Artist: Watchman
Single Release “HUM & HAR”
Release Date 7th April 2023
Watchman is set to release his highly anticipated new single ‘HUM & HAR’ on April 7th, 2023. The single will be available on all major platforms and marks Watchman’s second release of the year.
With ‘HUM & HAR,’ Watchman explores the concept of inner conflict and the duality of human nature, a theme that is likely to resonate with listeners from all walks of life.
The upcoming single promises to be a fresh and captivating addition to Watchman’s growing body of work, with its unique blend of Reggae and Hip Hop that will keep fans hooked from start to finish. Watchman’s artistry and creativity have earned him critical acclaim and a growing fan base in the music industry. He is known for his ability to blend different musical styles seamlessly, creating a sound that is entirely his own.
In addition to his impressive musical talent, Watchman is also known for his thought-provoking views on God, spirituality and the human experience. His upcoming single, ‘HUM & HAR,’ provides a perfect example of this, as it delves into the question of why GOD does not hum and har.
Watchman, said; “GOD does not Hum and Har because He is at peace with Himself and His creation”. Watchman believes that the conflicts that arise within human beings are a result of our own ego and desires, which lead us away from our true nature and the divine source. (1 Kings 18)
Watchman’s new single promises to be a must-listen for anyone looking for thought-provoking music that challenges conventional ideas and provides a fresh perspective on life, God and spirituality.
For more information on Watchman and his new single, ‘HUM & HAR,’ follow him on social media:
BIOGRAPHY
Dr. David Williams aka Watchman was born in England (1969) and grew up in Brixton, [South London] with his Jamaican parents, who arrived in Britain during the Windrush era. Whilst attending Church as a young boy alongside his parents, the watchman grew up hard, he recalls growing up in the 80’s, running from Mods, Teddy-boys and Skinheads after school. To get from A to B, school to home was an obstacle-course, of course. “I had to learn to defend myself, I was of one opinion, it was subdue or be subdued”. I took up boxing and soon became an ever more proficient street fighter”. He was a dangerous youth to be around.
At the age of 19, Watchman had a confrontation with the police and was arrested, stripped-searched, humiliating — profound dehumanisation. They then charged him with possession of an offensive weapon. He said he never forget those words spoken to him at the time of his arrest by the police “You know you never had it, we know you never had it, but you Brixton boys think you’re hard”. To cut a long emotional story short, he went to prison for something he did not do. After his experience he developed an antipathy towards police.
The sense of being both powerless humiliated instilled anger and deep distrust in him, not only for the police (law enforcement) but also the authorities that sanction it. He was bad-tempered and ill-tempered; he failed to retain composure and restraint when angry. He would lose it and use it, contrary to his religious belief, be angry and sin not; he would be angry and sin a lot. He would walk across the zebra crossing without stoping to look, cars would be skidding at his feet and he would turn to the drivers, throwing a flurry of punches and even knocking the driver out sometimes at the wheel!
The pressure was too much for his parents, who eventually kicked him out of the family home. He ended up in a hostel in south London; It was a six-bedroom house, but soon he was the only tenant left, as he beat up everybody in the house. The Housing Association refused to re-house him; instead, they said he could keep the house. Whatever the reason for his disposition, the streets were trying to take him out. On account of his perpetual behaviour, he was subsequently in and out of prison.
Watchman has auditory dyslexia but says he does not see it as a disability but rather a different ability. He learned to read and write in prison, he learned to read by reading the bible, and he learnt to write by copying the handwriting of his girlfriend when she would send him letters. One day whilst Incarcerated reading the bible, the words jumped out at him from the page “I have made you a Watchman”.
On reading this, with tears in his eyes, looking up to the sky, he said, Lord, I don’t understand. He closed back and randomly opened it again; to his astonishment, it read the same as the previous passage of scripture “I have made you a Watchman”. Looking up again to the sky, he said, Lord, I answer the call. Suddenly as if, out of nowhere, he heard his name called. David! Bewildered, he automatically looked up, only to realise it was coming from beyond the prison door. He said yes guv, the Officer then said, pack your kit you’re going home.
After his last stint in Prison now aged 20; for assault on police; Watchman began to analyse and look over his life; in the hope to add scope, to somehow make some sense of his past nonsense. And why he did the things that he did that he was now assumed. Every time Watchman had got into trouble with the law or got into a brawl, It was after he had a drink. That is when he said he realised it was a problem. He recalled, one evening, when out on the town with his mates, he offered out the bouncer at a nightclub; he said if I win, let me in. The next day when he woke up, he said he felt so ashamed of himself. Knowing something was wrong, he checked himself into an AA meeting. That is how desperate he wanted to change. “I was just another insecure brother unsure of myself, trying to fill that void in my life”. I realised, If you want to see a change, be a change; and you don’t have to wait until a crisis arises before you arise.
Watchman seemed destined to a life of frustration and pointlessness. Then on 27th September On September 27th 1992, everything changed. It was noted, Watchman had been behaving strangely, it was even more strange when he decided to go to church, considering his street cred. He sat in the service listening intently to what was being said, then the call for prayer was offered; he remained seated, reluctant to go forward at first. Suddenly he began to wail like a baby, fighting what had come over him.
He began to resist at first, but the feeling overwhelmed him. He uttered words such as ‘I can’t change, I will only sin again.’ He found himself on the church floor, not knowing how he got there. In his determination not to yield, he stood back up, but no sooner did he find himself back down on the floor again. This time he found himself surrendering to his inner feeling, confessing all his wrongs. He finally met his match. The arrogance, selfishness and youthful bolshiness slowly disappeared. Soon after his dramatic encounter, —Watchman – Gospel rapper emerged.
Watchman began singing in his local church in Brixton — what they called the devil’s music. Determine to reach out to his peers, he wrote and sang inspirational songs over the beats of popular music genres supposed to the traditional hymns.
He quickly made an impact, his lyrical JA style a riveting sound effective with a simple snare loop, a black gospel choir or even jazzed-up versions of praise and worship choruses. It was his engaging contributions to the ‘Now That’s What I call Worship’ dance-orientated compilation which was his first release on record; although it was his rap on his first debut album ‘Contemporary Christian’ which caught the ear of mainstream and gospel deejays alike and gained the respect of his peers and young people on the streets and in the church, and was number one in the UK Gospel album charts for several months, and nominated for a ‘Music of Black Origin’ award (MOBO), for Best Gospel Reggae Rap Artist/Album.
London-based David Williams, known to an ever-increasing circle of devotees as Watchman dominated the gospel scene; This was very innovative in its time and was never done before in this particular way. The lyrical, theological and musical compositions were persuasive and resonated with the vernacular of the young people in and out of the church, bringing a personal applicational connection relating to the individual. In some sense, his music could easily be defined as a congregational song, in the sense that it bridged the generational gap, has it was interpretable and singable to all, plus pleasant to the ear.
Hear in the UK; it was now the Jamaican-style rap of Watchman that gave much of Britain’s secular rap scene a distinctly JA flavour and saw British Christian music underground raising-up. His response to the church was,“Why should the Devil have all the good music? I will take it and use it for good”.
Ever since his transformation from Crime to Christ, he has been making a difference by using his musical talent, hitting the gospel music scene in a radical and practical way; demonstrating how a positive message has the power to transform lives – including his own. When addressing youth and those in prison, he would often encourage them with words of comfort, such as. We all have a past, let us use it to make a path; Be part of the solution, not the pollution. Watchman has come a long, long way from his brutal and brutalised past.
Although Reggae Gospel Rap Music was not openly accepted in the Church and Christian Community then, and was considered completely beyond the pale by the more conservative elements in the church. More ore and more opportunities emerged for Watchamn to perform – sometimes in big concerts, like with US gospel stars Commissioned, sometimes in prison ministry where his powerful testimony gave him instant credibility amongst the prison community. Watchman unrelentingly blazed a trail across Churches and Concert Halls. The name Watchman soon became synonymous with ‘Radical Positive Reggae Gospel Rap’ gaining the recognition he deserved, if not for his zeal and tenacity alone. Watch man was featured on a remix track with the late great Luther Vandross and recorded his second studio album at the world-renowned Abby Road Studios.
Watchman has performed with many of the leading artists nationally and internationally. His determination and commitment have seen him perform at The Dome in Birmingham and the Hippodrome in London. It is hard to believe the person whose hell-raising antics as a youth got him expelled from South London’s Stockwell Park School, was invited back there as a role model, alongside the Ambassador to Dominica and the Mayor of Croydon.
Having experienced a life familiar to many young people today and overcoming the many obstacles in his way, Watchman is a role model and practical and relevant spokesperson. A lecturer so full of love and compassion for his hearers, often in tears as he shares with other, the challenges he faced has a young man.
Watchman continues to use his musical talent and creativity to spread a message of hope, love and peace around the globe. Determined to make a difference in the lives of young people, he went the extra mile and in 1996, he founded the youth club — RAP ACADEMY: under the Princes Trust Enterprise Programme, that 11-year-old Michael Ebenazer Kwadjo Omari Owuo Jr, better known by his stage name Stormzy, would later attend and quickly gained a reputation. “Whilst others were playing games on their computers, I’ll be at RAP Academy”. I remember people saying, this little yout’s hard! any opportunity to spit I’d spit. – BBC News.
Watchman tirelessly works with young people and helps them discover the areas of their lifestyle that needs to be re-adjusted, reaping the benefits and rewards of a new way of thinking. Many of them have gone-on, to lead crime-free lives and even set up their own business. Watchman is constantly stoped, not by the cops, but by his one time students, has he humbly walks down the streets of Brixton, and now even mentoring their children.
Most recently (2021), Watchman was appointed Muscle Director of Kent Opera — Britain’s first regional opera company, founded in 1969 by Norman Platt. Watchman has brought something fresh and almost tangible to Kent Opera. He supports and motivates young performers and brings the transformative power of music and drama to young people at risk, at no extra cost to Kent Opera.
Watchman has doctorate degrees in’ The Arts, Community Justice and Ministry.
Watchman is currently the Engagement Lead Youth Specialist for the MET Police (DIVERT APP) hear in the UK.
Where he trains new Police Recruits.
