Renowned Gospel Singer And Songwriter, Dr. Panam Percy Paul, Has Revealed That He Declined A Lucrative ยฃ24 Million Record Deal In 1995 Because It Required Him To Limit The Number Of Times He Mentioned โJesusโ In His Songs.
In An Interview With Pastor Emmanuel Iren, Paul Shared That The Three-Year Contract, Valued At Approximately N7 Billion At The Time, Came With Conditions That Would Have Compromised His Faith.
The Record Label Reportedly Proposed That He Use Alternative Terms Like โRighteous Oneโ Or โGreatest Loverโ Instead Of Directly Mentioning Jesus.
โThe Catch Was, โCan You Reduce The Number Of Times You Call The Name Jesus In Your Songs?โโ Paul Recounted. โOne Of Them Even Said To Me, โYou Actually Donโt Need To Mention The Name Jesus.
You Can Call Him Other Names.โ I Was Shocked, So I Told Them, โYou Can Keep The Money While I Keep The Name.โโ
The Veteran Gospel Artist Also Criticized The Increasing Commercialization Of Gospel Music, Stating That Record Labels And Marketers Now Dictate How Artists Create Their Music.
โToday, The Extreme Is That The Music Ministry Has Now Become A Music Industry,โ He Lamented. โThe Industry Now Dictates To The Ministers What To Do, How To Sing, And When To Sing.โ