about
Jarin "HAELO" Penn is a Gospel Hip-Hop and Spoken Word artist born in Washington, DC. Raised in the church, Jarin got an early start at rapping for Christ. At 8 years old, he performed an original song entitled “God’s All That” in front of his school. Hip-Hop soon grew to be his passion. Unfortunately, all of the examples he heard on the radio were violent, self-centered, and degraded women. Idolizing the lifestyle shown and exhibited in Hip-Hop, Jarin dove head first into Rap’s world, dropping line after line glorifying sex, money, and materialism. But that wasn’t him. Jarin never lived any of what he rapped. As wrong as it all felt to him, he was convinced that he would have to conform to the ways of the industry to make it.
That all changed in Middle School. Taking a friend’s recommendation, Jarin was exposed to Cross Movement and an old DJ Maj mixtape. Never before had he heard another rapper represent Jesus or speak on God through Hip-Hop. It got real for Jarin in 2005, when he felt God calling for him to have a deeper and more personal spiritual relationship. Adapting the name “Haelo”, he began to push Jesus through his music.
Haelo released “It Begins: The Mixtape”, featuring the bangers “Gotta Let’em Know” and “I’m a Fighter”. The mixtape also allowed Haelo to expand his repertoire to include Spoken Word with the classic piece “Makeshift”. After working on his craft while attending Full Sail University, Haelo released his debut album “I Am…Awakening”, a dynamic blend of Gospel Hip-Hop and Spoken Word, in 2008. The album contributed to Haelo’s selection as a participating artist at Real Fest, located in Clearwater, FL, in 2009. In 2012, Haelo was tabbed by ASON to be a part of “The Future is NOW” Tour, an East-Coast focused experienced that allowed Haelo to expand his ministry further than ever before.
Haelo utilizes his gifts, creativity and charisma for the advancement of God’s kingdom. From arranging music, writing movie scripts, and ministering through performance, Haelo strives to leave a mark in the world and reflect all glory back to God. His aim is to be faithful to the God that’s been faithful to him despite his flaws, and to show the world what God can do if we put all of our trust in HIM.