Nathaniel Bassey Explains Why He Doesn’t Charge for Gospel Ministrations

Amid the ongoing debate surrounding whether gospel ministers should charge for guest ministrations in churches, popular gospel singer Nathaniel Bassey has spoken out to clarify his stance on the matter. During a recent sermon, Bassey shared his belief that charging for ministry is inconsistent with his understanding of gospel work.

“If a church invites me to come and minister, they are doing two things. They are inviting me to minister to God and his people,” Bassey explained. “Let me just say this before I trend on Twitter: to my understanding, when you tell me to minister to God, I can’t charge God to minister to Him. How much did He charge me for His blood on Calvary? The blood that is the very reason for my ministry.”

Bassey’s remarks come amidst growing discussions in the gospel community about the commercialization of ministry. His perspective aligns with a deeply personal view on the sacred nature of his calling and the gratitude he feels for what he believes to be a divine gift, underscoring his commitment to not let financial matters interfere with his service.

This statement follows a viral moment in which Apostle Lazarus sparked significant debate by criticizing gospel artists who charge fees for their performances. The pastor pointed out the troubling trend of commercialization, highlighting an instance where a singer allegedly requested a fee of 5 million naira to perform at a church event. His comments ignited strong reactions across both the gospel music community and the wider public.

However, Bassey’s comments come at a time when other gospel artists are defending the practice of charging fees. Singer Timi Dakolo, in a detailed social media post, expressed his support for gospel musicians who charge for their services. Dakolo emphasized that music is both a spiritual and professional endeavour, requiring significant financial investment to sustain the craft. He urged Christians to recognize the need for fair compensation, stressing that gospel music, like any other profession, demands remuneration for the time, effort, and resources it takes to produce and perform.

As this debate continues to unfold, Nathaniel Bassey’s stance serves as a reminder of the deeply personal and spiritual nature of gospel ministry, while others in the industry call for a more practical approach to compensating artists for their work.

My dear Christains, a quote/comversation can sound intelligent and deep yet untrue. Just like everyone else. You deserve the very best things life has to offer. You should be paid what you deserve. Studio session, production and promotion cost a lot. You have a family to feed, you have rent to pay.

You have more songs to put out. We should stop all these attack on people’s work. As much as it is spiritual, music is an art. If you can’t pay people, Use your choir members and pay the amount you could have given the guest artist. I doubt the second part. says Timi Dakolo