Reach Records was founded by Ben Washer and Lecrae in 2004 and has a roster of Christian artists that include Trip Lee, Andy Mineo, Lecrae, and Tedashii. It used to be the home of the Gospel Music Association’s 2019 Dove Award winner for Rap/Hip Hop Recorded Song, GAWVI.
On January 31, 2022, Reach Records announced on social media that they had ended their relationship with the talented music producer and hip hop artist Gabriel Alberto Azucena, who goes by the stage name GAWVI.
“Due to behavior that is inconsistent with our core values, we have ended our professional relationship with GAWVI,” Reach Records statement on Instagram read. “This was a tough decision for us because of the level of complexity and because we invest in our artists not just for their talent, but also as brothers and sisters in Christ. This is something we have been processing for over a year and have wrestled with what would be the right way forward.”
The record company’s statement shared that new details regarding the situation GAWVI has been dealing with was brought to their attention, giving them no choice but to separate themselves from him as an artist.
“We also want our actions to be a reflection of love, care, and concern for those who fail and those who are affected by our failures,” the statement said.
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“Each of us needs God’s grace and we invite you to pray for the families and individuals whose lives are being impacted,” the statement concluded. “This is not a chance to throw anybody away. We continue to hope for restoration to be the outcome.”
The Dove Award winning artist was slotted to perform on Reach Records upcoming “We Are UNASHAMED Tour,” scheduled to kick off in Austin, Texas on March 17, 2022. GAWVI was also featured on a Reach Records January 16, 2022 release with 116, Trip Lee, 1k Phew, and Wande titled “Represent II“. GAWVI was cut from the tour.
GAWVI released his first album with Reach Records in 2017. Since then, he has recorded three more albums with the label, with his latest released last March, a Spanish album titled “Noche Juvenil” (translated: Youth Night).
A Rapzilla article has an image of a now deleted Instagram post GAWVI made on January 29, 2022, where the artist shared he and his wife (Brianna) had ended their marriage.
“Past two years has been quite a roller coaster. Throughout my musical journey, I’ve always been transparent, sharing some of my personal ups and downs with you. Sadly, today I’m here to share that my marriage came to an end in 2020,” GAWVI’s post read.
Brianna and GAWVI have two children together. Expressing that the decision to divorce wasn’t made because of a scandal but “just two adults that made decisions that led to this point,” GAWVI said that he hates divorce.
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“With God first, I know that life still has seasons we don’t plan on,” GAWVI said. “But I know with everything in me that God is still the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow.” He also shared that he is working on a new album and will explore some of that journey in his music.
