Teenage rap sensation DC3: ‘My music is a way to share God’

DC3 might be the most notable name in Christian rap. Having recently celebrated his first million-streamed song (‘I Know’), the viral powerhouse spoke to me about his meteoric rise and keeping God at the heart of it all. 

We have to talk about your explosion on social media. Your first viral moment was in 2020 — tell us a bit about it.

Yeah, 2020 was a very pivotal year for me. When lockdown hit, it affected all of us. We had to change the way we lived, and it forced us to stay inside. I found a lot of boredom during that time because I was so used to hanging out with friends and doing different things. Being stuck in the house with nothing to do made me feel a bit useless. So I just started doing a lot of freestyles. We had a community in the rap scene for upcoming artists, and we used to support each other. I kept going from there, and it just didn’t stop.

When lockdown eased and we were able to go outside again, that’s when I started going to the studio and really writing songs. 2020 was important for me because I was able to build quite a few supporters who were rocking with my music at that time.

To really put things in perspective — you were 14. Most 14-year-olds during lockdown were just playing games with their friends. But you were writing lyrics and sharing them online. So from that age, you knew you wanted to be a rapper?

Yeah, I’d say from that age. Because most of my life is rooted in the church, it wasn’t really a problem, but it raised some eyebrows. In African tradition, rap music isn’t really viewed as a positive thing. My parents would always say, “Why not Christian rap?” and I just thought, ‘Nah.’ But last year, I made that change, and I saw the positive effect it had — not just on my family and how they view music, but also on other people. It showed them that Christian music isn’t just this cringy thing you don’t listen to. It’s not popular, but you can actually make it listenable for everyone.

Tell us the meaning behind the name, DC3.

DC is just [the initials of] my first name and my last name. I made it when I was younger, and I think when I was about 14, that’s when I wanted to add the three. It’s just a minor addition. The three represents me being the youngest because I have two siblings — an older brother and an older sister — so I’m the third youngest.

Would you say it’s been your siblings who have inspired your career?

100%. My sister actually introduced me to rap music, and I’d say it kind of stems from there. I feel like if my sister had never shown me rap, or if I had never heard it from her, I wouldn’t have had any interest in it. And with my brother, I’d say he’s inspired me in terms of us being creative together since we were young. He helps me get out of my shell and be more creative. When we were younger, we used to play with toys and different things, and that’s now progressed into us wanting to do more things within media and online — just bringing our personalities to life online.

What was the song that your sister introduced you to?

It was definitely a Stormzy song. I’m unsure which one because she played a lot.

What was it about Stormzy’s voice or the music that made you think, ‘Yeah, I want to do this’?

I feel like it was just hearing the type of beat used and his voice on that instrumental. It was something different from what I was used to. When I was younger, I was only allowed to listen to Christian music, so hearing something outside of that was completely new to me. And I’ve always liked poetry, so hearing it delivered at a faster tempo just sounded very cool.

What kind of Christian music were you listening to?

A lot of Zimbabwean groups. I grew up listening to music from back home, where my parents are from. Religion is so important in our family, so that was the main kind of music we all connected to.

Why do you think so many people have connected with your music?

I try to imagine if I were a supporter of DC3 — waiting for his preview — how would I react? If I’m scrolling on social media, what would make me stop and pay attention? I try to make music from other people’s perspectives. One thing I do is ask a lot of people around me, and even strangers, “What do you think of this?” or “What do you think of that?” so I can get an idea of what people want and expect.

In terms of the music itself, I write exactly how I feel in the moment. Any song I’ve released — when I’m promoting it and pushing it — that’s exactly how I’m feeling at that time. Each song contains a different theme that people can follow and apply to their lives.

You’re still a teenager. How do you balance studying, growing up, and having a career that’s taking off?

I’m not going to lie and act like everything is going smoothly. It’s quite difficult to juggle education and music at the same time. But I feel like if God didn’t want me to be in education right now, then I wouldn’t be. There’s a reason I’m still here, so I feel like I need to keep pushing. I’ve nearly finished my education, so I’m just trying to maintain the same level of a studious mindset rather than focusing only on music. I want to succeed in every aspect and make those around me proud.

One of your key quotes is “Greatness takes time.” Tell us about that.

I can be very impatient, but I always say that to remind myself. Especially with music — a couple of years ago, even a couple of months ago — I used to have the mindset of “I need to make it out.” But I’m realising that it’s all in God’s timing. There’s not much I can do — if God wants it to happen, it will happen.

Your Christian faith is central to who you are. How did you get to this place?

Trying to be closer to God came naturally from being in church because my dad is a pastor — I couldn’t really avoid it even if I wanted to. But when I was in my early teens, I reached a crossroads. I remember sitting in a sermon where someone said, “Just because you come from a church-going family or your parents are involved in the church, it doesn’t mean you automatically go to heaven.” That really hit me.

I’ve learned that just being around people who worship God isn’t enough — you have to have your own relationship with God. I always thought that because my dad is a pastor and my mum is involved in the church, I was kind of set. But that doesn’t mean anything. Now, I view my relationship with God the same way I do with my parents. I don’t just talk to my mum and dad in the morning and at night — I talk to them throughout the day. That’s how it should be with God.

What have been some of the messages that you’ve got back from people that have really met Jesus through your songs?

I think just seeing messages from people saying, “Your music has helped me through tough times,” is incredible. Even today, someone sent me something like that. For me, I’m just making music from the room that I’m in. I don’t go to big studios; it’s not a big team — it’s just me and my family.

So seeing my music reach people across the UK makes me know that what I’m doing is good and can help at least one person. Even trying not to focus on numbers, I remind myself that if one person is impacted by my music, it’s worth it. That really pushes me. It’s given me a lot of confidence to keep going, even when it feels hard, because if I were to stop, it would minimise the chance of someone getting to know about God. I look at my music as a way to share God every time I post or mention anything to do with music.

What’s next? Any albums or concerts to look forward to?

I’d say you have to wait and see! I just posted a snippet of a new single I’ll be dropping very soon. In terms of projects — you’ll have to wait and see. All I’ll say is: 100%, this year!

DC3 was speaking to Chantelle Johnson on Premier Gospel. Hear the full interview at premier.plus/DC3