n this episode, we’re joined by Marvin Winans Jr.—pastor, creative, and member of the legendary Winans family—for an honest and inspiring conversation about faith, legacy, and purpose.

Marvin shares his journey from growing up surrounded by gospel greatness to discovering his own calling in ministry. He opens up about the defining moments that shaped his faith, the challenges of obedience, and how trusting God led him to build a church, raise a thriving family, and navigate unexpected doors in Hollywood.

We also dive into:

•  The origin story of Winans Phase 2 
•  What it was really like growing up in gospel royalty 
•  His perspective on today’s gospel music industry 
•  The blessings (and tests) that come with obedience 

If you’ve ever wrestled with purpose, calling, or trusting God’s timing—this episode is for you.

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In this episode of Thee PK Pod, we sit down with Grammy-winning singer, songwriter, and Maroon 5 keyboardist PJ Morton to talk about faith, fame, and building a music career without losing your identity.

A preacher’s kid from New Orleans, PJ Morton has built a rare career that bridges gospel credibility, R&B artistry, and pop stadium touring with Maroon 5—all while staying grounded in faith and family.

PJ shares the story behind his newest collaboration, “Heart of Mine” with Darrel Walls, created during a three-day creative lock-in at Studio in the Country. The project came from a desire for a fresh muse after years of releasing albums and captures a sound that feels warm, honest, and full of soul.

We also dive into PJ’s upbringing in church, the pressure of being the only son and namesake in a pastoral family, and what it takes to pursue purpose without turning it into rebellion. PJ connects the themes in his book Saturday Night Sunday Morning to his music, explaining how love songs and faith songs often come from the same place.

The conversation also explores major turning points in his career—from signing with Young Money through authentic relationships, to navigating major-label systems, to the audition that led to 15 years touring with Maroon 5.

Finally, PJ reflects on becoming the first Black composer to write an original score for Disney’s Tiana’s Bayou Adventure and honoring gospel legend Richard Smallwood.

If this episode resonates with you, share it with someone navigating calling, creativity, and expectations—and follow Thee PK Pod for more conversations at the intersection of faith, culture, and purpose.

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What happens when faith meets preparation?

Grammy-winning vocalist Susan Carrol joins the show to share the incredible journey from singing solos in church as a pastor’s kid in Fort Worth to standing on the Grammy stage.

In this powerful conversation, Susan opens up about the real story behind her breakthrough—including the viral “Let Go, Let God” clip that caught the attention of PJ Morton, the life-changing opportunity to sing with Jon Batiste, and the moment a quiet prayer board turned into a Grammy win.

We talk about:

• Growing up in church and discovering her voice
 • Breaking free from the “just a singer” label
 • Moving to Los Angeles and trusting God through isolation
 • Boundaries in relationships while pursuing purpose
 • How one repost changed everything
 • The prayer that predicted the Grammy win

Susan also shares the musical influences that shaped her sound—from Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday to The Clark Sisters, Kim Burrell, Brandy, and Musiq Soulchild.

If you've ever wondered how to follow a calling that doesn’t make sense yet, this episode will remind you that sometimes faith opens doors before you even knock.

🎧 Listen now and be inspired.

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What happens when a church kid who swore off ministry says yes to God one step at a time?

Author, preacher, and former TV producer Brenda Palmer shares her journey from Chicago street ministry to LA production rooms to preaching her first sermon in 2021. She opens up about obedience over optics, choosing community over clout, and how one simple prayer became a viral testimony of healing.

We also dive into singleness—dating apps, attraction vs. anointing, sexual integrity, and why the church needs to disciple singles beyond relationship advice. Brenda’s perspective is honest, practical, and deeply hopeful.

Plus, she shares the heart behind her bestselling book The Journey of Yes, her leap into itinerant ministry, and how she filters influence in a viral world.

If this conversation stirred your courage, follow, share, and leave a review. Your yes might unlock someone else’s breakthrough.

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What if doing more starts with being fully present?

Erica Campbell joins us to talk faith, pressure, church culture, and choosing holiness without apology. From PK-adjacent scrutiny to the “white dress” moment, she shares how to separate God from people’s failures, honor leaders without idolizing them, and live with grace and standards.

We unpack faith and fashion, temptation, accountability fatigue, relationships, and why kindness is everyday ministry.

Listen for wisdom, courage, and a prayer over ministry families.

Be sure to leave a review to tell us what you think.

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What if your calling isn’t a pulpit but a console? Jazz sits down with her brother My Guy Mars—two-time diamond producer, musician, and lifelong PK—to trace a path where faith fuels creativity, and the studio becomes a place of ministry. From church drums at age four to a catalog of 1,500+ releases, Mars reveals how persistence, curiosity, and a fierce belief in purpose built a career with real impact.

We open up about growing up under a strict, hilarious, remix-happy pastor-dad, and the moments that shaped our grit. Mars shares why he won’t be taking over the church and why that choice doesn’t sideline faith—it reframes it. He talks about fatherhood with intention, trading fear-based routines for open conversations about God, love, and spirit. You’ll hear his origin story—pots and pans to piano in every key—and how that early exposure unlocked lifelong mastery.

Then we go deep on craft and calling. Mars breaks down “sacrifice over security,” choosing ownership and legacy over short-term safety. He shares the unfiltered truth about working with Nipsey Hussle: 6 a.m. mornings, spotless studios, candles lit, calendars tight, and an energy that brought rival corners into the same room with respect. It’s a playbook for purpose-driven work—showing up, setting tone, and letting consistency compound into influence.

There’s plenty of laughter too: sibling mischief, air-freshener whoopings, and our dad’s greatest church remixes. We even play “gospel or mainstream” to test how predictable language can blunt real power, and we question a few hymn lyrics that don’t quite add up. The thread through it all is simple and strong: two kids from the same pews found different lanes, and God’s hand shows up in both. If you’re a creative, a parent, or anyone torn between ministry and marketplace, this conversation will help you claim both with integrity.

Enjoy the episode, share it with a friend who needs the nudge, and don’t forget to subscribe, rate, and leave a review.

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What does it really take to turn a $10,000 severance and a suitcase of faith into a thriving fashion house? We sit down with designer and pastor’s kid, Maxie J, to trace the real road: childhood in church benches, early wins in style, a corporate layoff, and a launch that proved demand fast—but not profit. Maxie gets honest about the season that nearly broke her: doubling overhead on Melrose, halving sales, and working herself sick while the register stayed quiet. Then she shares the pivot that changed everything—ditching “pretty but pricey” habits, mastering margins, and taking a risky flight to Istanbul to partner with a struggling manufacturer who needed her as much as she needed him.

From a living-room warehouse and walks to the post office to a 2020 relaunch that out-earned her best years in months, Maxie lays out a blueprint for creative entrepreneurs who want staying power. We talk quality without waste, lean inventory, and why factory diversification across Turkey, China, and Pakistan is operational insurance, not overkill. She explains the difference between passion and gift, how to build a brand that refuses sameness in a saturated market, and why customer community—not celebrity cosigns—creates durable revenue. Still, those full-circle moments matter: Sarah Jakes Roberts in a signature suit, a ten-year runway show that felt like calling confirmed, and a $10,000 day that arrived after she gave her last $95.

Maxie also opens the doors to SheCom Club, her mentorship for women in e-commerce built on real strategy instead of fluff—unit economics, sourcing, launch cadence, and marketing that moves product while protecting brand equity. The throughline is unmistakable: start imperfectly, learn in public, guard your margins, and refuse to quit. If you’re scaling a fashion brand, launching a DTC shop, or just need proof that faith plus execution can rewrite a life, this conversation is your map and your push.

If this story moved you, tap follow, share it with a builder who needs courage today, and leave a review so more creators can find us. Your words help the next founder keep going.

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What happens when the church that raised you becomes the engine of your art? We sit down with actor, singer, and five-generation Kojic kid Mark JP Hood to trace the real PK grind—from family band Fridays on Chicago’s South Side to leading on BET+’s Churchy and shaping arena stages. Mark calls church a conservatory, and he means it: that’s where he learned presence, memorization, leadership, and emotional connection long before red lights and call sheets.

We go deep on creative roots and safeguards. Mark shares how his parents balanced holiness with exposure, taking him to Broadway tours and Tyler Perry productions that unlocked his vision. Inside Churchy, he lifts the hood on a culture of respect: heart-first leadership from Kevin Fredericks, writers who rewrite to his voice, and a simple boundary—jokes shouldn’t break what’s sacred. It’s reverent comedy that laughs with the pews, not at them.

We also tackle the state of gospel music and the numbers that don’t tell the whole story. Mark unpacks how CCLI inflates CCM metrics while many Black churches “just sing it,” making choir-driven gospel look smaller on paper than it is in culture. Then we get practical: invoicing church expenses instead of quietly covering them, building healthier infrastructure so pastors’ families don’t burn out, and ending the bad habit of publicly shaming musicians. Along the way, we talk streaming routines born in the pandemic, finding covering at Cali Worship, praise-break tempos by region, and a new Lifetime lead—Preach Pray Love—where Mark plays a young, progressive pastor navigating image and intimacy.

If faith, culture, and craft matter to you, this conversation will feel like home and a nudge forward. Stream now, share it with a PK who’ll get every reference, and tap follow so you don’t miss the next candid deep dive. If it challenged you or made you laugh, leave a review and tell us your favorite praise-break BPM.

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The PK label can feel like a life sentence or a launchpad. Sitting down with therapist and recording artist Alise Moore, we peel back the layers of legacy—two bishops for grandfathers, parents who were PKs, and a lifetime of expectations—to ask a better question: how do you become whole when your identity has been split between roles? Alise charts the journey from indoctrination to integration, naming the difference between protection and constraint, and showing how the very environments that wound us can also cultivate resilience, leadership, and presence under pressure.

We explore why so many church leaders avoid therapy—stigma, binaries, and the shame that thrives in either/or thinking—and how honest soul work helps us hold dualities: faith and frustration, sacredness and sexuality, influence and exhaustion. Alise offers a simple, strong playbook for bringing a busy ministry family toward counseling: embody the fruit, plant seeds with wisdom, and be patient with the process. Evidence softens defenses. Love and boundaries do the rest.

Then we move into calling and craft. Alise shares the moment she surrendered music for grad school, turned down a dream opportunity to protect alignment, and watched God return her gift with better timing—tours, sessions, and mentors that didn’t derail her clinical path. The thread through it all is unglamorous and essential: patience, diligence, and discipline. If you’ve taken detours, there’s grace for realignment. If you’re a PK navigating identity, her closing advice lands like a hand on your shoulder: be kind to yourself, seek a licensed therapist even when things seem “fine,” and keep choosing the person you’re called to be—one honest, integrated decision at a time.

If this conversation sparked something in you, follow and subscribe, share it with a friend who needs it, and leave a review with your biggest takeaway—we read every word.

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Some stories are born; others are chosen. Charles Rose didn’t inherit the PK life—he stepped into it, found a father, and reshaped what calling looks like beyond the pulpit. We open up about leaving a mega church at fifteen for a smaller house where mentorship, time, and intentional pouring made growth possible, and how that pivot—absent of church hurt and full of honor—can be a blueprint for anyone sensing it’s time to move without burning bridges.

From Hartford choir rehearsals that felt like rescue to LA’s creative corridors, Charles maps the winding road of purpose: PR degree, HBCU style culture, saying no to the spotlight but yes to shaping it, and building a reputation on excellence, integrity, and telling the whole truth. He talks candidly about loving a father who battled addiction, reframing anger by seeing the man before the label, and choosing forgiveness as a discipline that frees your heart and even unclogs your prayer life. We dig into platform standards and wardrobe guardrails with one clear north star—don’t be a distraction. Ministry isn’t performance; it’s service. Teach the unchurched, guide with patience, and keep the main thing the main thing.

We also celebrate his upcoming ordination as an elder—a public affirmation of a life already poured out in rooms big and small. Expect practical wisdom for PKs and multi-gifted creatives: be loyal to your future, value relationships over transactions, bring your best work at every price point, and close doors with gratitude so God can open better ones. If you’ve felt the nudge to pivot, to forgive, or to raise your standard without losing your soul, this conversation will meet you where you are.

If this resonated, subscribe to the show on YouTube @TheePKPod, share it with a friend who needs courage for their next step, and leave a review to help more people find our community.

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