Stephen Wiley (born 1958) is an American

rapper Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...

and minister, who is often credited as the first artist to release a

Christian rap Christian hip hop (originally gospel rap, also known as Christian rap, gospel hip hop or holy hip hop) is a subgenre of contemporary Christian music and hip hop music. It emerged from urban contemporary music and Christian media in the United S ...

album. Page 3

Biography

Wiley was born in 1958 and grew up in

Muskogee, Oklahoma Muskogee () is the thirteenth-largest city in Oklahoma and the county seat of Muskogee County. Home to Bacone College, it lies approximately southeast of Tulsa. The population of the city was 36,878 as of the 2020 census, a 6.0 percent decrease ...

. A

University of Oklahoma The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two Territories became the state of Oklahom ...

graduate, Wiley began a career as a jazz drummer in 1979. By 1982, Wiley was performing rap music with Christian lyrics, and in 1984 he took a job as chaplain at a juvenile detention center. In 1985, Wiley released the album ''Bible Break'', the title track of which received airplay on

Christian radio Christian radio is a Christian media radio format that focus on programming with a Christian message. Many such broadcasters play contemporary Christian music, though many programs include sermons, radio dramas, as well as news and talk progra ...

. A 1988 article in ''Spin'' magazine nicknamed Wiley the "Grandmaster of God". ''Bible Break'' was later acknowledged as the first Christian rap album by

T-Bone The T-bone and porterhouse are steaks of beef cut from the short loin (called the sirloin in Commonwealth countries and Ireland). Both steaks include a "T"-shaped lumbar vertebra with sections of abdominal internal oblique muscle on each side ...

in his 2002 song "Our History". Wiley would later serve as assistant pastor/youth minister at the predominantly-black Crenshaw Christian Center in Los Angeles, CA under

televangelist Televangelism (wikt:tele-, tele- "distance" and "evangelism," meaning "Christian ministry, ministry," sometimes called teleministry) is the use of media, specifically radio and television, to communicate Christianity. Televangelists are minister ...

Frederick K.C. Price. He eventually released a total of six albums, with ''Rhapsody'' in 1991 including a guest appearance by the gospel group

Witness In law, a witness is someone who has knowledge about a matter, whether they have sensed it or are testifying on another witnesses' behalf. In law a witness is someone who, either voluntarily or under compulsion, provides testimonial evidence, e ...

. Wiley later founded the Praise Center Family Church in Muskogee and

Tulsa, Oklahoma Tulsa () is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 47th-most populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 census. It is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region with ...

where he serves as pastor. He is also the Assistant Vice President, Director of Christian Ministries, and Assistant Professor of Religion at

Bacone College Bacone College, formerly Bacone Indian University, is a private tribal college in Muskogee, Oklahoma. Founded in 1880 as the Indian University by missionary Almon C. Bacone, it was originally affiliated with the mission arm of what is now Americ ...

in Muskogee where he teaches full-time.

Discography

* ''Bible Break'' (Brentwood Music, 1985) * ''Rappin for Jesus'' (Brentwood Music, 1986) * ''Rap it Up'' (Brentwood Music, 1987) * ''Get Real'' (Brentwood Music, 1989) * ''Rhythm and Poetry'' (StarSong Records, 1990) * ''Rhapsody'' (StarSong Records, 1991)

Citations

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wiley, Stephen Performers of Christian hip hop music Living people 1958 births Musicians from Tulsa, Oklahoma University of Oklahoma alumni Bacone College faculty