Gospel music promoter Nii Noi, has expressed disappointment over comments made by Dag Heward-Mills, Founder and General Overseer of Lighthouse Chapel International, regarding payment of church musicians.
Speaking to Doreen Avio in a recent interview on Daybreak Hitz, Noi described Dag Heward-Mills’ statement as unfortunate, especially given his influential position in the Christian community.
“I think that the statement is quite unfortunate coming from a man of higher rank in the Christian society. I mean, you’ve decided not to play instrumentalists, but to come out and say all of these things, It’s quite unfortunate, really,” he said.
Nii further emphasised that such comments have the tendency to discourage for young and skillful talents in the church.
“And, these things are highly discouraging for these young, skillful talents that are in the church. Doreen, you know, most of these talents go from the church to other places. Are we trying to say that Leave the church, go away and go and join wherever you want to join. Use your gifts for whatever you want And I don’t care?” he questioned.
Nii Noi believes the church has a responsibility to nurture and utilise the talents of its members.
“No, you have a mandate church to keep these gifts in the church,” he stated.
“And I think, I think that we should, we should find a way to discourage some of these comments coming from our men of God,” Nii Noi concluded.
During one of his sermons, Dag Heward-Mills expressed his displeasure with paying church musicians, describing it as “nonsense.”
“Watch out for people who do things for money. In my church, I said I am not going to pay people to play instruments, because I play all the instruments. I play drums, piano, and guitar. Here, we don’t pay, because you love Jesus. If not, go,” he said.
The controversy surrounding Dag Heward-Mills’ comments highlights the ongoing debate about the role of musicians in the church and how to remunerate them.
While some may agree with Heward-Mills’ stance, others, like Nii Noi, believe that such comments can be discouraging for young talents and that the church should find ways to support and nurture these gifts.