Talking Faith and Fatherhood with Xzibit from MTV’s Pimp My Ride

Best known for his time on MTV’s Pimp My Ride, Detroit native Alvin Joiner “Xzibit,” is also known for turning out underground hip-hop classics for more than a decade. Before his time in the spotlight, Xzibit was at odds with folks and the law.

We interviewed Xzibit in 2006 and talked with him about his faith and why he feels fathers play an important role in their children’s lives.

Xzibit shares how he went from a life on the street to turning his life around and how he came to his faith in God.

“Well, I came to a couple of close calls during my time on the street; where I really knew I was being protected for some reason. So I wasn’t gonna try to push my luck any more that I had to. So it was just a conscious decision. I was tired of getting the same results every time I tried to move forward by doing something illegal. You know, I move a lot by faith. I have a good relationship with my creator, so I trust in Him. I feel like, if this is Your will and this is what You wanna do, then I trust You. And I’ve been blessed a hundred times over…See, you always know when a person isn’t really based on faith when the only reason he says ‘oh my God’ is when something drastic happens to them. I try to humble myself and pray every day, I realize I’m here for a reason, so I’m just enjoying myself while I’m here.”

“Fear of the Lord is the foundation of true knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline. My child, listen when your father corrects you. Don’t neglect your mother’s instruction. What you learn from them will crown you with grace and be a chain of honor around your neck.” Proverbs 1:7-9

Xzibit opens up on how becoming a father helped transform his faith and the role he feels dads play in their children’s lives.

“It’s just as I mature, man. My son had a lot do to with that. I had my son when I was 19 or 20 years old. So I came to Los Angeles when I was 17, shortly after that I met my son’s mother. We had [the baby, and] when that guy came my life was over. It was all about him. You’ve got to make a lot of conscious decisions and a lot of self-improvements going into that responsibility. My fatherhood is everything to me. So going through that transformation as a father led to a lot of decision-making that brought me to this place…If you make it important. If you’re very aggressive and intense with the relationship that you have with your children, of course they’re gonna respect that, because you’re taking the time out to give them the information that’s helping them and not hurting them. It’s not about achievement monetarily; it’s about spending that time. Money can never replace time. So it’s not about being the riches dad, or going out there and hustling for your family. The simplest things can make their day, because they don’t understand the concept or power of the dollar like we do as adults. They just want the time and energy. You gotta be the main one building your children up. Because you don’t want to tear them down and have them go seek that camaraderie and that information somewhere else, from somebody who really doesn’t care for them like you do.”

Risen Reflections

Turn your life around. Whether it is an addiction, life of crime or a self-destructive behavior, it is time to make a change. Consider asking a friend, family member or pastor to come alongside you to help. It might mean going to counseling, going to a treatment center, or setting up accountability or support system. Pray and ask God to help you. It is only through His power that you will be able to overcome. God gives us friends and family to support us during challenging times. Ask God to give you perspective and vision for your life. Sometimes making a change can be difficult because we are focusing only on the moment instead of the long-term.

Invest your time. Each of us has the resource of time. We can choose daily how we want to invest it. Whether it is our family, career, or a hobby, it is up to us. Take time this week to step back to see how you are investing your time. If there are things that you want to spend more time doing, think about areas of your life that you can prioritize to free up more time. There might be things that you can delegate to other people. There might be some things that you decline or step away from so that you can invest your time in other things.

Be a role model. Each of us has the opportunity to be a role model for another person. It can be our children, a co-worker, or someone else that is in our life. Pray and ask God whom you can be a role model to. We don’t have to be perfect to be a role model or mentor, but we should be willing to make changes to be more like Christ. Ask a friend, small group leader or pastor for their feedback if there are areas of your life that might need some change prior to you mentoring others.

To read our entire interview with Xzibit, click here.