The face of Namibian gospel
Starting from the bottom and now she's here... Maranatha Goroh shares her musical journey with tjil.
Growing up in a Christian household with her father a pastor, one would assume that she didn't have the option of pursuing any other career or genre, but Maranatha Goroh says this was her calling and wouldn't have it any other way. The damsel with a golden voice has been doing the most with her career which only started in 2015 by scooping awards, getting gigs out of Namibia as far as Dubai, and releasing her album. Indeed she is the face of Namibian gospel. The trick, according to Maranatha, is for one to live unapologetically themselves.
Maranatha says it's all about hard work and the misconceptions that people have about the gospel genre are misleading. With her whole family having invested in music it was easy for her to kick off her career. Maranatha recalls her parents not forcing her and her siblings to live a certain way but to always to be true to themselves. The problems that she had as a teen made her closer to God and through this time she grew closer to God. “I would listen to my father's radio album from when he was in university. My break came in 2014 when she sang before Benny Hinn at an event in South Africa and TBN offered me a recording contract which I turned down due to commitments I have in Namibia. My father then decided to help me record my album here in Namibia. I have never looked back,” she said.
With little recording experience Maranatha set into studio to record her first album titled Smile on which she featured gospel artists like Effy and D-Naff. She said it was very different from what she knew as she was used to performing live. “I love being with a band and then the magic happens. Performing with a back track is limiting and I don't think my fans will get their money's worth if they come to a show and I don't have a live band. Being in studio was totally new and challenging, yet a learning experience. My producer told me to feel a certain song and I began to cry which was powerful,” she said. The album is available at Antonio's Arts in town. From the album's work, Maranatha was awards NAMAs Best Gospel Song and Best Live Performance of the year 2017. She says the year 2016 was terrible for her and her winning was all God and she realised that He can do wonders.
Maranatha says gospel is all about the message and the content that one has in their lyrics and has nothing to do with the genre as one can sing gospel on a hip hop, pop or reggae beat. This she believes is the misconception that Namibians have about gospel music. She has invested time and effort in her music to the extent of her getting asked to perform outside Namibia which is quite rare for Namibian gospel artists. Maranatha recently came back from touring in South Africa and Nigeria. She will also be opening for America RNB singer Omarion. “You have Kirk Franklin performing at the Grammys and at circular events but you will never see him deviate from his message. I look up to people like that because at such events that you get people who need to hear the word. I will still be singing gospel,” she said. Maranatha says artists should strive to be unique in their sound and music and that will help open doors in the country and outside our borders too. Gospel artists can send their music videos to One Gospel music channel which can get them out and known.
Maranatha says the Namibian gospel industry is growing but it could do better to reach status of other countries' standards. She says there is too much competition in the industry which is caused by a lack of a united front. “There should be more initiatives like the Ongoma Awards but most importantly, let's stop this competition attitude. For anyone who wants to sing gospel, know that it is not a church, it's not a genre but about conveying the message. Be willing to do that and you will go far,” she says. Maranatha has put all her touring on hold to work on her music video that will drop this year.
June Shimuoshili
Maranatha says it's all about hard work and the misconceptions that people have about the gospel genre are misleading. With her whole family having invested in music it was easy for her to kick off her career. Maranatha recalls her parents not forcing her and her siblings to live a certain way but to always to be true to themselves. The problems that she had as a teen made her closer to God and through this time she grew closer to God. “I would listen to my father's radio album from when he was in university. My break came in 2014 when she sang before Benny Hinn at an event in South Africa and TBN offered me a recording contract which I turned down due to commitments I have in Namibia. My father then decided to help me record my album here in Namibia. I have never looked back,” she said.
With little recording experience Maranatha set into studio to record her first album titled Smile on which she featured gospel artists like Effy and D-Naff. She said it was very different from what she knew as she was used to performing live. “I love being with a band and then the magic happens. Performing with a back track is limiting and I don't think my fans will get their money's worth if they come to a show and I don't have a live band. Being in studio was totally new and challenging, yet a learning experience. My producer told me to feel a certain song and I began to cry which was powerful,” she said. The album is available at Antonio's Arts in town. From the album's work, Maranatha was awards NAMAs Best Gospel Song and Best Live Performance of the year 2017. She says the year 2016 was terrible for her and her winning was all God and she realised that He can do wonders.
Maranatha says gospel is all about the message and the content that one has in their lyrics and has nothing to do with the genre as one can sing gospel on a hip hop, pop or reggae beat. This she believes is the misconception that Namibians have about gospel music. She has invested time and effort in her music to the extent of her getting asked to perform outside Namibia which is quite rare for Namibian gospel artists. Maranatha recently came back from touring in South Africa and Nigeria. She will also be opening for America RNB singer Omarion. “You have Kirk Franklin performing at the Grammys and at circular events but you will never see him deviate from his message. I look up to people like that because at such events that you get people who need to hear the word. I will still be singing gospel,” she said. Maranatha says artists should strive to be unique in their sound and music and that will help open doors in the country and outside our borders too. Gospel artists can send their music videos to One Gospel music channel which can get them out and known.
Maranatha says the Namibian gospel industry is growing but it could do better to reach status of other countries' standards. She says there is too much competition in the industry which is caused by a lack of a united front. “There should be more initiatives like the Ongoma Awards but most importantly, let's stop this competition attitude. For anyone who wants to sing gospel, know that it is not a church, it's not a genre but about conveying the message. Be willing to do that and you will go far,” she says. Maranatha has put all her touring on hold to work on her music video that will drop this year.
June Shimuoshili
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