Rapzilla.com’s 15 Freshman of 2017


Cellus Hamilton


Cellus Hamilton, who won the Rap Showcase at Legacy Conference 2016, earned his way into this year’s Freshman class with not only strong music, but visuals and work ethic as well.

Few indie up-and-comers in Christian hip hop have released as many excellent music videos as Hamilton over the past couple of years. And if you know anything about his grind (see the mini-doc below), this frequency of quality isn’t shocking.

When did you decide that you wanted to pursue music?

I decided that I wanted to pursue music after my mom gave me the opportunity to be her hype man during the Annual Hosea Williams Feed the Hungry Concert in Atlanta. It was an event they hold annually in Atlanta every Thanksgiving and was my first time ever on stage.

My mom had recently quit performing in clubs and started doing gospel rap, so it was my first time getting to see her perform. Canton Jones, Platinum Souls and a bunch of other ATL Christian hip-hop pioneers were there performing. When I got on stage, my world shifted, and I knew I was built for this. My mom said she knew that day too. I was probably around 12 years old at that time.

What has been the most memorable moment of your career so far?

My most memorable moment was seeing my debut album The Most Beautiful on the iTunes Indie Hip-Hop list. I released the album in Nov. 2014 with no major promotion or marketing behind me.

For two months before the project released, me and my friends carried 12×12 posters of the album cover and asked people to take pictures with it and hashtag #TheMostBeautiful. We made waves on social media and a lot of people bought the album.

What should fans be on the lookout for musically from you in 2017?

Between 2014 and now, I’ve given the world a lot of free music. I also performed over 120 shows in 2016. That means every 1/3 days of the year I was grinding. I’ve given them my heart in countless freestyles and industry remixes, and I’ve released a lot of visuals.

The Lord has challenged me a lot since 2014, and I know longer am begging for the Christian hip-hop vets to notice or respect me. I know my purpose and my audience. It’s time for a new album. Spring 2017, I will without a doubt drop the album of the year.

Follow Cellus Hamilton on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Check out the other Freshmen who have been revealed.

David Daniels
David Daniels
David Daniels is a columnist at Rapzilla.com and the managing editor of LegacyDisciple.org. He has been published at Desiring God, The Gospel Coalition, Christianity Today, CCM Magazine, Bleacher Report, The Washington Times and HipHopDX.
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