My name is Michael Swalley, aka bboy Bishop. I am an adopted son of God, born again at a young age through hearing the gospel. My wife (Ellen) and I live in the Colorado Springs area and have three daughters and one son.

God has placed a passion on my heart for cross-cultural ministry, men embracing their role as husbands and fathers, and for indigenous church planting movements. I started breaking at the age of 21. Initially, breaking was a fun hobby for me. But during an internship in Melbourne, Australia, I was fully introduced to the Hip Hop community. Encouraged to start a ministry using breaking, I came back to the states in 2005 with a vision to see the Hip Hop community passionately serving Christ.

In the last 20 years, I have lived in four major city centers in America. I have traveled the world and seen the Hip-Hop community in numerous countries. The time spent in these places has convinced me that Hip-Hop, through the power of the Spirit, is a uniquely effective method to make disciples and plant churches. Local leaders planting local churches, through the preaching of the gospel. That is my passion. Breaking is my method. God’s son is my identity.

I was born in Trenton, New Jersey, to immigrant parents from Liberia. Even as a child, I felt God’s pull on my life—like He was preparing me for something greater.

I grew up in a Christian home and attended church four to five times a week. But for much of my childhood, I was just going through the motions—checking religious boxes—until one Sunday when the Gospel truly hit me. My eyes were opened. I saw my sin for what it was and realized I needed a Savior.

That day, I went home and told my dad I wanted to accept Christ. His joy in that moment deeply moved me—especially since we hadn’t had much of an emotional or relational connection before. Years later, after a painful divorce, my parents left me and my siblings in the care of our grandmother. God’s grace carried me through. I fell in love with His Word, and at age 13, He confirmed my call to missions. I never imagined He would use something I’d always loved—dance.

After high school, I attended Liberty University, where God began to solidify His call on my life through a hip-hop ministry called Bridging the Gap. The group’s choreographer was passionate about using Hip-Hop to reach the lost, and that vision began to shape my own. Though I couldn’t complete my studies at Liberty, God led me to Youth With A Mission (YWAM), where I served as a full-time missionary for 12 years.

During that time, I witnessed people come to Christ, experienced miraculous healings, and encountered God’s protection in radical ways—including surviving three life-threatening moments where I stared down the barrel of a gun. Through it all, I’ve come to know the truth and power of the Gospel.

Today, I serve with Break Free Ministries as the Director of Pioneering. My heart burns especially for the city of Philadelphia—a city I’ve come to love deeply. Here, God is restoring broken relationships in families, churches, and the Hip-Hop community. Our “family sessions” have become safe spaces for healing—places where people feel free to open up, be vulnerable, and encounter the love of God.

In a city like Philly, where toughness is a survival skill, creating a space where Black men can lay down their armor and just be—in a home setting—is powerful, countercultural, and beautifully disruptive. It’s just the kind of thing the Holy Spirit loves to do.