---------------------------------------------------------------------------
TLeM1.2.5

ARTIST BIOGRAPHIES:
White Heart Biography
It has been said that what we are is God's gift to us, but what we make of 
ourselves in our perseverance is our gift to Him. That being the formula, 
the key, the command, which turns us from failure toward success, White 
Heart has come full circle--from an unknown but talented group a decade ago, 
to one of Christian music's legendary rock bands, recording 10 albums, 16 
number one singles, and packing venues from Stockholm, to New York, to 
California and beyond.
White Heart's philosophy, as a band, is illustrated within their last top 
selling album, _Highlands_. The band challenged others (and itself) to 
"discover new lands and climb beyond the place you've always been."..a 
prescription that has elevated the group to the top, and caused music 
reviewers to abrogate their preconceived notions of just who White Heart is, 
and where they are going.
"We have never been happy staying where we've been," says vocalist Rick 
Florian about the group's versatility. "I think it's due to our desire to 
grow and change, which I would hope every musician feels--changing and 
growing with your art, and exploring new sounds and new directions with 
creativity."
White Heart's songs change from album to album, yet their matchless style 
remains constant. As the band changes personally, their music develops and 
matures. "I think the world is changing at a personal level," observes 
vocalist and keyboardist Mark Gersmehl. "That's the way Jesus changes 
hearts--from a personal level."
"That's right," rings in Florian, "and there is always that evolution with 
both the music and the lyrics that we have. And, because it is personal, and 
our lives are ever-developing, we are never the same from one album to the 
next."
White Heart seems to understand that you cannot step twice into the same 
river, for other waters are continually flowing on, and in this philosophy 
lies the uniqueness of their latest album, _Nothing But the Best, Rock 
Classics_ and _Radio Classics_, a compilation of carefully chosen mega-hits 
that exhibit, firsthand, the unique and unequaled tune-weaving of a group, 
who through constant transformation, seems to curiously remain invariable.
But with other bands doing "Best Of" albums long before their time, why is 
White Heart doing one? And, more intrinsic, how do you chose which songs are 
the "best', when most of them have journeyed to the top of the charts? 
Florian says it is somewhat subjective, but there is a balance. "Through 
time, fans can determine the songs that mean the most to them," explains the 
lead singer, "and we really try and listen to what they want from us. Doing 
this record gives our fans the chance to buy all of their favorites in one 
concise format.
"The real beauty of this particular album," he continues, "is that, as a 
package, this project should please every musical taste. It isolates musical 
preference for the listener so they are less apt to be distracted by a style 
that is not to their liking. In other words, we (and our fans) literally 
hand-picked the songs on this album, which makes it very special to us."
What White Heart fans acknowledge as their favorites are jam packed into 
this compilation, which includes all their favorites from the last albums, 
as well as a complete rendition of "Morningstar" and three other new songs. 
From smash rock hits like "His Heart Was Always in It," "Kingdom Come," 
"Powerhouse," and "Change the Way," to their top radio singles like "The 
Flame Passes On," "Fly Eagle Fly," "Montana Sky," and their mega #1 hit, 
"Desert Rose," the album serves as much more ear candy--it challenges the 
listener to walk to the beat of a different drum.
"Sometimes, we choose to make our lives complicated," illustrates Florian, 
"but it doesn't have to be that way. The foundation of our lives is 
simple... it is Christ. Our God is not complicated, and if there is a 
message running through this album, it is that following Christ is something 
we constantly strive for."
Gersmehl agrees and says that their music, especially this collection, is 
really a seed planted in the very soul of the listener. "There are people," 
Gersmehl reminisces, "who come up to me and say, 'I have been very lonely 
because of what I believe. I know I am a desert rose, and just wanted to 
thank you for that song--I now realize that God cares about me."
Songs like this are the lifeblood of our ministry, and I believe the reason 
why God has used us in very significant ways, in spite of our failures. In 
order for us, as a band, and as followers of Christ, to realize our greatest 
potentials, we must continually evolve as musicians and as Christians. Our 
music has always carried that one, crucial message."
Even though they've been compared to everyone from Aerosmith to Yes, White 
Heart continues to blaze new musical trails, and etching for them, along the 
way, a coveted place in contemporary Christian music. "What we strive for," 
offers Florian, "is to retain the highest level of musicianship possible. We 
always want to be the best we can be with the abilities He gives us."
"Our gift from God to our fans is our music," ascribes Florian. "Through our 
music we have always wanted to say that God does not love us because we are 
valuable, but that we are valuable because He loves us. If we want people 
out there to know what Christ will do for them, we must let them see what 
Christ has done for us. Prayerfully, we have let that be known, because we 
want to let His light shine, through our music, and in every way."

Julie Miller--_Invisible Girl_ Biography
No one can pave a pathway to the heart quite like Julie Miller. With her 
unmistakable blend of music and message, she can capture the spirit and 
delight the senses. Her commitment to understanding the essence of God and 
genuinely speckling the truth of His love has been evident in all of her 
musical renderings to date, and her new Street Level release, Invisible Girl 
remains consistent with this objective.
Four albums ago, Julie's 1990 debut, _Meet Julie Miller_ paved the way for 
her solo career and turned out three Top 5 singles, including the #1 hit 
"How Could You Say No?" Her second and third releases, _He Walks Through 
Walls_ and _Orphans and Angels_, built upon that foundation, expanding her 
sphere of influence and appreciation. Progressively, each of her albums has 
revealed more and more vulnerability as Julie has opened her soul, unwrapped 
her wounds, and in turn, pointed the broken to the healing hand of God. "My 
earlier work dealt primarily with my brokenness, and facing that... this 
record reaches out past my own struggle and hurt to the hardship of others. 
A movement from hurt and anger to trying to offer healing...," she reflects.
Musically, _Invisible Girl_ contains a combination of stylistic 
interpretations, drawing from Julie's wide variety of influences. From 
Celtic rock flavorings and fresh pop melodies to country and blues, Julie 
and her husband, producer Buddy Miller, crafted a sonic delight. The 
innovative instrumental textures of mandolin, accordion and acoustic guitars 
work together to create _Invisible Girl_'s musical foundation. In the past 
most of Julie's recordings have included contributions from friends around 
the globe. _Invisible Girl_ continues in that tradition with help from 
artists in both the Christian and general markets. Guests such as Phil 
Madeira, Don Heffington (Lone Justice), Victoria Williams, Mark Olson (The 
Jayhawks), The Williams Brothers, Charlie Peacock and Valerie Carter 
selflessly offered their talents.
The song "When You Come Home" is a prime example of the way Julie's heart 
manifests its yearnings through her art. As she explains, "This song was 
inspired by a precious four-year-old girl. She is a young relative of mine 
whose mother and father have been abusive. This little girl has taught me a 
lot about God. Buddy and I wanted to adopt her and in how I longed for her 
to be home with us, I think I tasted a little bit of how God is longing for 
us to come home with Him." In "Nobody's Child" the tenderness that Julie 
exudes for the abused and abandoned unveils itself. "Spiritually everyone is 
an orphan until coming to faith in Jesus. 'Nobody's Child' is about being 
adopted by God. One place I feel completely free to be childlike is with 
God," she affirms.
Julie's vision for ministry and communicating the compassion and parental 
love of God to her audience is her primary objective. "My desire is that 
people will hear past me to the presence behind the songs--that they'll 
sense a little of God's heart for them. I feel like that's so lofty and 
'big' a statement that I shouldn't even say it, but it's what I desire...," 
concludes Julie. The fact that she had never written a song prior to coming 
to Christ is a clear indication that she has been given a gift to impact 
hearts. With this latest effort, Julie takes the next step in her mission of 
love. _Invisible Girl_ presents itself as a amazing display of tenderness 
and talent that could only be found in the artistic expressions of Julie 
Miller.
--Ashley Thurmond

Amy Grant--House of Love Biography

With her youngest child, two-year-old Sarah, riding on her hip and a huge 
German shepherd trailing on her heels, Amy Grant greets visitors at her 
Tennessee farm with a big smile and lots of southern hospitality. Moving 
inside the lovely white two-story house, she helps four-year-old Millie with 
a coloring book project before she begins mixing her favorite fruit juices 
to create the perfect blend for her guests. Watching Amy in action with her 
family, it's obvious this is more than a page from _Better Homes & Gardens_. 
It's a house of love. And suddenly the title of her new Myrrh CD seems less 
like a song title and more like the perfect description of her life.

Though the title of her album may describe her domestic and spiritual bliss, 
Amy's life is much more complex these days than her laid-back demeanor 
suggests. In addition to the family and friends that stream in and out of 
her home, there are also journalists from as far away as Japan, Germany and 
Great Britain who have traveled halfway around the globe for interviews with 
the woman who has sold nearly 18 million records worldwide, won five Grammy 
awards, 17 Dove awards--including "Artist of the Year" four times--and has 
performed everywhere from The White House to The Grand Ole Opry to Monday 
Night Football. She has been to Camp David at the request of President Bush. 
She has hosted VH-1's "Top 21 Countdown," and she was recently an integral 
part of Vince Gill's highly rated Christmas television special.

It's obvious Amy Grant has taken Christian music and the Christian message 
to a wider audience and broader platform than any other artist in the 
contemporary Christian genre. She's opened doors for others to enter by 
demonstrating the far-reaching appeal of great music with a positive 
message. That appeal has come from her accessibility and her artistry. Amy 
has always had a special gift for writing and performing songs that reflect 
her rich life experiences as a Christian, a wife, a friend and a mother. On 
her newest CD, House of Love, Amy explores the rich tapestry of emotion that 
weaves her life together, and shares it in a collection of songs that 
resonate with energy and passion while revealing her perceptive insights on 
life, love and grace.

"I feel really settled right now. My family is in full swing. I've got some 
really simple parameters around my life. Basically, I'm married and have 
three children, and that spells out how I spend my days," she says of her 
marriage to singer/songwriter Gary Chapman and their children. "I know hard 
times are going to come--being from a big family you have potential 
multiplied tragedy, but also multiplied happiness. But these are just really 
sweet times for me and my whole family. My parents are alive. Gary's parents 
are alive, and all the siblings and kids; everybody is doing great. We feel 
very blessed."

Family has always been an important part of Amy's life. The youngest of four 
daughters, she was born in Augusta, Georgia, but grew up in Nashville in a 
strong Christian home that instilled faith and family values. It was also a 
family that nurtured their youngest daughter's creative gifts. By the time 
she was 16, Amy had released her first album and was well on her way to 
becoming one of the dominant voices of the contemporary Christian music 
movement. She had a vulnerability in her voice that turned her heartfelt 
songs of faith and hope into prayers everyone wanted to make their own. 
Amy's accessibility forged a bond with her audience. That audience has 
continued to be a part of her musical journey as the talented teen has 
matured into a wife, mother and, with the release of her last project, a pop 
music phenomenon.

Amy's previous album, _Heart in Motion_, has been certified quadruple 
platinum, signing sales of over four million copies. The project spent 52 
weeks on Billboard's Top 200 album chart, spawning four Top 5 hits including 
"Baby, Baby," which topped both the Billboard and R&R charts simultaneously. 
One of the most highly lauded musical releases of 1991, _Heart in Motion_ 
garnered four Grammy nominations, including Song of the Year, Record of the 
Year, Best Pop Performance by a Female and Album of the Year. The success of 
_Heart in Motion_ took Amy's career to an even higher level and generated 
tremendous exposure including appearances on The Today Show, Good Morning 
America, Later with Bob Costas, The Grammy Awards, Arsenio Hall, The 
Prince's Trust Concert, The Tonight Show, The American Music Awards, 
Christmas in Washington, and numerous other shows and special events.

Though _Heart in Motion_ would seem a difficult act to follow, Amy succeeds 
in creating a worthy successor with _House of Love_. It contains the same 
catchy melodies and insightful lyrics that made _Heart in Motion_ so 
affecting, but also has a more organic, guitar-driven sound that harkens 
back to her successful _Lead Me On_ project.

Love--in all it's complexities, power and glory--is the central theme 
throughout _House of Love_. As a woman who's been married for l2 years, Amy 
draws on her own experiences in writing and recording songs that explore the 
intricacies of modern relationships. "Whatever it Takes" is a song of 
commitment between two people in a loving relationship. The title cut, 
"House of Love," is a duet between Amy and her pal Vince Gill (the Country 
Music Association's Entertainer of the Year), which uses an infectious 
groove to underscore the message that love prevails even in the darkest 
hour. "Say You'll Be Mine" is an upbeat ode to the joy found in falling in 
love.

In fact, though the album explores the different facets of love's highs and 
lows, the overall tone is decidedly upbeat. These are songs that come from a 
woman in a happy relationship, and it shows. "I think the longer Gary and I 
are married, the more we really find our stride in being companions and 
friends," she says. "Our marriage tends to be a barometer for our lives, and 
we really are just glad to be where we are. We're glad to be with each 
other.

Romantic love isn't the only theme explored on the new album. "The Power" is 
a rhythmic, driving, passionate celebration of all the feelings generated by 
the power of God. "Children of the World" is an anthem that speaks not only 
of God's love for little ones, but also of the adult generation's obligation 
to have faith and help make the world a better place for them to inherit. 
"Helping Hand" urges everyone to come to the aid of their fellow man in 
times of need.

"I feel from a spiritual standpoint that there's a real celebration of 
humanity, of the common bond of everybody," Amy says of this record. "We 
need each other. We're all valued by God. On a record by a Christian artist, 
sometimes it can be kind of 'us and them'--the saved and the unsaved. I 
don't have any desire to make music like that right now.... I think it takes 
a lot of thought and energy and contemplation to hear God, to believe what 
He says and to quietly live that in your own life."

Amy doesn't limit her encouragement and support of others strictly to her 
musical endeavors. She participates in Nashville's Leadership Music Program 
and meets with terminally ill children as part of the "Make-a-Wish" 
Foundation. She recently played right field in Nashville's City of Hope 
Celebrity Softball Challenge, and has shown her skills on the green by 
participating in celebrity golf tournaments to aid various causes. She has 
hosted benefits for the American Cancer Society, the American Heart 
Association and the Nashville Symphony, and has recruited for these shows 
such luminaries as James Taylor, Robin Williams., Vince Gill and Michael W. 
Smith.

One of the organizations she enjoys working with most is Habitat for 
Humanity. "In 1989 I did a tour and spoke about Habitat for Humanity from 
the stage," she recalls. "Since then I've gotten so many letters from kids 
who were in college then that went and built houses around the world for 
Habitat. This past week I went and worked on a Habitat house with my six-
year-old son Matt. Next year his entire school is going to build a house."

Amy's community service efforts haven't gone unrecognized. In 1992 she was 
named Young Tennessean of the Year by the Nashville Chamber of Commerce, and 
this year she was honored by the Benedictine Order at St. John's University 
with the prestigious Par Christi Award, the Peace of Christ Award. Amy is 
only the third woman and ninth layperson to receive this honor since its 
inception in 1963. After being awarded the Par Christi, she received 
congratulatory letters from each of our country's surviving Presidents.

In her community service, her family life, and her music, Amy Grant displays 
commitment to caring about her fellowman and a heart always eager to lift up 
those around her. The greatest expression of those gifts can be found in her 
music. Yes, it is polished pop music, very '90s in its excellent production 
quality and professional approach, but at the heart of it is Amy's desire to 
communicate God's love.

"I feel so fortunate and so blessed to get to do music for a career," she 
relates. "It's very gratifying to be invited into other people's lives as 
the result of having done something that came very naturally to you. The 
girls at the school I spoke at the other night were coming up and telling me 
about their lives and things that had happened to them. They just opened up 
because my music had created a reason for us to communicate. That's very 
gratifying."

But perhaps the most grating thing for Amy Grant is how her personal and 
professional lives meld together. They say a picture is worth a thousand 
words, and a recent photo taken in the studio on her farm while she was 
recording _House of Love_ is a perfect example. "I'm standing on a rug 
singing, and Millie is lying on her stomach, coloring at my feet," Amy says 
squinting against the afternoon sun as it hits her grandmother's rocking 
chairs, now at home on Amy's front porch. "I loved having that photograph 
because you know, it's the real picture. That's what it's really like.

_House of Love_: CUT BY CUT

"The Lucky One" (Amy Grant, Keith Thomas)

"The Lucky One" is just a love song. I wrote the lyric and Keith Thomas 
wrote the music. It's funny--I don't think I've ever used the word "lucky" 
in a song. It was Keith's idea. He really wanted it to be called "The Lucky 
One." I grew up in a very religious environment, and the word "lucky" was 
not encouraged to be used. My parents never said this, but other people said 
things like, "Don't take the blessing of God and give the credit to luck!" I 
just wanted to take back a word I thought was pretty great. I do think there 
are times when you are just going through a great stretch and happy-go-lucky 
is the word that comes to mind.

"Say You'll Be Mine" (Amy Grant, Keith Thomas, Wayne Kirkpatrick)

"Say You'll Be Mine" is just a fun love song. It's not really a marriage 
song, and it wasn't supposed to be. I was just trying to recapture that 
feeling of first falling love, and in my mind it's so easy to scroll back 
and get that feeling of all the bells and whistles and tingles and magic. I 
want all that, and I know it doesn't exist in real life. I just think the 
mystery of falling in love is a wonderful thing to celebrate."


"Whatever it Takes" (Amy Grant, Keith Thomas, Gary Chapman)

That's a song about staying together and it's pretty self-explanatory. It's 
so funny. That's probably the most sensual lyric I've ever sung... 'Face to 
face we embrace. We drink of love's sweetest wine' and all this kind of 
stuff. I asked Gary about it, and he said, "call it a double standard, but 
if, I write the lyric, it's okay for you to sing it! I got so tickled."

"House of Love" (Wally Wilson, Kenny Greenberg, Greg Barnhill)

"Oh, I love that song. My sister, Mimi, heard it and said, 'Now, who had the 
first cut on that song?' And I said 'It's a new song, but you just confirmed 
every hope I had that it sounds like an old song.' Musically, it's very 
reminiscent of the stuff I listened to in high school. That was back in the 
mid to late '7Os. And I'm singing with Vince Gill. I'm crazy about his 
voice. He's the only man I know that could sing that high harmony."

"The Power" (Judson Spence, Tommy Sims)

"I loved that slant on the 'the power'... I think people in this day and 
time are power obsessed because they want to control. Nobody wants to feel 
like their life is in somebody else's hands. But what I got when I heard 
that song was that there is the Highest Power. And I love that chorus: 'The 
Power touches me. The Power helps me see and holds my hand and drives me 
crazy? I just love the whole mystique of the power of God."

"Oh How the Years Go By" (Simon Climie, Will Jennings)

"I related to it completely the first time I heard it. In fact, in my mind I 
just saw one sepia-tone picture fading in and the next one fading out. I 
love the chorus : 'We fight. We laugh. We cry as the years go by! That's 
everybody's story."

"Big Yellow Taxi" (Joni Mitchell)

That's my tribute to my musical past. I really like Joni Mitchell. She was 
an artist whose records I listened to with the same intensity that I 
perceive the girls that write to me listen to my stuff. I don't listen to my 
stuff or anybody's stuff with that intensity anymore, but when you're young 
and you're so raw emotionally and your commitments are few enough that you 
can really give in to the need to absorb yourself in your music, you really 
feel connected to the artist whose music you listen to. I spent many nights 
with Joni Mitchell music playing loudly and softly. And I think that song 
"Big Yellow Taxi" is full of truth. It's timely emotionally."

"Helping Hand" (Tommy Sims, Amy Grant, Beverly Darnall)

"It just seems like everybody is weak sometimes and everybody is strong 
sometimes. If you're on the weak side, you need somebody to help you. Then 
the next time you'll be on the strong side and you need to help somebody 
else... I recently spoke to Harpeth Hall, a girls' school, and I was up 
until 4:30 the night before, lying awake, thinking, 'What can I say?' These 
are girls that have a lot of promise... I just told a few stories and drew a 
few conclusions, but at the end, looking at their faces, it struck me that 
only they can choose. Each girl can choose for herself how much she will 
give of herself in life. We live in a world obsessed with delegating, 
especially the grunt work. We delegate, delegate, delegate. Well, you know, 
you cannot delegate caring. You cannot delegate loving. You cannot delegate 
some of the very simple teachings that Jesus said, 'This is what life is all 
about! What strikes me about the song 'Helping Hand' is it's just saying 
that we all have the gift of freedom to care for other people, regardless of 
our station in life. What a great gift."

"Love Has a Hold on Me" (Amy Grant, Keith Thomas)

"It got me thinking... what do I really believe? What do I think is true for 
everybody?' That's what that song is about."

"Our Love" (Amy Grant, Tom Hemby)
"I wrote that at least three years ago. I can't remember the specifics, but 
we were going through some horrible thing at the time. I don't even remember 
what it was, but I just remember sitting at the kitchen counter writing that 
song. We'd just had a horrible, knock-down, drag-out fight like everybody 
has, when you're both lying there bleeding from all the verbal barbs. Then 
you just try to piece it all back together again. He'd already gone on to 
sleep and I stayed up and wrote that song.


"Children of the World" (Tommy Sims, Amy Grant, Wayne Kirkpatrick)

"I loved it the minute I heard the idea from Tommy Sims. Wayne Kirkpatrick 
and I wrote the lyric. I cried writing it. I mean, it just killed me. I 
wasn't sobbing the whole time I was working, but it affected me. When Wayne 
and I are working on a song, we kind of say, 'Okay, you sing it through this 
time' and the other person will listen. I felt like I was fighting a lump in 
my throat the whole time. It is a statement about God's love for children, 
but the song really is sung to the parents and the older people. Basically, 
the crux of the song is that we live our lives the way we do because what we 
do is handed down to the next generation."

King James biography
Although the name King James has been around for almost 400 years, there can 
be no doubt that the timing is now right for this new fresh rock 'n' roll 
band. The group's nucleus is even represented in its name since the Rex in 
guitarist extraordinaire Rex Carroll's name is the Latin word for king, and 
James is just a more formal way of spelling Jimi Bennett's first name. Any 
way you translate it, these guys make music fit for the King.

King James may be a new band, but its members are by no means new kids on 
the block. Carroll met Bennett back in 1988 in Atlanta, when Bennett was the 
lead singer for Sacred Fire and Carroll was still the lead guitarist for 
Whitecross. Though the only thing they could share then was their mutual 
respect, they both held hopes of making music together one day.

"Can you hear the call
Writings on the wall
Is the picture painted clearly?"

These lyrics from "Choices" on the new album tell of how God reveals himself 
to mankind, but they could also be describing the certainty Carroll felt in 
his heart that it was time for him to leave the comfort zone of the success 
of Whitecross, and seek out a new platform from which to display his musical 
skills. "I had a feeling from a ministry standpoint," explains Carroll, 
"that I had accomplished everything the Lord had called me to do in that 
situation."

Carroll had reason to be enthused by the unexplored territory of this latest 
creative opportunity. "All kinds of doors are opening up again musically," 
says Carroll excitedly, "it's a fresh new start for me." One of these 
"doors" is surely the "high pure tenor with the great intonation" of singer 
Bennett. Other catalysts for imaginative music-making also came from drummer 
Robert Sweet and bassist Tim Gaines (both formerly Stryper) who brought a 
freshness of their own to the proceedings. "We had such a fantastic 
chemistry and a fantastic vibe in the studio," recalls Carroll. "I had more 
fun than I've had in ages."

Says Robert Sweet, "On a plane flight back from Europe while in Stryper, 
playing in concert with Whitecross, Rex Carroll asked me if I would be 
interested in drumming on a future project of his. I said I would be, and 
now I have. Rex is a very talented guitar player, not to mention a great 
friend of mine. While in the studio, I had the opportunity of hanging out 
with Jimi Bennett, who I feel is a great singer and is now my big bro. King 
James are two guys who I believe in, and it was an honor for me to play on 
their debut album."

The album oozes with fun because instead of coming off like professional 
individuals making a record together, King James has the unmistakable sound 
of a real band. And a band sound was what Carroll was going for, not just a 
setting for his undeniably amazing guitar playing. "People always ask me, 
'Hey dude, when you gonna do a guitar album'?' "mimics Carroll. "And I go, 
'What do you mean? Every album I do is a guitar album!' "Let there be no 
misunderstandings; Carroll put all of his experiences and guitar skills into 
this release. "When this album was done," says Carroll, "everything was left 
on the floor. Every ounce of brain juice was there. The fingers were gone. 
The amps were smoked. There were no more fresh guitar strings to be had. It 
was done."

In addition to making fun rock 'n' roll, King James has a serious message to 
its music. "Half the songs on this album are directly filtered from the 
experiences we've gone through in our own lives," explains Carroll. One such 
experience is beautifully expressed in the song "Miracles." "Jimi's daughter 
was miraculously healed of a brain tumor five years ago," elaborates 
Carroll. "We have a message in this band, and that is that God is the Great 
Physician. Over and above salvation, He is also a God of healing."

Movings like this one have enabled Carroll to more fully appreciate his 
great and miraculous God. "I am learning how precious mercy really is," he 
says. "I am more thankful that God is a God of mercy, and not of judgment. 
Because if we all got what we deserved, there'd be no happiness in the 
world. l am glad that He has been merciful with me."

This growing knowledge of God's mercy has given Carroll a peace about who he 
is, and the vehicle God has given him to share the Gospel. "I used to be 
frustrated, and wish that l could get some coverage in Guitar Player 
Magazine," admits Carroll, "but what I have to realize is that l am able to 
do what I want to do. I thank God that I have the privilege to do what tons 
and tons of other people wish they were doing, which is making music for a 
living. It's all in the plan of God."

Carroll doesn't need to resort to fancy King James English when describing 
this great plan God has for his life. His words are both simple and true. 
"It is a calling. It's a zeal that the Spirit puts in your heart, and you 
have to do it."

STEVEN CURTIS CHAPMAN _Heaven in the Real World_ biography

Since 1987, he's won virtually every award contemporary Christian music has 
to offer several times, set sales records with each new project, appeared 
before more than a million fans, and written some of the most enduring, 
moving songs heard anywhere-and had a great time doing it.

His name is Steven Curtis Chapman, and he's still the same, transparent, 
down-to-earth guy who once considered a medical career at Indiana's Anderson 
College, only to be overtaken with a passionate desire to make music rooted 
in life and faith. With _Heaven in the Real World_, Steven vaults into the 
next level-the next plateau. It begins with the eagerly awaited album by the 
same name, a project nearly two years in the making that features some of 
the best musicians anywhere, players that have accompanied the likes of 
Barbara Streisand, James Taylor, Michael Bolton and Steve Winwood, among 
others. And it continues with a globe-spanning tour that will take him to 
more than a dozen countries, to sing before more than a million people.

But it ends-as it always does-with the Message. "'Heaven In The Real World' 
is a theme I've carried with me almost from day one as a songwriter," Steven 
says. "It is a title I've bounced around for a couple of years. People are 
searching, looking for meaning in life-our job is to show them heaven in the 
real world."

The songs on _Heaven in the Real World_- as with every Chapman song since 
the early 1980s, when the likes of the Imperials and Sandi Patty were 
recording them-are steeped in research, prayer and a comprehensive reading 
program. The result is some of the most pointed, articulate, heart-felt 
lyrics in Christian music.

"The first point of inspiration for the theme of _Heaven in the Real World_ 
was a 1993 Time magazine cover story," Steven explains. "The headline read: 
'The Nation That Forgot God-Baby Boomers Go Back To Church And Church Will 
Never Be The Same.' The thrust of that article-and, eventually _Heaven in 
the Real World_ -is that American culture is going back into a 'seeking God' 
mode. And as Baby Boomers are going back into church, they're finding, often 
in a non-traditional format, traditional values. It is happening out of 
necessity as the culture faces the hopelessness and despair that our 
preoccupation with violence and crime creates. A recent poll shows that 
where once the economy was the primary concern, now it is people looking for 
hope and peace. And, as Christians, we know Someone who can answer those 
questions."

That article-and others like it-led Chapman to the books of Charles Colson, 
founder of Prison Fellowship Ministries. He quickly absorbed works like 
"Dance of Deception" and "The Body." As he became more involved with the 
works of both Colson and Dr. James Dobson, he was able to meet with the men 
to try to get a handle on a culture in crisis.

"Basically, my questions to both men were, 'If you were addressing the 
people I see in the audience, the people buying my records, what would you 
try to communicate to them?' And they both said, 'Tell them Christians can 
have a tremendous impact in our culture. Everyone is seeking hope, peace and 
virtue. We have a tremendous opportunity to share and communicate that-to 
carry heaven to the real world.' It was a real confirmation to me. And from 
that came songs such as 'Treasure Of You,' 'Dancing With The Dinosaur,' 
'Facts Are Facts' and the title track."

In the end, the lyrics on _Heaven in the Real World_ walk a tightrope, a 
fine line, speaking to both the unbeliever and the Body of Christ. "First, I 
want to proclaim that heaven has in fact come to the real world," Steven 
says. "I want to lay that out in a very gentle way, but a very confident 
way...to reaffirm that there is indeed peace, not in great government 
policies, but in the cradle, cross and empty tomb of Jesus Christ-in a 
personal relationship with our Maker. Second, I want to say to the Christian 
audience that we have a responsibility to live lives that proclaim that we 
are defenders of Truth. In Mr. Colson's "Dance With Deception" he says that 
we all need to become Christian apologists, defenders of the Truth, of what 
it is we believe and why we believe. And then, just as importantly, we need 
to be able to communicate that."

Today Steven's relationship with Colson has grown into one of mutual 
respect, with Prison Fellowship sponsoring the artist's landmark Heaven In 
The Real World Tour. "Prison Fellowship is striking at the root of the crime 
crisis that is gripping our country by bringing the Gospel and Christian 
love to prisoners, ex-prisoners and their families," Chapman says. "The 
people I address need to know that they are not powerless against crime and 
there are ways for them to be involved in their local communities. We cannot 
wait for the government to attempt to solve this problem because they are 
not able to solve it. This is a moral crisis."

Those sentiments combine with an overriding message of hope on "Heaven In 
The Real World," the first single and video from the new album. And as with 
The Great Adventure, For The Sake of The Call and other classic Chapman 
albums, there is just as much musical diversity as lyrical depth. For 
instance, "King Of The Jungle" is uptempo pop; "The Mountain" is an acoustic 
ballad, complete with steel guitar; "Still Listening" is a children's 
lullaby; and "Facts Are Facts" features jangling guitars in a '60s retro-
rock arrangement.

"In the beginning, I was struggling, going into a million different 
directions musically," Steven remembers. "I had to ask: 'What is it that I 
do? What am I listening to? What am I liking? What music comes out of me 
most naturally?' Finally, I successfully tuned everybody else out and said, 
'I'm not going to try to do something cool and different just to be 
different!"'

But there is a significant difference between this album and all of his 
previous releases. For the first time, Steven and long-time producer Phil 
Naish left the friendly confines of Nashville and traveled to Los Angeles, 
where they recorded the album with some of LA's top session players, 
including Leland (Lee) Sklar and John (JR) Robinson.

"Before, I'd always get alone with my guitar and hammer out what general 
direction to go," Steven says. "This time I reworked some of the songs 10-12 
times, until they were as good as I could make them-and as close to my 
original vision as I could create. Then I'd take these pretty solid demos to 
the sessions, which featured A-team players like Lee and JR, and say, 
'Here's where I really want to go with this tune.' Then they would add their 
own creativity. It ended up being a great experience.

"In the end, I think what was important to me was that I learned that I 
don't need to change just for the sake of change. What's more important is 
that I am honest, real and vulnerable. And if I am, I'll make the music that 
I'm most naturally called to create. I won't ever stop stretching or looking 
for creative ways to freshen it up."

With more than the usual amount of buzz-and industry expectation-surrounding 
_Heaven in the Real World_, Steven Curtis Chapman is a little nervous and 
even more apologetic. "My goal isn't just to share what I believe, it is to 
show that belief is important, that it can make a difference, that it can be 
put into action, that there can be meaning to all of this we're going 
through," he says. "That's the message I want to convey to the guy who is 
turning on the television or walking through a store and sees my music and 
thinks, 'Hey, I saw him once on TV-maybe this is worth a listen.' I want to 
make this point to that guy in the most basic, understandable way I can: 
that hope can be found."

At this new juncture in Steven's musical ministry, his heart's desire is the 
same as when he first started singing his songs to small church 
congregations throughout the country: that his gifts will somehow draw 
believers and unbelievers alike closer to the Lord. That they would each 
experience "Heaven In The Real World" for themselves.

Looks Back on The Music and Ministry

1987
_First Hand_--I had written for a lot of other people by then, and I had 
made demos for a bunch of songs for other people that no one seemed 
interested in recording-but I liked them. And it was on the basis of those 
songs that I did a trial recording for Sparrow. They let me do three songs 
in the studio with Phil Naish, and after we were finished, they said, "yeah, 
this is pretty good," so we did the whole record. Once we released it, I 
don't think they were really sure how it would do-no one was doing backflips 
over it and for sure no one mistook me for Russ Taff!

From the record, "My Redeemer Is Faithful And True" is the one song I would 
sing if I could only sing one song. I'm not saying it is anything 
spectacular lyrically or musically, or that it is some incredibly crafted 
song, but the focus of that song-through all of this, through all of the ups 
and downs, after I've been long forgotten-is that God's Word will still be 
true, He'll still be faithful. It is still the most real thing I've ever 
written.

1988
With _Real Life Conversations_, I started co-writing with Geoff Moore, along 
with James Isaac Elliot, David Mullen, Brent Lamb and some others. This was 
the time when scandals in the Christian community were surfacing in the 
media. I wrote "For Who He Really Is" for the Christian community in 
general.

I think a lot of Christians were pretty embarrassed and the world in general 
was doing a lot of eyebrow- raising, calling Christians hypocrites and such. 
So I thought it was time that we as Christians got real honest. That entire 
record-"His Eyes" and "My Turn Now" in particular-is an echo of that 
sentiment. We are not living our lives on stage or on TV, we're living our 
lives privately, day-to-day, and that's what people see.

This was the record, from an industry standpoint, when radio began to 
embrace what I was doing.

1989
_More to This Life_ included "I Will Be Here," which was my first real love 
song to my wife. It's interesting that and a lot of people consider "I Will 
Be Here" to be a career song for me-and it is not always considered a 
"Christian" song! (By the way, Billy Dean recently recorded it.) It gets 
played at a lot of weddings-maybe I need to do a wedding tour! Anyway, that 
whole album was a response to my Mom and Dad's divorce-not just the 
ramifications in every area of my life-but my entire spiritual foundation, 
my understanding of how to raise my kids, just about everything was based on 
the fact that I grew up thinking Mom and Dad did it right. So this album had 
a lot of self-examination, of me asking "Why do I believe what I say I 
believe?" It was a real important time for me to be writing that stuff as an 
outlet for what was happening in my life.

1990
_For The Sake Of The Call_ came out of me studying the works of Dietrich 
Bonhoeffer, especially "The Cost of Discipleship." It chronicled me moving 
from questioning the tenets of my faith, to having that foundation re-
established, to "What do I do with this? How do I put it into motion? What 
does it mean to call that a Christian lifestyle?" It was about then that I 
realized that the Bible only has a few references to the word "Christian," 
but tons for the word "disciple" of Jesus Christ. This was a very researched 
record. I even thought of doing it as a trilogy, ala Michael Card.

This was also the first record I toured with a full band and full stage 
production. I remember I learned a lot from "No Better Place" because it was 
the first time I'd really rock 'n' rolled on stage. I'd definitely rocked on 
records before, but I'd never had the chance to rock on stage, to see the 
audience pumped musically. It taught me a lot. The first time I used a band 
was when I performed at GMA, and I could see that the people were enjoying 
it, enjoying the rock energy. That this was still a user-friendly medium 
stood out to me, and it was fun breaking some new ground, too.

1992
_The Great Adventure_ contained another first that was definitely monumental 
in my career: The title cut, the first single, was definitely a rock 'n' 
roll song. Given where I'd been over the past six years, it was probably 
pretty risky, but I didn't see any other way to do it. I had what I thought 
was a great idea, the question was, "How do I do it?" I pictured the song 
like an old Western adventure, where you get on a horse, ride across the 
plains, blaze the trail into the unknown, get shot at, bullets and arrows 
fly but you gotta go! That kind of head-long song just doesn't lend itself 
well to a ballad.

We pulled out all the stops on _The Great Adventure_. We had Toby (McKeehan) 
from DC Talk go way out on a limb with us doing a rap parody, and I also did 
a duet with BeBe Winans. The title cut was my first video, my first 
adventure into mainstream radio, and my debut on mainstream video outlets. 
The end result was that all of that highlighted the title for me-it could 
not have been more appropriate signaling the great adventure to come for me 
as an artist as well!

1994
With _Heaven In The Real World_, I want to proclaim that heaven has in fact 
come to the real world. I want to lay that out in a very gentle way, but a 
very confident way...to reaffirm that there is indeed peace, not in great 
government policies, but in the cradle, cross and empty tomb of Jesus 
Christ-in a personal relationship with our Maker. Also, I want to say to the 
Christian audience that we have a responsibility to live lives that proclaim 
that we are the defenders of Truth.

In the end, I think what is important to me is that I don't need to change 
just for the sake of change. What's more important is that I'm honest, real 
and vulnerable. And if I am, I'll make the music that I'm most naturally 
called to create. I won't ever stop stretching or looking for creative ways 
to freshen it up.


---------------------------------------------------------------------------