Who is Kirk Franklin?

The great majority of the patrons who turned up at the recent ‘Fun in the Son’ free concert at the National Stadium went to see and hear Kirk Franklin more than any of the other artistes. His reputation for giving scintillating performances preceded him, and some people were not going to miss him for the world.

Franklin came, saw and conquered. Or did he?

While many people enjoyed his onstage ‘antics’ thoroughly, many are still seething and trying to come to terms with what they saw. Wearing only a ‘marina’ (merino vest) and a pair of knee-length truncated jeans, Franklin danced, gyrated, twerked, pranced, twirled, shimmied, etc. Some social media posts even likened his moves to that of a go-go dancer’s.

The condemnations flowed like the sweat that cascaded from Franklin’s face to his chest. His attire and gyrations, for many of the patrons, were in stark contrast to what is expected from a Christian, especially during a public performance. Moreover, it was a family occasion.

And the international media did not miss the furor created by Franklin’s appearance and performance. The headline, ‘Kirk Franklin draws ire of Christians for dress, gyrating performance at Jamaican gospel concert’, was emblazoned on one of the pages of The Christian Post on Wednesday. Founded in 2004, The Christian Post is an American non-denominational, conservative, evangelical Christian online newspaper based in Washington, DC.

The lead paragraph of the story by senior reporter Leonardo Blair, says, “Gospel artiste Kirk Franklin is drawing the ire of conservative Christians in Jamaica for gyrating and flexing his biceps while ministering in a tank top and shorts at ‘Fun in the Son’, a popular annual gospel concert sponsored by Best Dressed Chicken, a brand of the company Jamaica Broilers Group, which is well known for their commitment to Judeo-Christian values.”

Blair quoted Jamaica Broilers’ website as saying, “At Jamaica Broilers Group, we are committed to staying true to the core. Our core values are based on Judeo-Christian principles and form the foundation on which our business is built and on which we are encouraged to conduct our lives.

“We believe God has blessed us, so we want to bless others. We are about transforming the lives of people for Jesus Christ, so that they can positively impact the future of our country. Our hope is that this Gospel Festival will change lives by providing spiritually uplifting, wholesome, fun-filled activities where people can celebrate their love of God with their family and friends.”

He went on to quote some of the negative feedback posted on social media, and he also says, “Jamaica Broilers Group President and CEO Christopher Levy told The Christian Post in a statement that the company had ‘expected more’ from Franklin”.

“When we engage an artiste, it is with a degree of trust that the artiste will be aware and sensitive to their audience. We expected more from Mr Franklin,” said Levy, who is also described on the company’s website as ‘a follower of Christ’ who ‘attributes his success to an abiding trust and faith in the Lord’s guidance.’,’’ another quotation from Blair’s article says. But, who really is Kirk Franklin?

A native of Fort Worth, Texas, Kirk Dewayne Franklin was born on January 26, 1970. He is an American songwriter, choir director, gospel singer, and rapper, best known for leading urban contemporary gospel and Christian R&B ensembles, such as The Family, God’s Property, and One Nation Crew (1NC), among many others.

He has won numerous awards, including many Grammy Awards, for which he was nominated many times more, whether for his individual productions or collaborations. Variety magazine once dubbed him a ‘Reigning King of Urban Gospel’, and he was one of the inaugural inductees into the Black Music & Entertainment Walk of Fame, in 2021.

Franklin was raised by his aunt, Gertrude, having been abandoned as a baby by his mother. She recycled aluminium cans to raise money for him to take piano lessons from the age of four. He excelled and was able to read and write music while also playing by ear. That was the beginning of a very successful career in music.

In his teenage years, Franklin rebelled against his strict religious upbringing and, in an attempt to keep him out of trouble, his grandmother arranged an audition for him at a professional youth conservatory associated with a local university. He was accepted, but later he had to deal with a girlfriend’s pregnancy and his eventual expulsion from school for bad behaviour.

In March 2021, Franklin’s oldest son, Kerrion, released an audio recording of a private conversation between himself and his father in which both can be heard using profanities. Franklin subsequently apologised to his fans and followers. In 2023, he met his biological father, Richard Hubbard, for the first time, and reconciled with Kerrion in his documentary film, Father’s Day: A Kirk Franklin Story.

In a May 2019 online article called ‘Kirk Franklin Biography: The Story of a Gospel Legend’, Kim Jones writes, “Soul, R&B and Gospel music have always gone together like texting and abbreviations. However, that wasn’t quite enough for Kirk Franklin, who added hip-hop to the mix with his debut in 1993.

“In a daring attempt to broaden the range of the traditional gospel audience, Kirk Franklin was willing to take heat from those who said it couldn’t (or shouldn’t) be done, as long as it didn’t get in the way of delivering his message. It worked’ as the album spent 100 weeks on the gospel music charts and Kirk Franklin & the Family became the very first gospel debut album to go platinum in the history of RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America).”

If the patrons who were shocked by Franklin had known all of this about him, they would perhaps not have left their yard. For Kirk Franklin is not a regular straight-lace, Bible-thumping,jacket-suit clad, Hell fire and brimstone gospel artiste. He is rap, he is soul, he is hip-hop, he is R&B, he is contemporary.