Chapter II
One Testimony
In the early 1990s Isaiah-Raymond Dyer was in prison, awaiting sentencing. There, he converted to Christianity and left a changed man. He returned to his home church, joined the choir, and in 1994 formed Raymond & Co with Gillian Nembhard, Christopher Gordon, Lisa Allen and Janine Dyer.
They became one of Britain's finest gospel groups — soulful harmonies and contemporary flavours carried across Britain, Europe and America, sharing platforms with Kirk Franklin, Mary Mary, Fred Hammond and Donnie McClurkin.
Winning the first-ever GMTV / Voice / Integrity Music Gospel Challenge brought a deal with Integrity Music. Their debut album Playing Games followed on 22 September 2003 — a deliberate fusion of UK and USA styles they called the “Mid-Atlantic” sound.
In 2004 they won Best Gospel Act at the MOBO Awards, and supported Will Young to ~168,000 people across UK arenas. Ministry, not fame, was always the point.
The chance to represent UK gospel — pushing our sounds beyond the walls of the church.— Isaiah-Raymond Dyer, 2004 MOBO acceptance