’re just like: ‘God please, show Your face!’ And so, in this song, I’m like: ‘God, please come to my rescue and show me what you’re made of.’ God comes down and just changes the situation to something so amazing. God is just so awesome, as far as looking out for us and being there for us.
Even in times when you feel like He’s not there, He shows up right on time. My grandma always said that too: ‘God shows up right on time.’ I thought that was a song – but that's real life. God always makes a way and that song is about what you’re made of. So, everybody, go get that project – it’s called: Stronger. I released that in 2012. And that's one of my favorite grooves so far.”
With excitement, he offered a portrayal of how his music also influenced listeners in ways he would not have expected.
“It's such a joy to hear people tell me that, you know, ‘God really used you, man. You got me through college.’ Some things you don't even think of … you don't even think about those types of things. You only think about the song hitting somebody and they cry. They get delivered or something. But through my songs, it’s also been great to hear when people tell me,
‘Man, you helped me through college. There were so many times I wanted to give up and just say this is too hard. You helped me through some study nights. The tracks were so dope and cool, it got me through, late night studies.’ So just hearing those types of things, I can say that's super motivational. I’m super - excited for what God is doing.”
The genial artist reflected on what surprised him during his personal music journey.
The effect of his music, he noted, was not lost on him. He spoke of personal songs that had an everyday bearing on his life.
“There’s this one song: “Stronger” – it’s actually the title song of my second project. This song … I listen to it often because it still encourages me. God gave me the words. I was just like, ‘oh my God, this is so powerful. Thank you so much.’ In my sessions, when I'm recording, and a new line comes in, I'm like, ‘oh, that'll be so great to say that.’ I just thank God for giving it to me because it’s all coming from Him.
But this song, “Stronger” just basically – infinitely – encourages you to stand and believe and trust in what God promised you. I think it's so important that we let people know that God is still here. At times, when it may seem like it's dark and there’s no one around, God is there. Anything that you go through is to make you a stronger person. That’s what this song is about. So that's definitely one of my favorite songs.
There's another song, it's called: “What You’re Made Of”, which is on that same project. This song is basically a cry for help. You're waiting for God to show up – you’re just like: ‘God please, show Your face!’ And so, in this song, I’m like: ‘God, please come to my rescue and show me what you’re made of.’ God comes down and just changes the situation to something so amazing. God is just so awesome, as far as looking out for us and being there for us.
Even in times when you feel like He’s not there, He shows up right on time. My grandma always said that too: ‘God shows up right on time.’ I thought that was a song – but that's real life. God always makes a way and that song is about what you’re made of. So, everybody, go get that project – it’s called: Stronger. I released that in 2012. And that's one of my favorite grooves so far.”
With excitement, he offered a portrayal of how his music also influenced listeners in ways he would not have expected.
“It's such a joy to hear people tell me that, you know, ‘God really used you, man. You got me through college.’ Some things you don't even think of … you don't even think about those types of things. You only think about the song hitting somebody and they cry. They get delivered or something. But through my songs, it’s also been great to hear when people tell me,
‘Man, you helped me through college. There were so many times I wanted to give up and just say this is too hard. You helped me through some study nights. The tracks were so dope and cool, it got me through, late night studies.’ So just hearing those types of things, I can say that's super motivational. I’m super - excited for what God is doing.”
The genial artist reflected on what surprised him during his personal music journey.
“This journey – it’s been surprising, sometimes even overwhelming, the grace that God shows me. I'm not perfect. I've been through so many things. I've been through so many issues … issues that I've had throughout my life … growing as a man … becoming a man … and God still uses me. He still chose me. He still … He forgets about all of those terrible things that I think about, things I may have done, or the harm I may have brought on someone else … or the hearts I may have broken … or people I have disappointed … anything. You know, it’s so amazing that God still chose me too.
I’m not going to take that for granted. I definitely try to give God praise and I'm so surprised that, every day I wake up, I'm just like, ‘God, wow, you’re using me? You want me to do this? When the opportunity comes, you want me to stand in front of all those people and say something?’
That's very surprising to me. I was just like, ‘God, maybe you don't remember what I did – do You remember that? That's something that I'm very surprised of … all the time. At the same time, I'm just still thankful that, I get to do this. God is good.”
I’m not going to take that for granted. I definitely try to give God praise and I'm so surprised that, every day I wake up, I'm just like, ‘God, wow, you’re using me? You want me to do this? When the opportunity comes, you want me to stand in front of all those people and say something?’
That's very surprising to me. I was just like, ‘God, maybe you don't remember what I did – do You remember that? That's something that I'm very surprised of … all the time. At the same time, I'm just still thankful that, I get to do this. God is good.”
"You know, it’s so amazing that God still chose me too ... I’m not going to take that for granted. I definitely try to give God praise and I'm so surprised that, every day I wake up, I'm just like, ‘God, wow, you’re using me? You want me to do this? When the opportunity comes, you want me to stand in front of all those people and say something?’"
"I was just like, ‘God, maybe you don't remember what I did – do You remember that? That's something that I'm very surprised of … all the time. At the same time, I'm just still thankful that, I get to do this. God is good.”
Along with grace, he noted other gems that kept him going as he continued moving forward with his music.
“I would say, keeping the focus is really important. A lot of times I've learned how to take a little criticism here and there … keep going. I've learned how to tune out the static, the noise and really just focus on the things of God. In this day and time, we got so much going on – in our social media, in our government.
It’s so important that no matter what happens, we stay focused on Jesus Christ. God knew who our president would be. God knew that this would happen. God knew that somebody’s going to walk inside of a church and shoot some people and do some crazy things. But we still have to figure out a way to keep our minds focused on Jesus Christ because in the end --- we all win. God’s got it all under control. So, that's something that I've learned.
Keeping the faith is really hard sometimes too, because of the things that go wrong all the time. I'm on the road singing and doing some amazing things for God. Then I get home, and something’s in chaos. So now I've got to … I still have to keep that faith. Sometimes it’s hard to turn the other cheek and do right. But I must press forward and keep going.”
Looking back, the modern gospel singer contemplated how he may have otherwise handled some things he encountered.
“I made a lot of decisions that were very … if I had the mindset when I first started 10 years ago that I have now, my goodness, I don't know where God would have taken me. There’s probably a lot of things that I stopped that God wanted to do. I got in the way. But, I'm so thankful. Like I said, God is still using me. And all of those things I seemed like I missed, God will bring it back – double this time, and I come back with a vengeance. I come back even stronger.
God has a plan. I want people to know that even though sometimes you may have screwed up and messed up, God can still use you. A lot of the people that God used in the Bible were people that had some issues. They had some bad issues. There were some people that stood out as almost crazy or unorthodox, but God was able to use those people for the good. I feel like I'm one of those people. God can still use you, yes, indeed.”
Jor’dan Armstrong went on to illustrate his take on new music and talked about what he would like to do as part of his future goals. His plans include music and…
“So, new music - I'm always about that. I think it's so important that we stay current, as far as releasing music. We wait so long to put out new stuff. The way that the world is moving now, every week, something new happens. People forget about that song. It’s a great song – but they forgot about that. They moved on to what Trump has tweeted.
We got to make sure that we stay in folks’ faces. We got to make sure that we keep pushing the gospel every day with something new. The way this world is … so fast now … we got to hurry up. We got to get on the mark. We got to lace up our sneakers. We can't sit back and put a song out this year, and don't come back with anything else. The ministry still has to go on. The message still has to go forward. If we keep going back to our church, and they’re singing the same song every Sunday, okay … now what's going on with that? I need to find me a church with a choir that’s giving me something new, that’s empowered me with a new song. That's my biggest thing. I definitely want to be consistent.
I was in a film – “God’s Not Dead” – yes, yes, go check it out, your boy’s in there. But, they cut a lot of the parts. I had a couple of speaking parts … oh my goodness … they cut it, cut it up. But, I was still in the film. That really opened my eyes to the film industry. I really want to get into that. Of course, everybody wants to be on TV and all of these great things. The fact that I got a chance to be in a Christian based film with a positive Christian message is exciting. This film talks about defending your faith. We have to do that a lot now in the world we live in – defend our faith on a daily basis. I think it’s so important that people go and check out that movie because they did a great job with it. But I want to do acting and more singing. That's my goal.”
Along with pursuing new ventures, he made sure to mention another reason why he has much to celebrate.
“I’m recently married … let me tell you something about that favor that God promised. When you find that wife … it happened so overwhelmingly. As soon as I got married, all these great opportunities started happening. Greater things started to happen. I was like, man, God is so faithful. He told me when I get married, I’m going to obtain that favor – I mean, even from the smallest things. Some people take big things and think favor – you walk up to your mailbox and there’s a check in there and it came out of nowhere. But we also have to be grateful for the small things.
For example, you’re at certain restaurants and the manager comes and says, ‘You know what, we're just gonna take care of everything for y’all.’ That’s favor. People don’t count that as favor. People think, oh yeah, He just gave me that. No – that’s favor. You know, we want everything to be so huge. We think that's when God shows up. It must have been God, that big ole’ thing. But no – God does all types of things.
He gives you all types of gifts and favors and shows Himself throughout our lives in even the small things. It ain’t just money. That’s all everybody wants --- money. ‘God showed me favor and gave me a thousand dollars.’ He also showed you favor when they were about to cut them lights off, they told you that there was a late fee, and they took that late fee off. Come on now – that’s favor too. So, I'm very thankful for that. A lot of that came along with me being married to this wonderful lady that I’ve chosen.”
With humor, he shared some of the changes he’s incorporated in his life since jumping the broom.
“I'm super, super excited. We've been able to travel everywhere. Now I've got to buy two of everything! Look, when I go to my favorite steakhouse, I go get the big steak. Now, I got to get two! I say, oh my God. So, I got to buy double of everything! I get a new cell phone, she wants a new cell phone – Jesus! Yeah, God is so good. He’s faithful. I couldn't ask for more. Life has been awesome and I'm super excited.”
So, Mr. Jor’dan Armstrong leaves us with the hint that he will dive into the new, while maintaining the longstanding; and in his musical endeavors and life undertakings, create and sustain a new song and sound, while hailing a demonstration of God’s love, grace, and some good clean fun.
“I would say, keeping the focus is really important. A lot of times I've learned how to take a little criticism here and there … keep going. I've learned how to tune out the static, the noise and really just focus on the things of God. In this day and time, we got so much going on – in our social media, in our government.
It’s so important that no matter what happens, we stay focused on Jesus Christ. God knew who our president would be. God knew that this would happen. God knew that somebody’s going to walk inside of a church and shoot some people and do some crazy things. But we still have to figure out a way to keep our minds focused on Jesus Christ because in the end --- we all win. God’s got it all under control. So, that's something that I've learned.
Keeping the faith is really hard sometimes too, because of the things that go wrong all the time. I'm on the road singing and doing some amazing things for God. Then I get home, and something’s in chaos. So now I've got to … I still have to keep that faith. Sometimes it’s hard to turn the other cheek and do right. But I must press forward and keep going.”
Looking back, the modern gospel singer contemplated how he may have otherwise handled some things he encountered.
“I made a lot of decisions that were very … if I had the mindset when I first started 10 years ago that I have now, my goodness, I don't know where God would have taken me. There’s probably a lot of things that I stopped that God wanted to do. I got in the way. But, I'm so thankful. Like I said, God is still using me. And all of those things I seemed like I missed, God will bring it back – double this time, and I come back with a vengeance. I come back even stronger.
God has a plan. I want people to know that even though sometimes you may have screwed up and messed up, God can still use you. A lot of the people that God used in the Bible were people that had some issues. They had some bad issues. There were some people that stood out as almost crazy or unorthodox, but God was able to use those people for the good. I feel like I'm one of those people. God can still use you, yes, indeed.”
Jor’dan Armstrong went on to illustrate his take on new music and talked about what he would like to do as part of his future goals. His plans include music and…
“So, new music - I'm always about that. I think it's so important that we stay current, as far as releasing music. We wait so long to put out new stuff. The way that the world is moving now, every week, something new happens. People forget about that song. It’s a great song – but they forgot about that. They moved on to what Trump has tweeted.
We got to make sure that we stay in folks’ faces. We got to make sure that we keep pushing the gospel every day with something new. The way this world is … so fast now … we got to hurry up. We got to get on the mark. We got to lace up our sneakers. We can't sit back and put a song out this year, and don't come back with anything else. The ministry still has to go on. The message still has to go forward. If we keep going back to our church, and they’re singing the same song every Sunday, okay … now what's going on with that? I need to find me a church with a choir that’s giving me something new, that’s empowered me with a new song. That's my biggest thing. I definitely want to be consistent.
I was in a film – “God’s Not Dead” – yes, yes, go check it out, your boy’s in there. But, they cut a lot of the parts. I had a couple of speaking parts … oh my goodness … they cut it, cut it up. But, I was still in the film. That really opened my eyes to the film industry. I really want to get into that. Of course, everybody wants to be on TV and all of these great things. The fact that I got a chance to be in a Christian based film with a positive Christian message is exciting. This film talks about defending your faith. We have to do that a lot now in the world we live in – defend our faith on a daily basis. I think it’s so important that people go and check out that movie because they did a great job with it. But I want to do acting and more singing. That's my goal.”
Along with pursuing new ventures, he made sure to mention another reason why he has much to celebrate.
“I’m recently married … let me tell you something about that favor that God promised. When you find that wife … it happened so overwhelmingly. As soon as I got married, all these great opportunities started happening. Greater things started to happen. I was like, man, God is so faithful. He told me when I get married, I’m going to obtain that favor – I mean, even from the smallest things. Some people take big things and think favor – you walk up to your mailbox and there’s a check in there and it came out of nowhere. But we also have to be grateful for the small things.
For example, you’re at certain restaurants and the manager comes and says, ‘You know what, we're just gonna take care of everything for y’all.’ That’s favor. People don’t count that as favor. People think, oh yeah, He just gave me that. No – that’s favor. You know, we want everything to be so huge. We think that's when God shows up. It must have been God, that big ole’ thing. But no – God does all types of things.
He gives you all types of gifts and favors and shows Himself throughout our lives in even the small things. It ain’t just money. That’s all everybody wants --- money. ‘God showed me favor and gave me a thousand dollars.’ He also showed you favor when they were about to cut them lights off, they told you that there was a late fee, and they took that late fee off. Come on now – that’s favor too. So, I'm very thankful for that. A lot of that came along with me being married to this wonderful lady that I’ve chosen.”
With humor, he shared some of the changes he’s incorporated in his life since jumping the broom.
“I'm super, super excited. We've been able to travel everywhere. Now I've got to buy two of everything! Look, when I go to my favorite steakhouse, I go get the big steak. Now, I got to get two! I say, oh my God. So, I got to buy double of everything! I get a new cell phone, she wants a new cell phone – Jesus! Yeah, God is so good. He’s faithful. I couldn't ask for more. Life has been awesome and I'm super excited.”
So, Mr. Jor’dan Armstrong leaves us with the hint that he will dive into the new, while maintaining the longstanding; and in his musical endeavors and life undertakings, create and sustain a new song and sound, while hailing a demonstration of God’s love, grace, and some good clean fun.
-Sources:
-Music Information & Discography:
Album | Year: Champion | 2009; Stronger | 2012; 52 Weeks of Summer | 2015; Confident (EP) | 2016; Vibes (EP) | 2017; BLSD (EP) | 2018; 2 BLSD (EP) | 2018; BLSD (Deluxe) | 2018
Link (s):
https://jordanarmstrongmusic.com/
-Wakeelah’s Picks:
Song: “No Way” | Album: Vibes | Year: 2017
Song: “I Got 2” | Album: 52 Weeks of Summer | Year: 2015
Song: “Stronger” | Album: Stronger | Year: 2012
- “Jor'dan Armstrong Artist Profile | Biography And Discography | NewReleaseToday.” Christian Music, New Christian Music - NewReleaseToday, www.newreleasetoday.com/artistdetail.php?artist_id=2797.
- Kellman, Andy. “Jor'dan Armstrong | Album Discography.” AllMusic, www.allmusic.com/artist/jordan-armstrong-mn0002398969/discography/all.
- “2 Blsd - EP by Jor'dan Armstrong.” App Store, Publisher: Disney Publishing Worldwide, 20 July 2018, itunes.apple.com/us/album/2-blsd-ep/1406585723.
-Music Information & Discography:
Album | Year: Champion | 2009; Stronger | 2012; 52 Weeks of Summer | 2015; Confident (EP) | 2016; Vibes (EP) | 2017; BLSD (EP) | 2018; 2 BLSD (EP) | 2018; BLSD (Deluxe) | 2018
Link (s):
https://jordanarmstrongmusic.com/
-Wakeelah’s Picks:
Song: “No Way” | Album: Vibes | Year: 2017
Song: “I Got 2” | Album: 52 Weeks of Summer | Year: 2015
Song: “Stronger” | Album: Stronger | Year: 2012
Wakeelah Cocroft-Aldridge is a Freelance Writer residing in Chicago, IL with her husband. Her writing includes academic writing and creative writing such as fiction, non-fiction, and poetry. Wakeelah likes to laugh and cry about the sweet somethings of life, and find out about the unique stories of others. She loves comedy, animation, extended metaphors, quiet times, and she is an avid listener of gospel music. Oh … and she likes Peppermint Stick ice cream!
Wakeelah has joined us as a Columnist, forming Purposeful Gospel Profiles, a periodic column. She hopes, as she interviews each Gospel Artist, to portray their purpose for singing gospel music and what it means to those who provide a musical narrative for the Good News of Jesus Christ.
Wakeelah has joined us as a Columnist, forming Purposeful Gospel Profiles, a periodic column. She hopes, as she interviews each Gospel Artist, to portray their purpose for singing gospel music and what it means to those who provide a musical narrative for the Good News of Jesus Christ.
“Purpose is the essential element of you. It is the reason you are on the planet at this particular time in history.
Your very existence is wrapped up in the things you are here to fulfill. Press on with purpose.” – Chadwick Boseman
Your very existence is wrapped up in the things you are here to fulfill. Press on with purpose.” – Chadwick Boseman
Disclaimer: All claims or statements in Purposeful Gospel Profiles column were deemed truthful to the best knowledge of the Columnist at the time of publication. All views or opinions by persons featured in the column do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of the Columnist or Voice of One CNC Online Magazine. The Columnist reserves the right to make any changes to the column at any time.