J.I.T.A.

J.I.T.A. is a minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. He raps, sings, songwrites, produces, and preaches so that Jesus Christ may be claimed as Lord to the glory of the Father. Born Marcus Velazquez, J.I.T.A. was born and raised on the North West side of Chicago. J.I.T.A. was raised Catholic, attending St. Mary Of The Angels School from Kindergarten through graduating 8th grade. During his elementary school years, he understood the meaning of heartbreak by being rejected by the opposite sex, finding out that the man who raised him was not his biological father at the tender age of 10, and going through a rough divorce of his parents. J.I.T.A. quickly realized that the world is a cold place and started to only rely on himself and not others. J.I.T.A. then attended Walter Payton high school where he started developing his style. He used the freedom of high school to gain popularity and to get to know himself. It was his senior year in high school when a friend had begun to talk to him about Jesus. J.I.T.A., being Catholic at the time, already “knew” of Jesus and claimed that he didn’t need to be taught anything. Yet he saw something in his friend that he didn’t have. He was also inspired by his father George, who had recently become a Christian himself. After talking with several friends, pastors, and visiting several churches, in 2003, he decided to give his life to Christ and devote himself entirely to pursuing the Will of God. Since dedicating his life to Christ, J.I.T.A. has yet to see a dull, unproductive day. He was immediately blessed with the gift of rapping. He knew that this gift was from God so he then decided to use his gift for God and began writing and recording hip-hop/rap music for the church and for those who have been or are going through the same things he’s been through. When riding a bus one day, J.I.T.A. passed a church where on the outside bulletin board was the phrase: “Jesus Is The Answer”. That phrase stuck in his mind for days when he decided to take the first initial from each of the words in that phrase, and viola, J.I.T.A. was born. So far, J.I.T.A. has released two albums. Salvation 101, released in 2005, was his inauguration into the Christian Rap ministry. For only rapping for 6 months at the time, the album showed a bright future for this young minister. In 2008, J.I.T.A. released his sophomore album, Truth Be Told. An amazing transition from the first album, Truth Be Told really showed a more mature J.I.T.A., both spiritually and musically. The beats hit hard, the lyrics hit home, and conviction hits the soul. His highly-anticipated junior album "Theopneustos" has no release date just yet but is scheduled for 2011 and is already peaking interests with the release of his first single accompanied by his first music video "Oh No". J.I.T.A. moved back to Chicago, IL with his wife Arisbel, after earning his Bachelors Degree in Biblical Studies from The School of Urban Missions. The Lord has laid a new ministry upon his heart known as BAYSIK, which is a travelling music ministry that includes, rappers, singers, dancers, preaching, and evangelism training. BAYSIK finished its first summer tour in California during the summer of 2010. Whether it's on the streets, in the pulpit, or in school, J.I.T.A. is sold out to minister to a dying world that Jesus Is The Answer and that Salvation, Holiness, Righteousness, and Reconciliation to God are available to all through Jesus Christ.