You might say that tobyMac is one of the last true entertainers in Christian music. The former dc Talker isn't content with recording gold-selling albums, scoring No. 1 singles, and amassing critical acclaim. He wants to bring the fun, disco balls and all, to everything he does—his recording sessions, his concerts, his tour bus. His third album, the long-awaited Portable Sounds (coming next week from Forefront/EMI), has plenty of that, but it also sheds light on tobyMac's serious side—one that's prayerful, devotional, and in-tune with the person of God. In this conversation, the Diverse City chief talks about this new sense of purpose, his artistic identity, and how these play into his role as father and husband.

What has transpired in your life since your last album in 2004?

tobyMac: I think I've really locked-in in an amazing way with my band. We definitely feel like a family now. When Diverse City came out, I still felt a little like a solo artist doing his thing, hiring a band to play live. I've had the same players for almost six years now, and I think we've created something special live that led into the [new] record. The band approach lined up with my desire to move away from programming, more to a live approach.

Any personal growth as a songwriter?

tobyMac: I've worked really hard [to lock] into something with my artistic life as it relates to what God is breathing through me—the definition of tobyMac as an artist. It's clearer to me now that I'm climbing, and it's invigorating, it's exciting. It's like the way dc Talk climbed for a while and we kept climbing. The day that it [stopped being exciting] was the day we all wanted to do solo records. For me, I'm in mid-climb right now and I'm loving it.

So who is tobyMac as an artist?

tobyMac: That's a good question. I think I'm a communicator. I look at my music as something that comes from my life. If someone can find encouragement in this music, if someone can find something to talk about in my music, then that's what makes me happy. I also think that I'm someone who is focused on not being jaded. I really believe with all my heart that God can breathe a song through me that can actually connect with people. Every day I prayed with my producer, "God, please breathe something through us. Don't let us waste our time."

Also, I think I'm a grateful guy. I'm happy to be doing what I do. I want to treat people with respect. I'm not out there looking for what I can take. I do think God has opened my heart about what can I give. It's a time in my life where I'm not looking to overcome the world with my artistry. I'm just grateful to be doing what I'm passionate about.

Considering the current iTunes and MP3 craze, it's interesting that you have a "singles" mentality as opposed to an album mentality.

tobyMac: It's absolutely a singles mentality. I've by no means developed these songs with the thought of them working together. When I do think of them working together is when the album is close to finishing with 10-12 songs, and I'm thinking about how to make a record from them. Then I begin to think how I can move these songs together. Some songs are pretty far apart, and that's when you drop an interlude between them and create a "commercial break"—then all of a sudden you can drop into a different theme. There's method to the madness.

That's not too much different than dc Talk. Jesus Freak was a singles-based album.

tobyMac: We approached Jesus Freak, Supernatural, and Free at Last exactly like that. Each song is its own entity; let's do it the best we can. When you love Houdini, Run-D.M.C. and Grandmaster Flash, and you're also influenced by The Police, The Cars, Hall & Oates, Lenny Kravitz, and The Cure, you're going to make an eclectic record.

The words "fresh" and "innovative" are normally attached to what you do. A lot of Christian music is not. How do you stay hip and relevant?

tobyMac: That's a little hard to handle. It's more how I try to stay fresh. One of the reasons is, no one makes the kind of music I make in the Christian market, and I can probably even say the same thing of the mainstream market. It's not like I'm listening to things and being influenced by current music. That's one of the keys: I don't really bask in the music of today. I'm more a listener of the past. And I think if you take modern pop—song structuring and arranging—and then mix it with the sounds of the past, it's going to seem fresh and different.

The main way I do that is by remaining true to what's really moving through my veins. I'm not saying, "This is the way it's done, I know this is a hit, I've done it before and we're going to do it again." But if I keep from becoming jaded in my approach to songwriting and recording, if I stay in the mindset that something fresh is going to come today, if I write about what's going on in my life and the struggles I'm having in my relationships, if I write about how God's relating to us and how I relate to God, then there's nothing stale about that.

The biggest fight we have as musicians is to wake up in the morning and go to the studio or your piano or your guitar and truly believe that God can move something through you that moves people—connects with them, challenges them, causing them to dialog about who God is. I really believe that can still happen instead of thinking that this is stuff that needs to be churned out because it's our job. That's how I believe we'll stay relevant.

As they get older, artists tend to shy away from catering to young audiences. Yet you're still a big hit with the youth-group crowd fifteen years later. What keeps you motivated?

tobyMac: What I do is true to who I am. This is the music that I love. I'm not doing this for anyone. This is the music that God breathes through me. If I write a chorus that says, "You've got me feeling so fly," it's not vague or manufactured. That's what I came up with, and I feel like having a party about it. So I might drop a party on that track. I think that will always draw youth culture. If there's anything we're short of in Christian music, it's a party. And I'm not conjuring it up. We like to have a party on our stage. You come on our bus, and there's a party.

It's a struggle, and there'll always be a struggle. There are times when we need to worship. There are times when we need to fall on our faces before God. But there are also times when we need to celebrate, times when we need to drop a joy bomb on the whole joint. And I sort of think that no one else is doing that. Obviously, there's a uniqueness to what me and the Diverse City band are doing.

There's a tendency in Christian music to take itself too seriously.

tobyMac: I think everybody's scared of the joy bomb. They feel like the music has to be so intensely thought provoking, worshipful, and focused on the struggle. But we forget that there's another side that's just as valid a music platform. When I think of the songs that we all sing, songs we all know and love, a lot of it is celebratory music—music that reminds you that in the midst of the storm there is joy.

But my whole record isn't about that either. Otherwise, I wouldn't be depicting real life. I wrote the lyric to [dc Talk's] "What If I Stumble." I get it, I understand the honesty and the vulnerability of our struggle—our shortcomings, our sins. People can relate to that.

Everybody knows tobyMac, the former dc Talk member, the Gold-selling artist, the entertainer. What about tobyMac, the husband and father of five? How do you juggle your day job with your home life?

tobyMac: I think a good strategy helps, plus a strong Jamaican wife who puts me in check when I need to be put in check. Also management that cares about me enough to walk with me all these years through my career—they know that my family is what matters and don't care about the accolades the man can bestow upon me. They would literally give me the proper advice. They would stop me in my tracks. Accountability is such an easy word to throw around, but when you have it, you are open to it.

What do you mean by a good strategy?

tobyMac: Just like having a vision for my artistry, I have to have a vision for my family. I have a vision for what matters most to my wife and I, and how we make decisions. It matters that I'm with my kids every day I'm in town. That when I'm in the studio, I come back home at 6 o'clock in the evening, so that we can sit down and have dinner as a family. We go around the table and we talk about what the best part of their day was, what the worst part of our day was. We get up, I do the dishes, bathe my kids, read them a story, put them to bed.

You said you attribute your success to your strong Jamaican wife keeping you in check. Does that happen often?

tobyMac: (laughs) She's a spicy woman. She's got more love and wisdom than I will ever have. At the same time, she's got more bite in her than I will ever have. That's exactly what I needed. I would encourage anybody out there, if you think you'll never find the right one, believe me, God will deliver her. In my case, who she is and how she was reared—her background—is perfect for me. Sometimes I'll be sitting there, slightly aloof, thinking about a song, and it's that slight tap of the toe under the table that says, "You're going to miss this moment if you don't check in right now." So suddenly I check in to what's going on at the dinner table. It's just what I needed.

What does she think of you being a big shot in Christian music?

tobyMac: She doesn't even care about that stuff. She's proud of me, but she would be way more proud of me singing a song to my kids when they're going to sleep than she would of me walking up to receive a Grammy.

Click here to visit our site's artist page for tobyMac and learn more about his music. His new album Portable Sounds releases February 20. To listen to sound clips and purchase tobyMac's albums, visit Christianbook.com.

© Andree Farias, subject to licensing agreement with Christianity Today International. All rights reserved. Click for reprint information.

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