Kassim 'Moses' GrantWhen Kassim Grant was lying on a hospital bed, little did he know that he would soon be singing for the Lord.
Kassim or 'Moses' as he is called, was shot three times one night when gunmen broke into his house.
He was shot in the face, with the bullet exiting through his head, in the stomach and in the buttocks by members of another gang with whom his gang had a dispute. Two weeks later, he was back on the road but this time instead of avenging his injuries, he had a story to tell.
Moses got his name after a series of pastors told him that God had a purpose for him and that he had been called to bring people to Christ. He said it was after that producer Danny Brownie gave him the name Moses
Kassim, who has been deejaying gospel for the past four and a half years, was a part of the group called the KGs which was made up of himself and Mr. Gallimore. The group was named by gospel singer Ziggy Soul, who had given them the name because both had the same initials.
However, both unwillingly embarked on solo careers after they had started doing solo recordings in the studio.
"When we met Danny, and we started singing, me find myself a write songs and Gallimore start write him own song. We started recording our own songs. Because of this, we couldn't go out there as KGs when I was the only person doing my songs. So, we worked something out that we would both use our names and still do combinations if we want to," he said.
The friendship between Moses and Mr. Gallimore dates back to high school, when both would clash lyrically with each other, with Moses imitating Bounty Killer and Mr. Gallimore acting out the part of Beenie Man.
"Music is a thing you're born into. You can't just wake up at 20 and decide you are going to take it up. You have to have it from childhood, from you're bout five or six," Moses explained.
Moses, who became a Christian shortly after he left the hospital, said that being shot had nothing to do with his conversion. Rather, he had gone to summer camp in the hope of giving the community of Rema, where he grew up, a break. It was while at camp he turned his life around.
Kassim, like Mr. Gallimore, also recalls the Gospel Train stageshow when they were booed by the audience. While Mr. Gallimore recalls it as memorable, for Moses it is quite the opposite since it was embarrassing.
He recalls being stuck on stage as the crowd showed their disapproval of them deejaying on the 'street sweeper rhythm'.
Moses laughs when he remembers the moment, especially when he talks about the comments that he got from Tommy Cowan, who thought they had done well when they had left the stage.
"They never had any problems with us but they couldn't stomach the hardcore rhythm. That was four and a half years ago," he said.
From that time, he has never had that problem again, especially since he is now under the wings of Danny Brownie, whom he sees as a father.
Moses, who is 21 and has a son, says Brown has taught him certain basic things about stage performances, such as watching the reaction of the audience at the back, since they determine how well you are doing.
As for album plans, he has rested that in the lap of Danny Brownie, who he says has been guiding them thus far.
"Every time someone asks me that, I tell them ask Danny. He will allow me to start working on the album when the time is right," he said.
