Today we’d like to introduce you to Elijah Rosario.
Hi Elijah, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I grew up in church, and that’s where I began playing drums at six years old. Around the age of 12 or 13, I started singing more and more. Music has always been part of my world. My dad was a singer, my older brother was a singer, and I grew up surrounded by musicians in church, so music was always a part of my life.
Early on, though, it wasn’t something I dreamed of pursuing. I had other interests, like sports and becoming an entertainment media personality. Since I was a little boy, I’ve always been reminded that God placed a calling on my life. The church I grew up in holds tent revivals, and during one of those services in 2013, the founder and overseer, Apostle Darryl McCoy Sr., told me that God was going to allow me to go off and do my own thing for a season. But He would only let me go so far because of the calling on my life. He warned me that when the time came to answer that call, I shouldn’t miss it.
Later that year, I went away to college, and almost immediately my life began to spiral out of control. It wasn’t all bad, but I wasn’t living the way my parents had raised me.
In 2019, after my mother passed away, I decided to pursue music seriously, and things began to happen quickly. Two years later, I headlined my first show in Charlotte, North Carolina. Not long after that, I was headlining shows throughout the Raleigh-Durham area at various venues. In 2023, I embarked on my first independent tour, performing in more than 16 cities across North America, including two dates in Canada. During that same tour, my father passed away just one week after it began.
From the outside, I looked ambitious and successful, but no one could see the cry for help on the inside. I was a functioning alcoholic. I was depressed and deeply unhappy. I was married, but I wasn’t a good husband. I was a dad, but I wasn’t much of a father. My life looked great on camera, but behind the scenes, it was falling apart.
In November 2024, God made the call, and I went back home. There, He gave me a miracle. Instantly, God took away the alcohol, the drugs, the cigarettes—everything. When I returned to North Carolina, I was a new man.
In December 2024, I played my final secular show at The Fruit in Durham, North Carolina. Then, in January 2025, I made the decision to give my life to Jesus Christ, and I’ve been walking with Him ever since. It’s the best decision I’ve ever made.
Today, I make Christian music to glorify God and share the testimony of what He has done in my life.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
My walk of faith has not been easy. I’ve made a lot of mistakes and still do, but in them I’m learning how to submit myself to the will of God day by day—some days it’s my pride, my attitude, my selfishness, etc. The trials and tribulations I’ve gone through have brought a lot of these things to light, and for this I’m grateful, because it gives me a chance to come clean and get my heart right before God.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I make music that glorifies God. Every song I create now, I let Him create it through me and for His purpose. To have the opportunity to be a vessel and be a voice that God uses to reach the hearts of people and help them turn their hearts to Him is a privilege and an honour.
Any big plans?
I’m excited about new music projects I’m working on and the special things God is going to do through those. I’m excited about life as a whole; I’ve literally been given another chance at life, so the possibilities are endless. I’m excited about the opportunity to work in college ministry at my church, Ascend Worship Church, under the leadership of Pastor Darrell Williams; we’ve been working with college students at NCCU, and it’s been a blessing so far, and the fall semester is only going to be even more fruitful.
