Bear Rinehart (lead vocals, guitar, piano) could’ve made it to the NFL. Bo Rinehart (guitar, background vocals) had his chance to be on the WB’s “One Tree Hill.” Seth Bolt (bass, background vocals) is a talented recording engineer, and all the guys say Joe Stillwell (drums) is a genius.

So, why are they in a band? Breakaway wanted to find out. We talked with them in Nashville, Tenn. Here what these guys from Seneca, S.C., had to say. […read more]

It’s 8 a.m., and I’m sitting in a Denver coffee shop, fueling up with a high-octane espresso concoction, hoping my brain will wake up for a busy day ahead. Any minute 18-year-old Leeland Mooring and his band will pull up out front. I’ll hop in a van they rented and join them on a mile-high hike through music history. Our destination: Red Rocks Amphitheatre, a 100-year-old concert venue in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. Our quest: Explore a place where some of entertainment’s biggest names have performed . . . then talk about the future of these particular young musicians. […read more]

Seventh Day Slumber wasn’t kidding when they titled their latest album Once Upon a Shattered Life. Each of the four guys in the band has a story that speaks of a broken life restored by the healing power of Christ. Yet all four band members agree that their ministry centers around the life story of lead singer Joseph Rojas, a once hopeless felon rescued from the brink of death by God’s grace. […read more]

Can Christian rap and hip-hop really compete with the secular scene? Our answer may surprise you in this Web exclusive continuation of our print story.

Call it positive rap. Call it holy hip-hop. Toss in the words Christian or gospel if you want. Just don’t call it lame — at least not anymore. The music genre that has long been stigmatized as sub-par and downright cheesy can no longer be relegated to second-class status. Today’s faith-based emcees are bringing it for real and they aren’t going to disappear anytime soon. […read more]

tobyMac wants to start a revolution. “It’s time to erase the hate,” he says, “and embrace our ethnic diversity.” The body of Christ draws strength from its variety of gifts, colors and cultures. tobyMac challenges Breakaway readers to examine how they relate to Christ and to others.

“If we’re gonna be that city on a hill,” tobyMac shouts from the stage in Nashville, Tenn., “we have to be a diverse city.” But this rapper-singer isn’t talking about the “tolerate everything” brand of diversity the world often promotes. He’s challenging Christians to take to heart an important truth: “The body is not made up of one part but of many” (1 Corinthians 12:14). […read more]

Shawn McDonald was one of those teens most people had written off as hopeless. Abandoned by his parents and raised by his grandmother in Eugene, Ore., his early years were, in his words, “Extremely dazed and confused.” But not from the latest Starbucks concoction.

At 13, Shawn was already into the party scene, getting weekend beer buzzes with his friends from school. By 16, he added a stronger high to the menu: Shawn began smoking marijuana. “I was a confused kid, and my confusion boiled into anger,” Shawn says. “You name the drug, and I was eventually selling it and doing it. “My existence had become a hard, closed shell. I was extremely rebellious, miserable and lost. What God is doing now in my life is amazing.” […read more]

In our December issue, Jars of Clay revealed the themes behind their latest release, Good Monsters. Here is more from the band about their efforts to serve Christ by serving people in Africa through Blood:Water Mission. Breakaway: Can you speak a little about the history of your involvement with mission-type projects and how that came to be? Steve: I believe God “births” in our hearts passions for stuff and I think the sense of fighting for what is just, the Bible calling us to ‘love mercy’ and fight injustice – it’s in there. Like a lot of biblical truth, they aren’t embodied until we experience them firsthand. I think some trips that were taken within the group really stirred our hearts toward the idea that God has redeemed the church and His church is in the world and His church is not just in Tennessee, in my community, but God through Jesus has redeemed people the world over. That’s where it started with us. It was a worldview change. […read more]

Think about your favorite songs: What is it about those tunes that you love? For me, it’s a combination of lyrics I relate to and a sound that gets my blood pumping.

When I listen to Kutless’ latest album, Hearts of the Innocent, I connect with how the band tells the truth about their struggles. I admire how they focus on faith and friendship even in hard times. And I groove on their in-your-face sound. Suffice it to say the Portland, Ore., quintet’s fourth release rocks. […read more]

It’s 2:24 a.m., and I’m sitting in a rental car with bright red and white lights flashing in my rearview mirror. “This can’t be happening to me!” I mumble to myself.

I’m lost—somewhere between Minneapolis and Willmar, Minn. In less than eight hours I’m supposed to interview Sanctus Real at Sonshine Festival, but I’m beginning to wonder if it’s really going to happen. To put it bluntly, I’ve had a really bad day: missed flights, pushy people, crazy weather . . . the list goes on and on. And now bad just got worse! (The speed limit shifted from 65 mph to 35 mph, and I didn’t slow down fast enough.)

A state trooper hands me a tiny slip of paper with two dreaded words printed on it: Speeding Violation. It’s tough to accept, yet the message is clear: “Life is full of hard knocks.” […read more]

Step into a Canadian coffeehouse. You walk around couches, tables and chairs, adjust your eyes to the dimmed lighting and smile at the smell of coffee. As you order your latte, you hear the old-school sounds of CCM artists Jars of Clay, Delirious and dc Talk coming from two locals seated at the center of attention. Their music fuses together in such a way that you think, Maybe they have something going. And now, seven years later, they’re in a band known as Starfield. […read more]

KJ-52 describes his music ministry as a “soul” purpose: “My desire is to hear people say, ‘That song changed my life.’ I want people to know who Christ is and what He can do in their life.” This top-selling artist is making a positive impact on the rap/hip-hop scene, but success hasn’t come easy. “Give it up, dude. You can’t rap.” The brutal words slammed my confidence like a knockout blow and caused me to doubt my music ministry. Here’s the hardest part: They came from a 16-year-old bandmate named Golden Child, a friend—someone I trusted like a brother. […read more]