Canton Jones, a Grammy-nominated singer, rapper, songwriter, and producer, has solidified his status as a musical innovator over a remarkable two-decade career, amassing over 24 million Spotify streams and 35 million YouTube views. Fusing traditional gospel with contemporary R&B, hip-hop, and electronic beats, Jones crafts a genre-blending sound that echoes influences from icons like Fred Hammond, Dr. Dre, and Marvin Gaye, all delivered through his commanding baritone voice. His accolades—three Stellar Award nominations, three Gospel Choice Awards, and a Trailblazer in Media & Entertainment Award—underscore his impact, while performances for legends like Oprah Winfrey and Ray Charles, alongside collaborations with gospel titans such as Moses Bliss, and Nathaniel Bassey, highlight his industry stature. Now, with his latest single, ‘YOU KNOW I DO (LOVER’S Version)’, released on May 30th, 2025, via Cajo Records, Jones offers a soulful, gospel-infused love anthem that’s already generating buzz.
In the interview below, he shares the heartfelt inspiration behind this track and his vision for spreading love through music in today’s world.
How do you decide which genres to mix into your gospel sound?
I just do what I feel. I love all music. So I don’t feel like, from my perspective, that gospel is a genre. Gospel is a; to me gospel is a message. And you could put that message on Hip Hop, on R&B, on Pop, on Jazz, on Rock, on Blues, anything, because the message is still the same. Hope, Love, & Faith can be exhibited in all genres you know. So, whatever Genre I feel, whatever style I feel, that’s what I do.
What’s one unexpected challenge you faced in the studio that ended up shaping a song you’re really proud of?
I made a mistake and cut out the word “Christian” in a song that I made called ‘In Da Club’. The lyric was, “they done let the Christians in the club. “Oh My God!” And I made a mistake and cut the word “Christian” out when I was editing it. And wanting to enjoy the controversy of a word being edited out, it also left the minds of the listener wondering and even able to customize it with whatever word that felt appropriate for them in that moment. I released it as a mix tape song and it was surprisingly very successful. I’ve made a lot of mistakes but those mistakes started to shape the sound of Canton Jones and ‘In Da Club’ ended up being one of my greatest hits. Music is art, and art is in the ears of the beholder.
How does being a pastor shape the way you write music?
I always want to give people hope and inspiration. I want to teach and make suggestions without judging and that reflects directly in my music and the building principles to how my music is shaped. No man is perfect and with that also understanding that I’ve made mistakes, and I still make mistakes. you do it in the spirit of love, but you also do it in the spirit of wisdom as well.
What sparked the idea for “YOU KNOW I DO (LOVER’S Version)”?
The idea of being in love, having a family. Sometimes when you been with the same woman for a long time in relationships, you start to take each other for granted. You start to make a lot of assumptions. You start to say stuff like, “you’re supposed to” and “you have to” and “I assume that you were going to”, and you stop treating them like the person that you met when you didn’t know them. You know, there are certain expectations that you have in a relationship, but sometimes those expectations need to be voiced.
You need to talk again. The person that you married years ago is not me five years later, or ten years later, or 15 years later, I’m not the same person. So you need to get to know me again. We need to get to know each other again because we’re growing. And so ‘you know I do’ is me in this version of myself and her version of herself, me, re dedicating myself to our relationship, our family and our journey. Just saying again, “you know I do” like I said before, but I’m saying it again, “you know I do.” I do. I do, you know, and the preacher always says “do you take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife? “ I Do” You know, and everything that comes with it, but sometimes through test, trials, tribulations, through fights and through disappointments, and arguments, your “ I do” start to change to “I don’t”especially if you don’t voice it. So therefore, I voice mine to say, “I do”and “I will forever”
How do you keep your energy up juggling music, ministry, and business?
Managed by my wife who keeps me on point, and we kind of assist in managing each other’s life. She makes sure that I have the proper amount of energy for all of my assignments, even the assignment of working out and staying healthy, and navigating the schedule of performance and creativity. She knows that I have to have some time to create, because creation for me is fuel for my health. I love being able to do all of it and be good at it for so long, but none of this would be possible without her. She is the one that helps me keep everything balanced.
What’s one moment from performing for Oprah that still sticks with you?
Ah! I was in college and I was a part of the Morehouse College, Glee Club. Morehouse College is the alma mater of Dr Martin Luther King, Spike Lee and countless African American men that have contributed to society. And so, I was a part of the choir, the Glee Club that sang to Maya Angelou, who is a great African American poet. She had a party that was thrown by Oprah Winfrey, and she invited the Morehouse College Glee Club to sing. And I was a part of that organization. One of the very awesome things about that experience is that my wife was in the Spelman College Glee Club and they sang, and I sang. Spelman Glee Club sang and Morehouse Glee Club quartet, which is like four girls and four guys. So Morehouse College Glee Club Quartet sang, and the Spelman College Glee Club Quartet sang as well. And so, one of the big memories is seeing all the stars there being treated like a star at a young age when, you know, I wasn’t even doing music full time. I was a student. Oprah was so gracious, and so was Maya Angelou, and so that was a big big moment for me. I sang first tenor and we had an amazing night that night.
Looking back at your Grammy nomination, how did that change the way you see your music’s purpose?
Um, for one, I think that when I was nominated it allowed me to see that my music can compete with other music. The music that God gave me being genuine to my sound, being genuine to my psychology of making music, and my methods that they work to get me a grammy nomination and though I haven’t won a grammy yet the music has evolved and it’s been a blessing to me, and that Grammy nomination gave me a lot of confidence.
With all your community work, how do you weave those real-life stories into songs like “YOU KNOW I DO (LOVER’S Version)”?
If I’m being honest, my entire journey of doing music. I started doing music when I was a kid. Fast forward to my adult life, you know, when I got married and said, “I do” my music wasn’t popular before I got married. It was me and my wife working as a team to get it to be popular. So writing that song, it’s such a huge message. It’s a hidden message, but it’s such a huge message because there’s a book that says, “one can put a thousand a flight, but two can put 10000 a flight.” So when you’re in partnership with somebody, or when you are in covenant with somebody, you’re ten times better. So I believe that’s what my life represents the lovers version says “I give my life I give my love you know, I do.” And in the efforts that I put forth everyday, not just a song to make you emotionally want to have sex with me, but a song that makes you want to be with me forever. And I want to do life with you, and I want you to do life with me, you know. We have our own way of doing things.
My wife knows me and I know her, and it makes it work. So it makes my music work, and it makes my mind work. And so that’s why I say, “you know, I do.” Sometimes people have been together so long that they start to disrespect each other because they know; like they take for granted You’re not going anywhere. I’m not going anywhere. So I’ll just treat you like whatever. And that’s not real, or that’s not healthy. That’s not what I want. I want every morning for us to say, “hey”, “how you doing?” “Hello” “good morning” you know, to greet each other, to not just assume that I had a good night, and that I had a good sleep. We ask each other that and that’s what the culture is, to not take me for granted, and I won’t take you for granted. So we keep it fresh. And that’s what, ‘you know I do’ is about, it’s about somebody that’s with you But sometimes they need the reconfirmation, you know, sometimes there’s some insecurities there, maybe a job keep you away, maybe some other obligations keep you split up and you just need to know aye” I do and for instance like with me being on the road traveling, and I come back … you just need to know I’m with you! That’s what that song is about.
What’s one crazy idea you’re dying to try in your next project?
I’m a person that always does controversial topics and talks about certain things that people don’t talk about. I think I want to swing at making mainstream Kingdom music. So gospel is a genre that has a sound. My music doesn’t sound consistently like Gospel, and I don’t like to create in one space. So I wanna try different spaces. I want to try techno music, house music. I want to try all different spaces and music, and bring my good news to all those spaces. So those are the things that I’ll be trying in the future, just bringing my good news to new spaces and trying different types of music.
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