The Name

JAH PICKNEY™ (jaw-pick-knee): Jah Pickney is Jamaican patois for "God's Child." Jah is a Biblical name for God found in the KJV in Psalm 68:4. The name comes from the root of Jehovah and Yahweh and is found in the name "Abijah" which means "God is my Father," and the name "Elijah which means "Lord God." Pickney is the Jamaican patois word for child."

The name JAH PICKNEY™ was given to Tim Linnard by Mark Mohr of Christafari at the beginning of their friendship in 1994.

Biography

Jah Pickney was born, Tim Linnard, in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada to Christian parents, Cliff and Berna Linnard. At the time of his birth, Tim's father was a pastor with the Christian & Missionary Alliance Church. The youngest of three boys, Tim and his two older brothers, Jeremy and Bradley, attended church and Sunday School nearly every Sunday of their lives, and received the foundational teachings of the Christian faith.

At the age of four, Tim understood that he needed to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, and with the help of his mother he prayed to accept Jesus as his Saviour. On Easter Sunday, at the age of ten, Tim was baptized as a declaration of his new life in Jesus Christ.

One year later, at the age of eleven, God gave Tim a definite call to ministry. Because of his love for reggae music, Tim began to spend much time in the study of Jamaica, the land of Reggae. As he learned more about Jamaica, he started to feel a real love for it's people. It was a love that he couldn't explain. Through extended time in prayer, God revealed to him His call for Tim's life - to present the message of Jesus Christ to Jamaicans around the world.

Now that he knew God wanted him to be a missionary to Jamaicans, Tim was very anxious to get started. He prayed that God would bring some Jamaicans into his life right then. It seemed like a long shot in Belleville that he would meet a Jamaican, but God brought him four Jamaicans that very week. They had come to Canada to work on a nearby farm for the summer. One of these men was a Christian and he and Tim became close friends immediately. The other three were Tim's mission field. Tim became friends with them and God gave him many opportunities to share his faith with them.

Although Tim loved reggae music, he discovered that many of the song lyrics were not godly. He wanted to find some Christian reggae and in his search, he found there was one Christian reggae album available at the time, by Christafari. Tim ordered their album and was excited to hear authentic reggae music with the message of truth. In his excitement, he wrote to Christafari to tell them how much he enjoyed their album and to share with them God's call on his life.

Tim didn't expect to hear back from Christafari but he received a very heartfelt letter from the lead singer Mark Mohr. Mark said that Tim's letter had been a real encouragement to the band and he urged Tim to continue to be sensitive to God's call on his life. Mark gave Tim the name of a boy in Jamaica that he could be a pen pal to, and thereby continue to have a ministry to a Jamaican right now. Mark also gave Tim a Jamaican name, "Jah Pickney" which means "God's Child".

In 1997, Jah Pickney was invited to join Mark Mohr on a mission trip to Jamaica as part of the Jamaica For Jesus Ministry team. However, just months before the trip it became evident that due to Christafari's heavy concert schedule, Mark was not going to be able to make the trip. Mark had a missionary friend in Jamaica who Jah Pickney could stay with if he wanted to make the trip alone. Jah Pickney was a bit frightened about that prospect. He was only 15 years old, he had never flown before, and he would be travelling alone, to a country he had never been to and staying with people he had never met. But God's call on him overpowered his fears and he went. With the prayers and financial support of his church and family and with 30 Gideon New Testaments in his backpack, Jah Pickney traveled to Jamaica. He stayed at the home of missionaries, Dan and Carol Wessel and their daughter Serenity in Montego Bay.

While in Jamaica, Jah Pickney visited the children in Blossom Garden and Garland Orphanages. He had brought a new soccer ball from Canada as a gfit to them. The children were facinated with his attempts at patois and loved to be hugged and cuddled. Jah Pickney also was able to help out with the building of a Christian school. He did "street witnessing" - talking to the people that he met on the streets and in the ghettos.

The Jamaica For Jesus team fasted and prayed before the world famous four-day reggae festival, Sumfest '97. This festival brings thousands from all over Jamaica and around the world to hear the top reggae artists. Many of these artists promote the Rastafarian cult, drugs and immorality in their songs. It was Jah Pickney's goal to reach these artists with the gospel of Christ. Jah Pickney purchased a back-stage pass in order to meet and talk with the artists. He had the opportunity to witness to several of the wolrd's top reggae artists and to give them Gideon New Testaments, including Lady Saw, Shaggy, Red Rat, Everton Blender, General Degree, Luciano and Lieutenant Stitchie.

Lt. Stitchie had been in a serious car accident on his way to Sumfest but arrived to do his concert with a bandage on a cut over his left eye. Stitchie was very shook up by the accident and when Jah Pickney talked with him, he admitted that God had spared his life. Stitchie was very open to the gospel and accepted a Bible from Jah Pickney.

In November 1997, Jah Pickney learned that the greatest fruit of that mission trip was the salvation of Lt. Stitchie. Jah Pickney received an email from missionary Dan Wessel, telling him that Stitchie had given his life to Christ. In newspaper articles and on television interviews, Stitchie was testifying that a foreigner gave him a Bible at Sumfest and that it had played a big part in his decision to accept Christ. Jah Pickney realized that the foreigner was him!

Stitchie is now using his music to glorify God and preach the Good News! What a great thrill and encouragement it was for Jah Pickney to know that he had made a change in the life of one of his favorite Reggae artists. That one soul that he had helped to reach for Christ has gone on to win multitudes more through his ministry! Praise God!

With God's inspiration and enabling, Jah Pickney began writing and performing his own original reggae songs. According to Jah Pickney, "Reggae music is one of the most influential means of communicating the gospel to the masses in Jamaica and around the world, as this genre of music is becoming more popular". In March 1998, Jah Pickney traveled to Nashville, Tennessee to record a demo with the help of his friend and mentor, Mark Mohr.

In November 1999, Jah Pickney had the enormous pleasure of meeting Stitchie for the first time since his conversion. Stitchie called him from his hotel room in Toronto and invited him to share the stage with him at Outreach Services that he was involved with in the Toronto area. Stitchie ministered through song and shared his testimony and then introduced Jah Pickney as the one who had given him the Bible at Sumfest '97. Jah Pickney was given the opportunity to share his testimony with Stitchie's audience and sing a few of his own original reggae songs.

At the young age of 13, God opened the doors for Jah Pickney to be the deejay of his own reggae radio show in Belleville on CJLX 92.3 FM. Reggaesplash airs Saturday nights from 7:00 - 9:00 PM. Jah Pickney incorporates Christian reggae throughout the program and dedicates the last hour - the "Real Power Hour", exclusively to Christian reggae music. The show is interactive, and appreciative listeners call in regularly with their requests.

Jah Pickney's debut album, Jah Love, was released on May 30, 2000 on Jah Pickney's own label, Jah Yout Productions. In the album Jah Pickney declares what Christ has done for him and his commitment to God as a "musicianary" (musical missionary).

Jah Pickney's second album, From The Heart, released January 22, 2002, was recorded in the ministry's new Lineage Recording Studios. Although predominately dancehall reggae, this CD offers it's listeners a variety of flavors including roots, lover's rock, hip-hop, nyabinghi, dub, rub-a-dub and sing-jay styles. This 16 track project features two special guest artists - Stitchie on Look To God and Mark "Tansoback" Mohr (Christafari) on the Intro (Jah Pickney Deyah). This album went on to earn Jah Pickney two nominations in the 3rd Annual Hopeton Lewis Caribbean Gospel music awards in 2003. The nominations included Top International Gospel CD and Top International Gospel Song for Look To God featuring Stitchie.

Jah Pickney has also released two singles which appear on various artist compilation albums from Lion of Zion Entertainment, the world's leading Christian reggae and world music record label. His very popular ragga/soca song, Trinity Divinity is featured on Soca Baptism. His latest pre-single, a hip-hop infused dancehall track entitled Gimme Some Peace, which will be featured on his upcoming third album, is included on Lion of Zion's Raggamuffin Hip Hop 2.

Some people may think that it is strange for a white Canadian to be wearing dreadlocks, speaking Jamaican patois and singing Christian Dancehall Reggae. But Tim "Jah Pickney" Linnard knows that God has called him to be a missionary to the Jamaican people and reggae music listeners around the world. He has taken the advice of the Apostle Paul in I Cor. 9:20. "To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews…to the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some." Jah Pickney has stepped into the Jamaican culture in hopes of reaching some for Jesus.

Accomplishments

2003 - 3rd Annual Hopteon Lewis Caribbean Gospel Music Awards
Top International Gospel CD nomination (From the Heart)
Top International Gospel Song nomination (Look to God - featuring Stitchie)

2000 - Mpulse Award
Top 10 Reggae Artist - Most listened to on Mpulse internet site (Jah Love album).

1996 - 2004 - 92.3 FM CJLX Appreciation Certificate
Volunteer Programmer (Reggaesplash)

2002, 2003 - Jah Pickney was the first Canadian Reggae Artist to be featured on compilation albums from Lion of Zion Entertainment. (Soca Baptism, Raggamuffin Hip Hop 2)

2000 - Jah Pickney launched his own Record Label (Jah Yout Productions).

2001 - Launched recording studio (Lineage Recording Studios).

Jah Pickney has shared the stage with artists such as Stitchie, Christafari, Prodigal Son, Carlene Davis, Junior Tucker, Pigeon John, Kay Morris & the Jewels, Kali & Dub, Sister Nicky, Promise D'apostle, and others.

He has recorded with artists such as Stitchie, Christafari, Kay Morris & the Jewels and others.

Jah Pickney is known for high energy performances and has toured in Canada and the USA and with Christafari in Northern USA (2001 WordSound&Power Tour).

For further information or to book JAH PICKNEY
Please contact:

Jah Yout Productions
Cliff Linnard (Manager)
Telephone: (613) 962-5987
1326 Wallbridge-Loyalist Road
R.R. #5 Belleville, Ontario
K8N 4Z5 CANADA
Fax: (613) 962-9519
Email: info@jahpickney.com