E Tizz: Im not ashamed of the Gospel

With an album title like What I Gotta Say, it should come as no surprise that Romans 1.16 – “I am not ashamed of the Gospel” – is one of E Tizz’s favourite verses.

Telling the world about Jesus and the saving, life-changing power of the Gospel is the message running through his sophomore project that landed last month – ending a three year wait for fans who were blown away by his debut, Sound of My Soul, back in 2009.

So what has one of Britain’s best gospel hip hop talents got to say?

“What I got to say is my experiences, but it’s also what I’m obligated to say – that the Gospel can save lives,” he told Breathecast.

One of the tracks from the album that captures this heartfelt desire is “Thank God That I’m Saved”.

He shares: “I look out and I think, boy, what I wasn’t saved? Where would I be if it weren’t for Christ and His grace?”

His personal favourite on the album, though, is “Hero”.

“I hate listening to my own music, that’s just a personal thing,” he quips.

“But if I had to pick one I’d have to say ‘Hero’. I like the message behind it. The world really gasses about a million and one fictional heroes when in actual fact we have the true hero who really did save us from death when he died on the cross and yet he doesn’t get no accolade like Spiderman does.”

What I Gotta Say sees something of a musical transition from a more textbook hip hop sound to electro-pop.

But the sounds he embraces at any given time are “what I felt most comfortable with”, he says.

Since his debut, he’s done a free mix tape and collaborated with other artists on their music projects. It was such a financial stretch, he admits, that the album almost didn’t happen.

“I’m a family man, husband and father before any of this music stuff and those are my responsibilities and if these don’t happen, the music doesn’t happen,” he told Breathecast.

But, happily for us, the album did happen for us to enjoy and if there is one message he wants people to take away from it, it is that they would be filled with the same passion he has to tell the world that they can find what they are looking for in Jesus.

“That they would feel held to share the Gospel and that they would feel not ashamed to share the Gospel,” he says.

“Like Romans 1.16, we need to be yelling it from the hilltops. You shouldn’t be nervous. I know it’s easier said than done but if you can get over that hurdle where you are worried about what people are going to say and switch it on them and make them feel uncomfortable and throw that Gospel out like it’s nothing, then you’ll see, people will - if it’s the Lord’s will - they will change and be affected by it.”