Alvin and Joy Slaughter talk Ebola, his Ghanaian roots, Gospel music

American gospel music minister Alvin Slaughter has revealed his roots have been traced to Ghana via the results of a DNA test conducted on their family by his brother.

Alvin who said the test was conducted right before he travelled out of the United States for West Africa said he was excited to trace his ancestry to Ghana.

“My brother right before we came, did a DNA test on my family and it says my people are from Ghana. There is a small percentage from Nigeria but the biggest from Ghana,” he said.

Alvin together with his wife Joy are in Ghana to bless over 4000 people with their unique musical ministrations.

The gospel-music-concert power couple will usher Ghanaians into the presence of God as they give thanks for his mercies in 2014, in what will be recorded in Ghana’s history as the largest concert of the year.

They would be joined by South African sensation Patrick Duncan and Ghanaian gospel musicians Joe Beecham, Tagoe Sisters, Amy Newman, Danny Nettey, OJ, No Tribe, Koda and Joe Mettle live at the Accra Sports Stadium on Saturday December 27.

In an exclusive interview with Starr Drive host Bola Ray on Starr 103.5FM on Tuesday, the couple said although hesitant at the invitation in the beginning, they are convinced now, more than ever being in Ghana for Christmas was part of God’s plan.

“We were apprehensive because it’s around the holiday time… we will be going Christmas and we would be going the New Year’s but the more we walked into it and the more we looked into it we felt a yes in our spirits. So we are excited to be here… Once we hit the ground and we saw their smiling faces we knew we were home. I’m here with my people,” Alvin said.

Alvin and joy are well known for their inimitable ministrations in which Alvin powerfully sings while Joy shares an inspiring and encouraging message borne out of her life experiences.

Joy, a missionary who has run an international mission’s organisation for 18 years, joins her husband on almost every mission he undertakes and they both said the Ebola scare in the West African region did not deter them from travelling to both Nigeria and Ghana.

“It was huge in the USA. We were in Nigeria two times this year we couldn’t tell people where we were going because if we told them we were in Africa they wouldn’t want to see us when we got back home… But what they didn’t realise at the time was that at the time either than those three [Western African countries] - because in the States they kept saying West Africa, West Africa – they didn’t realise that there are many countries in West Africa, or they might cancel us at one of their churches. They wouldn’t want us around,” the couple remarked.

Listen to the 28-minute interview Bola Ray had with Alvin and Joy Slaughter.