10 CityLight.org
february 2012
ARTS
&
ENTERTAINMENT
MICHAEL HAYNES
O
n July 8, 1982 on the floor board of a
1978 Ford pickup truck, God blessed
Nathaniel Sr. and Betty Haynes with a baby
boy. The mother of their church and the
owner of the truck, Mother Grace Heed
named him Michael Lamont Haynes.
Haynes is the fifth of nine brothers and sis-
ters and the father of 2 children; Cierra E.
Haynes and Da'shawn T. Haynes. He was
born and raised in Elloree, South Carolina.
Growing up Michael attended Disciples of
Christ Church located in Elloree S.C. As
a child he began ushering and playing the
drums. He later moved from playing the
drums to singing in the church choir. "Yes
I Am a Believer" by John Pee Kee was the
first song that Michael lead, when he was
only 11 years old. It was there that Michael
found a passion to sing Gospel music.
Michael attend public school in Orangeburg
District 7 Counties. He attended Elloree Ele-
mentary and Elloree High School. In elemen-
tary school Michael continued to pursue his
love for music by joining the band in the 5th
grade. He continued in his high school years
by playing the Trombone, Baritone, French
horn, Tuba, and the Snare Drum. Haynes was
the band captain for 6 years. Last but certainly
not least, he was the equipment manager and
Chapmen of the band for 7 years.
I Need You LORD
To add to all of his wonderful talents Mi-
chael found another passion. This time it
was a sport that would knock him off his
feet from time to time. Baseball became a
hobby for Michael around the house with
his family and friends, but when he reached
middle school he was playing on a different
level. Although he enjoyed these activities,
at the age of seventeen, Michael was diag-
nosed with a heart condition that doctors
said he may have to stop playing in the
band and baseball team. That was some-
thing that he did not want to hear.
At seventeen years old he experienced the
healing power of God Almighty for the
first time. While doing praise and worship,
the devil attacked him and knocked him
to the floor. As his heart pounded and he
gasped for air, he passed out. The church as
a whole, gather around him, commanding
the devil to turn him loose. Once Michael
was revived, he then knew the severity of
this health condition. Later that night, he
was afraid to go to sleep, thinking that he
would die at an early age. Michael prayed
for the first time asking God to heal him.
Instantly, he was healed. That's when Mi-
chael knew that he could believe in GOD.
After high school, Michael attended Bene-
dict College of Columbia South Carolina.