Jamila Hinds-King’s passion for gospel music blossomed from her family and church upbringing in Handsworth, Birmingham, a community immersed in music.

Audrey and Carlene Mattis, sisters from Birmingham, reflect on their childhood immersed in the New Testament Church of God, which they describe as a “full-time occupation” centered on faith and music.

Carol Pemberton, born in Birmingham to Caribbean parents, was raised in the Pilgrim Holiness Church—a cornerstone of her earliest musical memories.

Lorraine Minott-Howe, born in Wolverhampton in the late 1960s, shares a rich personal history deeply intertwined with the New Testament Church of God and a lifelong passion for music.

Gary Parkes’ early life was steeped in music, primarily influenced by his mother’s singing at home.

Clifford Martin, born in Birmingham to Jamaican Windrush parents, shares his journey in faith and gospel music within the New Testament Church of God. He began singing solos and duets with his sister Diane at age seven for church “building fund programs”.

Louis Williams, a respected drummer and educator, shares a lifelong musical journey rooted in his Pentecostal upbringing in Willenhall and Wolverhampton.

Colin Peters, born in Birmingham in 1967 to Jamaican parents, began his profound musical journey in the Church of God of Prophecy.

Raised in Moseley and Balsall Heath by Jamaican parents, George’s early life was deeply rooted in the Church of God of Prophecy, attending services from infancy at Ladypool Road.

Born in Morgan’s Pass, Clarendon, Jamaica, Sister McCalla demonstrated academic prowess, completing her sixth form and passing her first-year exams at 16. Despite her ambition to become a nurse , she found her calling as a private school teacher at just five years old, teaching around 40 children.