Popular gospel singer Nathaniel Bassey has explained why he has refused to monetise his official YouTube channel for the popular Hallelujah Challenge, an online prayer session that attracts millions of worshippers across the world.
The 2025 edition, which began on October 7 and ended on October 31, recorded millions of views across major social media platforms, including YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok.
As sighted by The Guardian as at the time of filling this report, Bassey’s channel currently has more than 4.7 million subscribers and averages over 1.5 million views per session.
Some analysts estimated he could have earned as much as ₦1 billion if the channel were monetised.
Despite these figures, the minister insisted that his focus remains purely spiritual and not financial.
During the Day 23 live session of the ongoing event, Bassey told his followers that he would not monetise the page because God did not instruct him to do so.
He said, “People are dragging me because I didn’t monetise my YouTube channel for the Hallelujah Challenge. I won’t monetise it; God didn’t tell me to.”
The singer also raised alarm over scammers who have cloned his official YouTube page to make money off fake live streams of the event. He warned viewers to be cautious of such fraudulent channels, stressing that the only authentic page is NathanielBasseymain.
He said, “Some people join the Hallelujah Challenge from fake pages on YouTube. Let me tell you why: due to my personal focus on not monetising ‘Hallelujah Challenge’, some criminals, crooks, and scammers have cloned and stolen the feed from our page to air it, all in an effort to make money.
“So, if you find out as you are watching this now, and you are not on NathanielBasseymain, that is the official YouTube page. Any other page is a scam. Just trying to merchandise the grace of God.”
Despite public speculation that monetising the platform could generate millions of naira, the gospel artist made it clear that he would not be swayed by financial gain or public opinion.
He said, “They have dragged me all you can. When you monetise, they would say you are doing ministry for money. They would say you are trying to be proud when you do not. We will not monetise it. I am not led to do it. God will bless us in some other way.”
Since its debut in 2017, the Hallelujah Challenge has become one of Nigeria’s biggest online Christian gatherings. It brings together believers twice a year for intense praise and worship sessions featuring top gospel artists and ministers.
Through the years, Nathaniel Bassey has maintained that the vision of the Hallelujah Challenge is to promote worship, not wealth, and to unite Christians in heartfelt prayer.
