By Dylan Deprey
Pastor Marlon Lock
By day Pastor Marlon Lock looks and acts just like the typical pastor, preaching and spreading positivity through his community. Just like Clark Kent jumping into the phone booth to become Super Man, Pastor Lock hops into the recording booth and becomes…Pastor Marlon Lock the singer and songwriter.
Lock’s devotion to the church started at a young age. At 5-years-old he said that the Lord spoke to him and asked him to become a preacher. It was only until five years later that he gave his first sermon. After going to school and serving five years as a Milwaukee Police officer, he retired to become the assistant pastor and later the Senior Pastor at the Unity Gospel House of Prayer.
As Lock is set to release his second full-length album, he is also set to rock the house during the McDonald’s Praise for Peace Gospel concert at the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts on Aug. 27.
Although Lock puts his role as a pastor first, he considers his passion for music an emotional outlet. He describes his music as “Gospel Gumbo.” This eclectic sound is a mixture of R&B, Soul, Gospel, Pop and even a little Country thrown into the pot.
“I have many colors, many layers to me, and a lot of times people like to put you in a box labeled as one genre of music,” Lock said.
Lock’s first album the, Good Seed Project, was in honor of his grandfather, Elbridge Lock, who had told him to record the song “Good Seed,” before he died in 2009. Lock said that he learned a lot about himself and his music during the process of making his first album.
With the help of producer Chad “C-Note” Roper, who has produced for R Kelly, Beyonce, Jamie Foxx, Lock began to dabble in other genres on his upcoming album, Unleashed.
Lock said that he had only formally met Roper once before. It wasn’t until Roper called asking if he wanted to do a second album, after having a dream about winning a Grammy with Lock. After a dinner meeting at Carson’s Steak House and singing a couple songs for Roper, the two hit it off.
“It was just like magic, other then with my wife, with this guy is the greatest relationship I’ve had. It just works and we get along and understand each other,” Lock said.
Along with his album being released on Aug. 19, Lock is one of the four headlining acts for the McDonald’s Praise for Peace Gospel concert. The concert features Bishop William Murphy, Charlin Neal and the legendary Shekinah Glory Ministry.
He considered it an honor to have the opportunity to perform for his city as well as to perform on the same stage as other big name Gospel artists.
“Shekinah Glory and Bishop Murphy are artists I’ve grown up listening to,” Lock said. “I would pay money to go see them so for me to be on stage with them as one of the headliners is just incredible.”
He also said that while the concert is meant to raise money for the Ronald McDonald House, it also sends a positive message to his city.
Lock said that he is excited to take the stage but humble at the same time. He added that he will always be a pastor first and music is another way to spread the good word.
“Music allows me to tell a story in a different way. Some people won’t come to church, for whatever reason to hear me behind the pulpit, but they can always hear a song I wrote,” Lock said.