ST. PAUL, MN (February 19, 2010) – A song written by Ryan Daniel, the worship pastor at Gallery Covenant Church, has become one of the unofficial anthems for the Super Bowl Champion New Orleans Saints.
The YouTube video of “The Saints” posted months ago has received more than 200,000 hits, and other users have made videos using the hip-hop song in tributes to the team.
Daniel did not write the song in honor of the Saints, who happened to end the Super Bowl hopes of his favorite team – the Minnesota Vikings. But he says the song captures the spirit of New Orleans residents, who continue to persevere and rebuild their lives following Hurricane Katrina.
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Daniel says he has no idea why the video has become so popular. He did not put a lot of work into creating it.
Daniel is no stranger to music or having it recognized, however. In 2006, Daniel and his group, The Spirit of David, was nominated for the Caribbean Gospel Music Marlin Awards in three categories - Music Video of the Year, Pop Recording of the Year and Ethnic Recording of the Year. His song “One Time” debuted at number 39 on the Billboard Gospel chart and appeared on Holy Hip Hop Volume 1, a compilation that was nominated for a Grammy Award.
At Life Light Festival, the largest Christian festival in the country, Ryan shared the main stage with the likes of The Newsboys, Rebecca St. James, Go Fish and Audio Adrenaline, Third Day and many others. In 2004, Christianity Today named Daniel among "The Best of 2004: 10 Independent Artists You Should Know."
Daniel has been called "the Reggae Hip-Hop Sensation." The reggae-infused style comes naturally to the 35-year-old artist, who grew up in the Caribbean island of Trinidad. He moved to Minnesota 12 years ago. More of Daniel’s music can be heard on his MySpace account.
Daniel was worship pastor at the 1,200-member River of Life Church in Elk River, Minnesota, before joining Gallery Covenant’s staff. Daniel was attracted to the Gallery because of its commitment to reaching out multiculturally and being “ambassadors for reconciliation.”
“I think that Brad (Kindall) has really set a good tone for our approach to reaching out to the community,” Daniel says in the current issue of "Imprints," the Northwest Conference newsletter. “As a worship leader and reggae hip hop artist, I believe that if Christ is truly lifted up, (individuals and communities) will be drawn to him. God wants to reach this community (us included) more than we do. Our prayer is that he uses us mightily in every opportunity.”
Copyright © 2010 The Evangelical Covenant Church.
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