Meet DJsNeverEndingStory

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to DJsNeverEndingStory. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi DJsNeverEndingStory, really happy you were able to join us today and we’re looking forward to sharing your story and insights with our readers. Let’s start with the heart of it all – purpose. How did you find your purpose?

I found my purpose by getting lost. In my hometown of St. Louis, Missouri, and the streets of Los Angeles, California, I used to walk and joyride aimlessly, getting inspired by the surprises of life. I’d discover new places and people, engage with them, learn new things, and add some of those things to my life. I used to do this until I got lost, like, really lost in life. I ventured off so far that I forgot who I was. I forgot my roots, my core beliefs. Eventually, I found my way back to Christ, and for the first time I found a real relationship with Him. I realized my purpose is to speak of my testimony to others, to edify them and glorify God.

I used to say working in the entertainment industry and making music for a living was a blessing and a curse. I didn’t know back in my late teens, but when I was a music producer for Universal Music, I loved the fact that I could use my talents to make a living, but I hated that I was in toxic environments and that my instrumentals could potentially be used to create songs with terrible messages. Music is powerful. Music is spiritual. It’s either going to pull you toward God, or push you away from God. I knew God wouldn’t mix a blessing and a curse together, so I questioned if I really belonged in this industry.

God will not send you anything to make you disobey Him, to keep your mind on lustful things, or have you focused on something or someone to have as an idol above Him. Since I had no control over the lyrics and messages of songs the record label wanted me to produce, I left the music industry in my early 20s. I worked for the TV and film industry for while, but eventually I called it quits there too for the same reasons.

Quitting the entertainment industry started my season of drought. Instead of walking aimlessly, getting inspired by the surprises of life, I had no choice but to walk around to look for jobs and a home. I was also looking for answers. Why did God give me this talent to not be able to use it to make an honest living? Why did I lose the woman I thought I was going to marry? Why am I even believing that my core beliefs were correct to begin with?

By my mid 20s, I let go of who I thought I was. I still produced music, posting beats on the internet for people to stream, but I was probably making only a couple dollars per month. I worked overnight warehouse jobs for a while, settling for a life that was the opposite of all-night studio sessions, celebrity gatherings, and seeing my work being placed in big places. I was losing my mind, and eventually I slowed down posting beats online to begin posting mental health content to keep me sane. I read up on other philosophies and religions. I started to surround myself with people with alternative beliefs. All this seemed to help me for a while, until it became a convoluted mess.

The lifestyle habits I started to pick up in my late 20s were having negative effects on my life. I took edibles to open up my mind to new ways of thinking, but it made me unproductive with my music production. Opening up to so many philosophies blurred my mind from differentiating right from wrong, and ultimately I attracted people that pulled me further from God. I was unknowingly getting attacked spiritually because I no longer could recite nor internalize any scripture anymore, yet I still called myself a follower of Christ.

After letting my mental and physical health fall for a few years, I moved out of my apartment and roomed with a family member to pay off medical bills. I found the courage to quit my job since the late nights and hard labor would’ve only made me worse. I saved up enough money for some months to relax and look for another job, but the pandemic totally wrecked my plans. I was in my early 30s by this time, feeling like a complete failure. However, I remained somewhat consistent with releasing beats on the internet for people to enjoy.

It wasn’t until 2022 that I met someone who was also having some difficulties in life. Their life resonated with mine: working in an untraditional industry and experiencing incredible opportunities. As a creative gift, I made this person a song and gifted them a portion of the royalties. I really didn’t think it would benefit us too much, since by this time my music was barely matching the income I previously made at my warehouse job. But our encounter was the first time I heard God’s voice in years.

I was so tired of making lofi beats since I originally grew up falling in love with making more mainstream sounding music, but lofi playlisted better and paid the bills. Their gift was my last lofi beat, and it playlisted so well that it completely changed my finances and helped my friend through a difficult time. The lofi beat introduced many more people to my catalog of beats, and after 2 years, my income from music doubled what I used to make at my warehouse job.

God woke me up. I was realizing my sins over the past decade. God was faithful the whole time for allowing me to make a living off my talents without compromise, and a plan was brewing the whole time while I was losing faith. This gave me the encouragement to push through my healing phase of my herniated disc and become the most physically fit of my life at age 35. I was finally able to get braces for my teeth and take better care of myself in other areas of my life. I’ve been able to travel, to walk and joyride aimlessly in cities I’ve never been to before. This past year alone I’ve changed so much that when I FaceTime people I haven’t talked to in months, their reaction to seeing my face is one of disbelief. My iPhone doesn’t even group my recent selfies with pictures I took from even late last year while doing face recognition. I’m a new man of God.

God made some drastic changes in me, very fast, and I know most likely He’s preparing me for something else I’ve prayed for. Until I receive that blessing, and even when I claim it, I’m committed to spending my time edifying others and glorifying God. My purpose is to show others the power of God. Even if you stumble in your walk, remain in Him and you will be restored beyond what you could ever imagine. God wants to give you a life of joy.

Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?

I’m refocusing my music to boldly showcase my faith and share my testimony through beats and spoken word. DJsNeverEndingStory was originally an alias for a YouTube channel I started over a decade ago to talk about being able to walk again after a couple years of only being able to walk and stand for no more than 15 minutes. I used to produce for Universal using a different name. Somehow, I lost track of my original plan for YouTube and started posting experimental beats, eventually garnering an audience. It’s interesting that here I am currently, healing from my herniated disc injury, that I feel called to talk about how I’m learning how to walk again with God, literally and spiritually. I believe it’s time to get back to what God put in my heart to do.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

Have a strong foundation, be consistent, and have a higher purpose other than self gain.

Thanks so much for sharing all these insights with us today. Before we go, is there a book that’s played in important role in your development?

I’m getting back to the Bible and I’m seeing the answers were there the whole time. Two of my favorite verses after reflecting on my life are from 2 Corinthians 7:9-10 AMP.

“yet I am glad now, not because you were hurt and made sorry, but because your sorrow led to repentance; for you felt a grief such as God meant you to feel, so that you might not suffer loss in anything on our account. For sorrow that is in accord with the will of God produces a repentance without regret, leading to salvation; but worldly sorrow produces death.

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