Southern Colorado Rapper finds new life in JESUS! “New motives, I longer rap for money or gold. Evangelist music. Musical ministry. We are here to save souls.” While those lyrics usher in the second song, “Rock Bottom,” on Bradley Pettie’s new album “Rise Up,” it also encapsulates the one-time gangster rapper’s revamped outlook on music and life. The 10-track disc marks Pettie’s return to music after a decade’s absence. Formerly known as Maestro, who by age 24 had released eight records and was working to establish himself as a gangster rap kingpin, Pettie now uses music as a tool of evangelization, to inspire, uplift and instruct. “Maestro was a totally different person,” said Pettie, 36, who resides in Rocky Ford. “Rapping about violence, drugs, sin, the world — things that reflected my broken childhood and coming in and out of group homes. “He was not a good person and was giving out the wrong message.” In 2007, Pettie quit rapping to focus on his role as husband, father and provider. But his heart never really left behind the lifestyle he so often glamorized in his lyrics. Two years ago, Pettie began his walk with the Lord after being inspired by a singular statement from a concerned widow. “A friend of mine, about my age, had died,” Pettie explained. “And when I went to his viewing, I expected to see the same things you always see at a funeral — anger at God, crying. “But all his wife told me is, ‘How’s your walk with Christ?’ My friend was a believer and he was always working on me. But when his wife said that, it turned it for me.” Once Pettie felt God’s touch — “He shook me and said, ‘That’s enough!’” — the anger, the swearing, the hatred, the drinking, the propensity for the darker side of life vanished in an instant. “I even sold a bar that I was running,” said Pettie, who now works for the Department of Corrections. So drastic was the change that it took Pettie’s wife two months to finally believe her husband was a new man. “She thought it was going to wear off,” he said. “But it never did and I’ve been on fire ever since.” As that righteous blaze burned, Pettie received another revelation, this one calling him to return to the microphone with a new message. “God told me I was hiding my talent for music, which He gave me. I heard His voice say, ‘We’ve been fishing for men but no one has upgraded the tackle, the bait, the lures.’“And music is that new lure to reach the youth.” After two months of prayer and contemplation, Pettie decided to move forward with the music project he christened Evangelist Muzic and began recording a new record. Produced with help from colleague Daniel Trujillo, “Rise Up” is a great-sounding record with solidly constructed songs, keyed by inventive beats and backing instrumentation intriguing enough to keep the listener engaged. Several of the numbers are sweetened up by female vocal stylings, courtesy of Christina Lopez and Linda Osteen. The lyrics, however, are the focal point. In a smooth flow, Pettie addresses those issues one would expect from a rapper now on the narrow road: shout outs to God and Jesus Christ, the effectiveness of prayer, the need for salvation, the power of conversion, as well as cautionary warnings against greed, addictions, violence and materialism. But the record is only the start. Pettie regularly visits detention facilities, treatment centers and churches throughout Southern Colorado to spread the life-affirming message of Evangelist Muzic. “I’ve even preached on street corners with freestyle rap,” Pettie said. “But no matter where I go, the response is always positive. They just need that little bit of hope coming from someone like me, who has been in their position. “What God has done for me, I just can’t hide it. I have to let His glory shine through.”