Daunte Dash has always loved music, whether asleep or awake, but once he came to college, it took on a new meaning. One day all the old playlists were deleted, and music became his outlet to glorify God and spread that message to others the best way he knew.

Dash is a senior at Washington State University. Motivated by a talented friend, he began rapping in high school, with dreams of money, fans and women, he said. As time passed, his lyrics began to take on a new meaning, as his life did the same.

“I thought I was always going to make that type of music. I never would have thought I could actually make Jesus fire,” he said.

As he progressed in his walk with Jesus, his life began to change, he said. The change in his heart allowed him to truly hear the message within the music he once listened to, inspiring him to change the message of the music he listened to and made himself.

“I was listening to songs that glorify murder and drugs, and back in the day I’d say ‘Yo this is kinda hard.’ But when you actually listen to it, it’s just crazy,” he said. “You know the world is cooked when the good is bad and the bad is good. You can see that in everything. In my head, I’m thinking, if we can make this sound cool, why can’t I make something good actually sound good? I’m just trying to lock in and glorify God.”

He said Christian rap has a stereotype of being corny. His Christian rap playlist now includes over 600 songs, and that discovery has been a big inspiration in his journey of self-producing music. People have different tastes in music, but the goal is to deliver a good message over beats that make people bump their heads, he said.

Dash draws inspiration from other artists and friends with similar passions, but the inspiration for his lyrics ultimately comes from God, he said. Even on bad days, his goal is still to be genuine and deliver a message that comes from above.

“I’m not always happy. If I’m having a good day or I’m not, I’m trying to be as positive as I can. It’s crazy, God will turn a bad situation into a good one regardless of what it is. I can’t take the credit, it all goes to God,” he said. “I’ll be sitting in my room, put on a beat and have nothing to say. I’ll say a little prayer and say, ‘I need a little help,’ and it just comes naturally. I won’t even want to remake it.”

Getting from where he started to where he is now has been a journey, and he is still not perfect, he said. But changes in his music came from changes in his lifestyle.

“I used to smoke a lot, so I would smoke before I made songs and I just said straight gibberish. In my head I think it’s fire, but going back I get secondhand embarrassment. I get to reflect on that. A lot has changed. My friends have changed, my environment has changed, my thought process has changed,” he said. “I’ve been grinding. I’m in the gym boxing. I’m trying to read my Bible more. It’s easy to read words, but I’m trying to read it and have it be with me.”

Spending time in the gym with music, in his bible, in church and in his small group that meets every Thursday are a few different ways Dash works to grow in his own spiritual journey, he said.

Those activities have helped him work out of a low point in life, he said. Last year Dash “was definitely isolated,” and in finding his own identity in God and being blessed with a good group of friends, he has come a long way.

His personal growth has led him out of his fear of missing out, and into a better understanding of who he wants to be, he said.

“It’s easy to want to do the same thing everybody else is doing, especially when that is all you see. But you’re not meant to fit in, you’re meant to stand out. So, I don’t care anymore about missing out on what everyone else is doing,” he said.

Despite finding music as an outlet to express and share his passion, Dash still has his struggles. He struggles with finding a beat that sounds right, finding the right style and even doubts at times that he believes in his own message, he said.

At the end of the day, who cares, he said. Sometimes it is good to try a new style, and push through his own personal struggles; whether in his music or his own journey, “it might not be perfect, but nothing will ever be perfect,” he said.

Recently one of Dash’s friends told him to stop being timid, speak up and stop mumbling, he said. Since he has been gaining confidence knowing he has a support system in his personal life and in his music journey. “God has just been moving amongst everyone,” he said.

Dash’s journey from a secular lifestyle making secular music to now has been one of great turmoil and change, he said. No matter the level of success, his goal is to use whatever he has, no matter how big or small, to deliver his message.

“I got a voice, why use it?” he said. The message I’m trying to get across is that God isn’t in a box. I want to show that God is seen differently in everybody. Some people think about all these rules and regulations. Yes, God wants you to obey him, but God just doesn’t want us to hurt ourselves. When I make music, I want to make it sound a little fire, but I also want to show people God isn’t the first thing you think he is. He is here for you, and you can talk to him.”

In both life and music Dash has grown significantly. Though perfection will never come, his goal is just to do whatever he can in whatever way he can to be an example of the same power that has changed his own life to others.

“I used to have a bad influence on people. I’m not perfect, I still do dumb things. But something is switching, things are slowly getting better,” he said. “All I can do is be the example. I follow Jesus, and he is the main example. So, I just copy him and try my best.”