After a skateboarding accident in 1998,[1][2] Greenwood shifted his focus to musical writing. He and fellow rapper Jusachyl started a hip-hop group, Under One King.[3][4] During this time, Greenwood used his skater nickname 'Speedy' as his moniker.[3] In 2000, Greenwood shifted to the stage name Manafest and began to produce music independently.[3]
In 2001, Manafest debuted his EP, Misled Youth. The release garnered "Modern Rock/Alternative Song of the Year" for the song "Freedom" at the GMA CanadaCovenant Awards in 2002.[5] The following year, Manafest released his first full-length album My Own Thing and attracted the notice of Trevor McNevan of the Ontario-based rock band Thousand Foot Krutch.[6][7] This led to his signing with an internationally distributed label, BEC Recordings under the Uprok Records label.[7]
After signing on with BEC, he released his second album Epiphany in 2005,[7] The release achieved several nominations and awards.[5]
He released his third album, Glory, in 2006,. The album won the Rap/Hip Hop Album of the Year at the 2007 GMA Canada Covenant Awards, as well a nomination for Artist of the Year.[5] The album also marked Manafest's first release to be nominated in the Juno Awards.
In 2008, his fourth album, Citizens Activ, received many nominations and awards.[5] The album boosted Manafest's fame and reputation in Japan immensely.[8][9]
In 2010, Manafest debuted his fifth full-length album The Chase. The album was well-received with the single "Avalanche" charting on the Billboard Christian Songs, as well as selling over 50,000 copies of the track as of September 2011.[10][11] The album showcased a directional change for Manafest, moving from a more straight hip hop flare to a heavier rock-based rap style.
In 2011, Manafest released his first live album Live in Concert. The album won "Rap/Hip Hop Album of the Year" at the 33rd GMA Canada Covenant Awards.[12]
In 2012, he released his sixth studio album of Fighter. The album continued the previous release's heavy rock influence and garnered a nomination for Hip-Hop/Rap Album of the Year in the GMA Dove Awards.[13] Because of this album's release, Manafest fans have since become known officially as "Fighters" amongst themselves, as well as Manafest himself.[14]
In late 2013, he released his first Christmas single "California Christmas", featuring Joel Piper.[citation needed] In 2014, he released his seventh album The Moment.[15] The genre of the release deviated from his hard rock style and featured a more electronic hip hop sound.
In late 2014, he released the single "Let Go", featuring Dave Stovall of Wavorly. The track was a song that didn't make the final cut of The Moment and was later released by itself.[6] The song was briefly pulled from iTunes. He also hinted it might make his next album's track listing.[6]
He started a PledgeMusic campaign for Reborn on April 24, 2015.[16] The album released globally on October 2, 2015.
On their 2016 album Hold the Light, Bread of Stone featured Manafest on the track "Battleground".
On February 20, 2017, he launched a Kickstarter project for Stones.[17][18] It was independently released on July 21, 2017.[19] In May 2018, he launched another PledgeMusic campaign to fund Stones Reloaded,[20] a remix album and companion piece to the original album. The release was fully funded and publicly released on September 21, 2018.[21]
On September 17, 2019, after releasing several singles earlier in the year, he announced a new crowdfunding campaign in order to fund his tenth studio album This Is Not The End. The album was released on December 13, 2019.[22][23]
Manafest's genre has developed and changed over his career. After starting with a classic urban hip hop style for his first four releases, Manafest developed a style of alternative rock and rap rock by lightly mixing it into Citizens Activ, and integrating it by the time of The Chase. In 2014, with the release of The Moment, Manafest's style changed to a mixture of rap rock and electronic-based hip-hop.[24][25]
2011 nominee, Contemporary Christian/Gospel Album of the Year: The Chase
2015 nominee, Contemporary Christian/Gospel Album of the Year: The Moment
2017 nominee, Contemporary Christian/Gospel Album of the Year: Reborn
2018 nominee, Contemporary Christian/Gospel Album of the Year: Stones
Touring band
Though a solo artist himself, Manafest travels with a touring band. Adam Messinger has provided the majority of instrumentation for Manafest's studio releases throughout the years, while the band supplies the music live on tour and at shows:
In 1984, at the age of five, Chris Greenwood lost his father to suicide, leaving only him, his sister Virginia, and his mother.[2][36] A few years after, at a Bible camp,[37] he accepted Christ and became a Christian.[2] At the same camp, he also met his future wife, Melanie.[37] Around the age of fourteen, Greenwood invested himself into skateboarding and aspired to make it a career.[2] He however experienced an accident in 1998 which crippled his dreams to become a professional skater.[1][2][36] After hearing God telling him to turn his attention to music, Greenwood began songwriting and started his career as a Christian artist.[2][6][38]
In 2003, Greenwood married his wife Melanie Cardoza.[6] They have a daughter.[39]
A Dove Award is an accolade by the Gospel Music Association (GMA) of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the Christian music industry. The awards are presented annually. The awards have been held in Nashville, Tennessee every year except 2011 and 2012 when they were held in Atlanta, Georgia. The ceremonies feature live musical performances and are broadcast on TBN.
Jonah Kirsten Sorrentino, better known by his stage name KJ-52, is a Christian rapper from Tampa, Florida. The "KJ" part of his name refers to his old rap alias, "King J. Mac," a name which he later described in one of his podcasts as "horribly cheesy." "52", which is pronounced "five two", not "fifty-two", is a reference to the Biblical story of Jesus feeding the multitude with five loaves and two fish, which is also sung about in his song "Push Up" from The Yearbook and in the "KJ Five Two" on It's Pronounced 'Five Two. He was awarded the Rap/Hip Hop Recorded Song of the Year for "Never Look Away" and Rap/Hip Hop Album of the Year at the GMA Dove Awards of 2007. On July 28, 2009, KJ-52 released "End of My Rope", which is the first single for his album Five-Two Television.
Rob Wilson, better known by his stage name Fresh I.E., is a Christian rap artist from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.
The Covenant Awards are awarded to the Canadian gospel music industry by GMA Canada, the Gospel Music Association of Canada. The association is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to promote the growth and ministry of Christian music in Canada. The ceremonies are held annually in cities across the nation.
Glory is the third studio album by the Christian rapper Manafest. It was released on September 26, 2006 under BEC Recordings.
Promise Jason Jamal Shepherd, professionally known as Promise, is a Canadian rapper from Toronto. He is also 1/2 of Hip-Hop supergroup Perfeck Strangers, based in Scarborough, Ontario. Promise has collaborated with Jhené Aiko, Montell Jordan, LeCrae, No Malice, MC Jin, J. Ivy, Marco Polo, eLZhi of Slum Village, Royce Da 5'9" of Slaughterhouse, Rhymefest, and Ton3x. He has also collaborated heavily with fellow Toronto native Drake, whom he met on the set of Degrassi: The Next Generation.
Epiphany is the second studio album by Christian rapper Manafest. It was released July 19, 2005 under BEC Recordings. The release also marks Manafest's first label album, as well as the start of his long-time affiliation with BEC.
Citizens Activ is the fourth studio album by the Christian rapper Manafest. It was released on May 28, 2008 in Japan and shortly after released globally on June 24, under BEC Recordings.
Adam "Messy" Messinger is a Grammy Award-winning Canadian-born record producer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist based in Los Angeles, California. He is a producer for Canadian reggae band Magic!, but was initially a producer/songwriter as a member of the production duo The Messengers—both along with Nasri Atweh—earning credits on a multitude of successful singles and albums.
The Chase is the fifth studio album by the Christian rapper Manafest. It was released on March 30, 2010, under BEC Recordings, in association with Uprok Records.
Rehab is the fourth studio album by Christian hip hop artist Lecrae. It was released on September 28, 2010 on Reach Records. According to the Reach Records website, the album's "motto" is "The Christian life is an entrance into rehab." Centered on release and freedoms from inhibiting addictions and habits, Rehab is a highly conceptual album. Rehab is nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Rock or Rap Gospel Album at the 53rd Grammy Awards. The album was named the Best Album of 2010 in the "Best of 2010: Rapzilla.com's Staff Picks" awards, and Lecrae was also named Artist of the Year. The song "Background" and the album itself were nominated for Rap/Hip Hop Recorded Song of the Year and Rap/Hip Hop Album of the Year, respectively, at the 42nd Annual GMA Dove Awards.
Fighter is the sixth studio album by the Christian rapper Manafest. It was released on April 10, 2012 under BEC Recordings. The album was, in majority, produced by Seth Mosley.
DFS Records is a record label founded in 2003 by record producer Dan "DFS" Johnson. The independent label was the former home to award-winning Canadian recording artist Promise. In 2003 the label released its first single "Tonite" featuring Aion Clarke from Promise's debut album The Promise That Heaven Kept, it went on to reach #4 on the Rhythmic Top 10 - Canadian Christian Radio Chart.
The Moment is the seventh studio album by the Christian rapper Manafest. It was released on August 5, 2014 under BEC Recordings. The album was fan-funded through a PledgeMusic campaign.
Live in Concert is a live album from the Christian rapper Manafest. It was released on June 7, 2011 under BEC Recordings.
My Own Thing is the debut studio album by the Christian rapper Manafest. It was independently released on December 2, 2003.
Misled Youth is the debut EP and release by the Christian rapper Manafest. It was released independently on October 4, 2001.
Reborn is the eighth studio album by the Christian rapper Manafest. It was independently released on October 2, 2015. The album was distributed by The Fuel Music. The release was fan-funded through a PledgeMusic campaign and is Manafest's first fully independent album in over a decade.
Stones is the ninth studio album by Canadian Christian rapper Manafest. It was independently released on July 21, 2017. The release was fan-funded through a Kickstarter campaign and is Manafest's second fully independent album since his departure from BEC Recordings.
↑ In 2007 Manafest also received GMAC nominations for: Artist of the Year, Album of the Year: Glory, and Recorded Song of the Year: "Bounce". CGMA 2007 Covenant Award NomineesArchived February 4, 2009, at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved November 11, 2008.
↑ "John Panzer of Fight the Fury". Solid Rock Radio. April 24, 2021. Retrieved January 16, 2022. He has also been the touring guitarist for Veridia, Disciple, Manafest, and other rock bands in the faith-based music industry.
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