Jonah Sorrentino (born June 26, 1975 ), better known by his stage name KJ-52, is a Christian rapper from the United States. The "KJ" part of his name is shortened from his old rap alias "King J. Mac," which he later described in his podcast as "cheesy." "52" (which is pronounced "five two," not fifty two) is a reference to the five loaves and two fish that Jesus used to feed the 5000. He was awarded the Rap/Hip Hop Recorded Song of the Year for "Never Look Away" and Rap/Hip Hop Album of the Year at the GMA Dove Awards of 2007
Raised in Tampa, Florida, KJ-52 was the product of a broken home. He began writing rap songs at twelve years old, and at fifteen KJ converted to Christianity and wrote his first Christian rap while at home with a broken nose (sustained while pole vaulting.) While a teenager, KJ began working in youth ministry at a Florida inner-city church. He also recorded a demo, but it was largely ignored (although he admits to it being "really horrible"). It wasn't until KJ met a young, likeminded rapper named Goldinchild, the two formed the Sons of Intellect and began performing throughout Florida. Soon Golden Child moved on and the Sons dissolved. But that brief bit of success in Christian rap had whetted KJ's appetite, and in the summer of 1998 he stepped down from his youth minister position to pursue his Christian rap dream full-time. KJ-52 and many others would still consider him to be in the field of youth ministry, however, as the main consumers of rap/hip-hop music would fall into the category of "youth". KJ fills a significant portion of his songs with messages intended for the current generation of youth, addressing a multitude of issues regarding the church, and Christians in general.
