The Gospel Shout

BY ANDREW AND SHIREEN MORRISON

Grammy-nominee and Maverick City singer, Ryan Ofei, speaks with fellow gospel artist, Coco Dupree, about his new EP Limitless Worship, faith, inspiration and whether a collaboration with Stormzy and Justin Bieber could be on the cards…

COCO DUPREE (CD): We’ve just listened to some of your new music, and I feel privileged; it felt like the atmosphere shifted. If I were there by myself, I’d have definitely been on my knees on the floor! RYAN OFEI (RO): Thank you! That’s what we want. Music that evokes emotion, truth and spirit.

CD: For those hearing about you for the first time, who is Ryan Ofei?

RO: Ryan Ofei is a son, a brother, a friend, a pastor, a musician and an artist. I love God, I love His people, and I love cultivating ways in which we can get to know Him more.

CD: Before music, you were heavily into sports. How did that transition from sports into music take place?

RO: Sports was a creative avenue for me, music was another avenue. My favourite was sports, and I played American football for years. I had scholarship offers and, at the time, I definitely felt this was the path I’d be taking. But during my last year of high school, I got seriously injured. I saw how that made my mom feel, and how it made me feel. I asked myself: “Am I going to be able to carry this on for a long time?” It didn't feel like it would be the case, so I made the hard decision to drop sports, and I started trying to figure out what God really wanted me to do. That was my journey to university, where I found music again.