With the release of his sophomore album, “Struggle Muszak,” Christian hip hop artist St. John presents a timeless work of inspiration, projected to breathe life into the everyday struggles of humanity. Amid his signature southern-melodic flow of spiritual consciousness, “Struggle Muszak” is a reflective work. Building upon the insight of his struggles, the album is personal, yet all-encompassing. With subtle tones of Revelation 12:11, [“And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony. . .”], St. John creatively fuses internal, external and double rhyme schemes, along with poetic metaphors to inspire those in the midst of hard times. “Every individual is dealing with some type of struggle, whether physical, mental or spiritual,” St. John explains. “In struggle, we need God to breathe on us, which in Hebrew, is ‘Ruwach,’ meaning to inspire . . . we need God to inspire us.” In 2008, fueled by a passion for hip hop and a desire to offer God the ‘best lyrics and tightest beats,’ John Hampton, a minister of the Gospel, artistically known as St. John, emerged from Huntsville, Alabama with a revelatory debut album, “Dirt Road Experience”. An eclectic mix of urban tales with a rustic-prophetic feel, reminiscent of his childhood in small town Emelle, AL, “Dirt Road Experience” delved beyond common religious expressions and surface messages, to a simplistic yet unconventional evangelistic approach. “’Dirt Road’ symbolized a lonely and despised place, but it was the place where I had the greatest experience of God,” says St. John. “Dirt road is the bottom, the lowest you get. At the bottom of asphalt, which represents beauty and comfort, is a rough and bumpy dirt road. It’s the foundation.” Standing on the foundational strength of his first album, St. John’s “Struggle Muszak,” continues to push traditional envelopes, as a classic offering, equipped to compel listeners to “get up and live”. On the title track and first single, “Struggle Muszak,” St. John lyrically defends this idea by addressing present-day societal issues. Yet, consistent with the ‘dirt road’ revelation of God being near in hard times, he offers a modernized rendition of the hymn book classic “By and By,” as well as the uplifting “I Can”. Accompanied by strong lyrical content and ear-grabbing tracks, the new album also features distinct collaborations with vocalists: Stevia Hunes, Tam Bodie, Larinda Donnell and Sherice Tomlin. Songwriter/producer, Kelvin Wooten, whose writing and production credits include: Mary J. Blidge, Anthony Hamilton, Josh Turner, and Jill Scott, returns as a featured producer on the album. Like the project, his life bears a similar collective unity and support. “My wife is very supportive,” says St. John. “She, along with my pastor, [Bobby Sledge, of Victory World Outreach, Huntsville], and first lady, always encourage the uniqueness of my gifts.” A father who reverently calls his children his ‘legacy’, and a thinker who carefully thinks out every lyric he pens, St. John takes a defining moment to reflect when asked what he is most proud of in life. After a 10-second pause, he replies: “I’m most proud of the fact I never gave up.” After listening to “Struggle Muszak,” one can only imagine how listeners will be proud of that fact too.