John Wells

John Wells has been involved in the Christian rap movement or ministry since the early ’90s. He has been associated with the Cross Movement, both a band and a record label, producing various releases and co-writing strong message material such as “I Am That I Am” and “Know Me (Huh, What?).” For devout listeners who can’t make any sense out of either of the preceding titles, there is always “The Jesus Anthem.” A near-death health experience is said to have inspired Wells’ defining moment as a solo artist to date, a 2006 collection entitled The Dash. The title refers to neither road race, special seasoning salt, nor the recording process which in this case suffered several long delays; it is based on the punctuation that normally separates an individual’s birth and death dates on the biographical line. This artist also performs as the Tonic, a name that has been used by several different groups in other genres as well as a trendy New York City nightclub. ~ Eugene Chadbourne