- ContributedLynford 'Marisko' McIntosh has placed the ministry of the gospel as his top priority.
TWENTY-THREE-YEAR-OLD Lynford 'Marisko' McIntosh has been singing since he was four years old. However the young man, who has done most of his singing to date in the church, is now ready to take his singing ministry to a higher level.
Marisko has spent all his life in Montego Bay, where he has worked on the cabaret scene for a number of years. He was the lead singer of an in-house hotel band and has performed in several hotels along the north coast. During this time, the singer launched his gospel career, where he was a semi-finalist in the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission's (JCDC) Gospel Song contest. In addition, he won numerous awards for his gospel singing exploits.
However, that was then. Now Marisko is on a different path. He no longer does cabaret and his focus is on his calling as a minister of the gospel.
"In order for me to focus more on the ministry, I had to give up cabaret. When I was on the cabaret scene, I wasn't really focused, in terms of my Christianity. I realised that if I were to be an effective minister, I could no longer do cabaret. I have now rededicated my life to God and now I'm ready to do his ministry," Marisko said.
To ensure that his ministry lives on, Marisko will soon release his album entitled In a Matter of Time. While he is anxious to see his project touch the streets, the singer admits the cross has been heavy.
"The going has been rough so far, as we don't get a lot of shows and the marketing strategy that is done makes it harder," he pointed out.
Still, Marisko trods on. He is determined to bring the message of salvation through his brand of gospel music, which he said had a very slow beginning. He recalls his first show in St. Mary to promote his single In A Matter Of Time, a song which he wrote. He explained that the reception was lukewarm since most of the patrons at the venue expected him to present hardcore dancehall gospel music.
"My music was harder to reach people, since they wanted to hear reggae instead of the arranged music. However, over time, people have got used to it, so now it's much easier to present," he explained.
The talented singer, who won a gold medal for Best Male Vocalist in the JCDC Perfor-ming Arts Festival, explained confidently that he has done all the work for his album in Montego Bay. He adds that he was comfortable in doing his album in the second city, since it has all the amenities Kingston had to offer.
"I feel more focus will be on me here, since I decided to all the work from this point. The same thing that Kingston has, Montego Bay has it also, so, I didn't have to come to Kingston to do it," he said.
For now, Marisko will be promoting his album, as he intends to go all the way to do God's work.
