Why "The Prophecy?"
I've been asked why I chose the name, Prophecy.
Sometime in '06 I was freestyling and randomly referred to myself as Prophecy in the verse. I later found that Webster defines Prophecy as "a prediction of the future made under divine inspiration." Sounded dope to me so I ran with it. Years later, the true meaning of Prophecy became evident and that's the bigger story.
God saved me in an unconventional way. Never grew up in a church. Always kind of felt like God existed but not in a way that moved me to build a relationship with Him.
I wrote my first verse in '96 at the age of 6 and have been writing poetry and seriously recording hip hop ever since. In that time, I've opened for Paul Wall, Cory Gunz (back when he first signed to YMCMB), had a song featured in the opening scene of Cedric the Entertainer's film, "Dance Fu," toured the country, organized college concerts, etc. At any rate, by '08, I was your typical (yet virtually unknown) rapper. As cliche as it sounds, women, weed, and money were my vices. Don't get me wrong - I had just started college and had grown up with a decent family background, but my personal ambitions were shallow in some ways. Somewhere along the line I ended up building on a shaky foundation.
Around that time I made a lot of enemies in several parts of Chicago and south of the city. Fights were an everyday thing.
Then I get the news that my Aunt, Uncle, and cousin died in a car crash in Ghana. As my mother grieved, she started meeting regularly with a Pastor for prayer. At the same time, I started having this recurring dream of being shot and killed. Dreams so vivid that I would wake up with my adrenaline rushing, clutching my chest where I thought I'd been hit. Being inebriated only added to the paranoia. I started shopping for a gun and after finding a seller, I remember us planning to meet on a Wednesday afternoon. Ironically, it was the same day my mother asked that I finally come with her to meet this Pastor. I planned to buy the 9mm after the meeting. This should tell you how much the Enemy had a hold of me during this time in my life.
We meet in this computer store/Internet cafe on the Northside of Chicago. The Pastor asks my mother to leave the room. Now it's just me, the Pastor and a space heater in this warm, small room in the back of his store. We prayed together and he began to prophesy. He saw a vision of me dead in a pool of blood. He told me about things that had happened that only me and God knew.
This is where my life changes.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EB9cnMGnATg&w=853&h=480]
By the power of the Holy Spirit, he laid out God's vision for my life. Down to the details of my future in business & media, but still vague enough for me to wonder how it would all come to pass. God had spoken. I received it. I read the Bible with divine understanding for the first time. It was an uncomfortable transition at first but over time, my mind changed. My music changed. My life changed. (2 Corinthians 5:17). I kept the name Prophecy but now, it held more weight.
As I continued to grow in Christ...
I found ways to be myself, enjoy hip hop, and embrace elements of pop culture & keep with politics without comprising with secularism or letting it re-define who I am in Christ. Like myself, other young Christians struggle with this dichotomy. So while this site is a way for me to share news, music, art, and my perspectives, the blog portion will sometimes serve as a platform to build each other up in the Lord and discuss those issues that affect us socially, physically, and ultimately spiritually. I invite you to read, comment, share your wisdom, and please share this space with others. And finally, thanks for making it to the end of this post!!
May God bless you.
-Dometi "The Prophecy" Pongo