One is a former dancehall queen turned gospel queen and the other you can simply call "the intellect." We are talking about Chevelle Franklin and Sherwin Gardner who will headline this weekend's "Chapter 5...Fully Loaded" Spiritual Revolution Concert. Franklin and Gardner arrived in Belize today ahead of Saturday night's concert and 7NEWS was at the airport to greet them.
Keith Swift Reporting,
Dancehall gospel royalty arrived in the VIP room at the International Airport this afternoon to flower bouquets. The genre's crowned queen is Chavelle Franklin whose break out hit was dancehall queen. She prefers now that you just call her the gospel queen.
Chevelle Franklin,
"That song came out in 1997 with myself and Beenie Man which really had established my name across the world and so in 1998 I got saved and I gave life to the Lord Jesus Christ and only him alone me wah big up."
Was there a single event that made you change from secular to gospel?
Chevelle Franklin,
"No. Basically I was touring the world and doing a lot of tours but I realized that I was still not being fulfilled, I didn't feel the peace that I really thought money would give me and all along I knew it was Jesus Christ. So one night, what surprised me was where it happened, I was on stage supposed to do dancehall queen."
From the queen to the king Sherwin Gardner who will do an encore for Belize on Saturday. This is his third trip to Belize and so you probably know that he lacks in height - he makes up for in energy.
Sherwin Gardner,
"Its just the Holy Spirit, its not about me. It's about the anointed and just heeding the voice of God. So whenever I hit the stage its about what God tells me to do and that's what I do. I he tells me to jump I jump, if he tells me to wave I wave, and however he wants me to swing I swing. This is what I am going to bring to the young people so that they can express themselves in the presence of the Lord and just feel free to enjoy yourself."
And fun is what these artists you can expect on Saturday. The way they put it is you can have fun and praise the Lord at the same time.
Chevelle Franklin,
"We going to have a good time, we going to have a dandy time. We are going to have a wonderful time."
Sherwin Gardner,
"It's going to be different from what you expect. Some people expect a sermon and they expect it to one way in terms of just boring and a lot of talk but this time we bringing the word of God with music, something that young people are accustomed to and they can relate to and something that is very easy for them to understand."
Tickets for Saturday's show are $25 in advance and $30 at the door. It is a family concert and tickets for kids are $5. Showtime is at 8 pm.
7NEWS produced for broadcast by News Director Jules Vasquez
Edited and Prepared for the internet by Keith Swift
