British gospel is fast developing its own distinct musical identity. Now it has another new dimension thanks to Nottingham's FREDDIE KOFI. He spoke to Andy Charalambous.

Freddie Kofi

In my vocabulary of strange adjectives, Freddie Kofi is to be classified as rare! Rare because he is a British black gospel artist who is about to release an album on his own label. Furthermore, it is an album that even comes complete with its own genre of self-styled music known simply as acoustic soul. In the secular market, Seal and Babyface have explored some of the parameters of acoustic based R&B but in gospel Freddie Kofi is breaking new ground.

His delicious album is entitled 'Love X Love' and should be hitting the Christian bookstores via Kingsway any day now. When it does, Freddie Kofi will join my growing list of revolutionaries waving the flag for British black gospel music in rather a big way. After listening to a rough edit, I'm also convinced that he will go on to become recognised as a major songwriting talent such is the maturity and flair that surrounds his work.

"What I've tried to do with the album is not to separate Christ from everyday circumstances," Freddie states in his deep East Midlands accent. "If you had a child or friend crossing the road and a bus was coming straight for them, your reaction would be to shout for them to get out of the way, you wouldn't necessary shout at that particular moment 'Jesus is Lord', even though you know that He is. What I feel to be more important is to say what the Lord wants me to say, rather than what I want to say about the Lord and that's what the album seeks to do."

Freddie started the 14-song project during the back end of May and had the initial recording completed by the middle of July. The album is released on Kofi's own label, Littlegiant.

Originally from Ghanaian descent but nevertheless born and raised in Nottingham, Freddie started his musical career after he left school when he was 16, growing up on the usual diet of Motown and Soul courtesy of George Benson, Earth Wind & Fire and Lionel Richie.

However, by the time Freddie was 19, it was the Winans who had become the biggest impact on his musical aspirations as Freddie states. "I didn't know what gospel music was all about so I had to dig back where I came across some old Andrae Crouch and the Winans who were the big names in gospel when I became a Christian in 1985. I just carried over the experience of writing music after I became a Christian and took it on from there. Since then I've utilised all my musical experiences - even from my secular inspirations when I was growing up listening to stuff from the 70s and '80s as they were the first sounds that caused my musical ears to wake up."

Those early sounds manifested themselves quite clearly on Kofi's last release on a double AA single a couple of years ago entitled 'I Will Never Leave You'. The single itself was released on Kofi's label Beulah Land Music before it was changed to Littlegiant earlier this year, and did much to establish his name on the gospel circuit where he had previously picked up the BBC's Radio Midland award for songwriter of the year in 1993. On top of that, he has also been fortunate enough to support the people responsible for his introduction into gospel, namely Andrae Crouch and Ron Winans. Last year Freddie adopted the role of a 'Diplomat' for British gospel music whilst on a promotional trip to the USA partly funded by the British Council.

In every sense of the word though, Kofi is firmly 'rooted' in his music and as the above plaudits go to show, he is no stranger to success. The need to continually improve his thriving ministry is always paramount and in latter day terms Kofi's inspirations are somewhat vastly different to Messrs Crouch and Winans.

"In Christian music today, it's Steven Curtis Chapman from the lyrical point of view - it's that cross culture, the folky sounds mixed with soul that I'm now drawn to where I wouldn't say that I have been influenced as such but more like inspired. I'll listen to a song that interests me and I'll think, That's really well put together, what was the starting point?' That's what makes me curious and what makes me want to find out more about an artist; what they present is probably the tip of the iceberg in what they went through to achieve the finished product.

"Then again there have been people who have made my hair stand up both musically and spiritually where I would consider that I am learning from them. I think any gospel artist would learn from guys like the Winans and Curtis Chapman."

When taking a closer examination to what Kofi is putting down on tape, you immediately identify with what he classifies as being the Acoustic Soul element in his music. Quite simply, it is a genteel blend of acoustic guitar allied to a silky and mellow soul sound, linked of course by some uncompromising lyrics that would not feel out of place in a folk song. It's not too hard to define either. In rather a subtle and positive way you do become aware of the many sounds that Kofi has listened to over the years as each track is reeled off. However, there is also a powerful message that underlines each song that in turn sets Freddie's work apart from other song writers. To put it bluntly, there is no other song writer to speak of within the black gospel field capable to pen lyrics in the same manner as Kofi such is the niche that he has now created with 'Love X Love'.

"I see my music as being true to who I am," states Freddie. "It's true to say that the pressure today is to do an album that fits on to a particular part of the shelf. There is also a great risk that you are going to do a great album that is not going to shift a unit, but I think there is a balance of saying what you like to say instead of saying what the people want to hear.

"This is where faith comes into it, I once used an analogy of a vision being likened to a pregnant woman where you know the baby will eventually come out but the only way you can stop it from happening is if you abort what God has put in you. I think those styles that I have incorporated in the album are true to my upbringing and as true to where God wants me today."

It would seem that Kofi has thought long and hard about treading the thin line of recording what probably would amount to nothing more than a total compromise as opposed to something that is nearer to the heart and one's own vision. And yet whilst the state of the UK gospel scene continues to remain in a state of exciting growth and originality albeit with a severe lack of product on the shelf, Freddie Kofi is in the best place to unleash his undoubted talent. It's also the best place to which his impact will be greatly felt once the album hits the CD racks. Like most other UK-based gospel artists though, Kofi does have an opinion as to why the black gospel scene in this country has found it hard to establish itself.

With the launch of the album arriving after the season of summer festivals comes to an end, Kofi has no fear that he has missed out on the opportunity for some maximum marketing exposure. Indeed he willl be embarking on a major tour throughout the UK kicking off at Winchester Cathedral's Youth Quake event in October that will eventually take him to Birmingham, Manchester, London and back to his native Nottingham where he currently lives with his wife Sharon.

Needless to say however, Freddie Kofi will go a long way in furthering his cause as a major player in the UK gospel scene, where the message that he will bring will be one to remind us all of just how powerful and positive the word love really is. "Love is all about giving: the thing that causes a mother to give her last coin out of her purse to her son, or a couple to walk away from divorce in order to rebuild their marriage is love. If someone can get that from the album.... then it has achieved its purpose."