DC Talk

Template:Lowercase Template:Unreferenced Template:Infobox band dc Talk (also DC Talk and dc talk) was a Christian rock band formed in the late 1980s in Lynchburg, Virginia by Toby McKeehan, Kevin Max, and Michael Tait. They began as a hip hop group, but in the mid-90s they reinvented themselves as a pop/rock group. In both instances, they found critical and commercial success in both the Christian music industry as well as the general market. In 2000, the group was put on hiatus as its members pursued their individual solo careers.

History

The band's roots trace back to the late 1980s, when rapper/vocalist Toby McKeehan (tobyMac) started writing Christian hip hop under the moniker Caucatalk. While attending Liberty University, he formed dc Talk by joining up with vocalists Kevin Max Smith (Kevin Max) and Michael Tait. The name is short for Decent Christian Talk; the explanation can be found in the lyrics of the song "Time Ta Jam" which is on their self-titled debut album.

In 1989, the group released their self-titled debut album on ForeFront Records. They gained some crossover success when the "Heavenbound" music video received airplay on the BET network. Their follow-up album, Nu Thang (1990), also received attention for its hip hop/pop stylings (a la M.C. Hammer, Fresh Prince and Public Enemy, whom they frequently sample on Free at Last).

File:Dctalk.jpg

DC Talk, 1989

Their third release, 1992's Free at Last, was a tremendous success, producing six Christian radio hits. It was notable for its innovative blending of musical genres, combining hip hop with pop, rock, and gospel.

The group's best-known achievement, however, was their fourth album, 1995's Jesus Freak. This time, dc Talk had reinvented themselves as a pop-rock act, with little to no hip hop to be found. Now their music was much more similar to a fusion of the musical stylings of Nirvana, U2 or the Red Hot Chili Peppers than M.C. Hammer. The album also produced several radio hits. This album has been cited as one of the milestones in Christian music, as it appealed to a much wider audience and achieved much crossover success, having sold over 2 million copies. dc Talk capitalized on this phenomenal success by headlining a tour called "Welcome To The Freak Show", with live recordings later released on CD and VHS. They also wrote two books in collaboration with The Voice of the Martyrs, Jesus Freaks and Jesus Freaks II, each containing dozens of profiles of famous and lesser known Christians who died for their faith.

Their last all-new album, Supernatural (1998), was not nearly the critical or commercial success as the previous two albums, but it also churned out its share of hits. The songs "Consume Me" & "My Friend (So Long)" received their fair share of radio play on Modern Rock, Contemporary Christian and Alternative outlets. dc Talk did release one last album titled Intermission, but it had only two new song titles, and mostly either greatest hits or remixes of previous recorded songs.

dc Talk also participated in Rocketown Records's Exodus album in 1998 with the song "My Will."

dc Talk has been awarded four Grammy Awards, as well as numerous GMA Dove Awards. The group is notable for its stances against racism (especially in "Colored People", track two of Jesus Freak), as well as the uncompromised Christian message in its music. "We're very open about our Christian faith," says McKeehan, "but when we make our records we want to create a musical experience that anyone can immerse themselves in." But still, he says, "one of our goals is to encourage listeners to question themselves and to seek out truth."

Solo Efforts

In 2000, the trio announced that they would be producing solo projects. Since that time, Toby McKeehan, under the name "tobyMac" has released three solo records (five including remix albums), Michael Tait (with his band, Tait) has released two, and Kevin Max has released three.

In September 2002, dc Talk reunited to record and release a single about the September 11, 2001 attacks, entitled "Let's Roll."

There were rumors of a possible reunion tour, though as of September 2005, Kevin Max denies the rumors. He writes on his official website's message board, "DC Talk is something of the past. In order for DC Talk to be anything of the future, it will be up to each individual member to come together to create something that is lasting and substantial. There is an audience out there interested in seeing DC Talk back together as a group and as an entertaining and creative force, but I feel that the spirit of the thing is dead. I appreciated the time that we had together those many years, and I thank God many times over for allowing me to be a part of something that was so far reaching and helped so many people, but to be honest, just doing a show to do a show is not interesting to me. It must be thought out, creative and passionate."

In a recent concert with his band Tait, Michael Tait denied rumours of dc Talk's coming back, saying that he was focusing now on Tait.

In 2005, dc Talk reunited for a remix of tobyMac's "Atmosphere" as the final track of the Welcome to Diverse City album.

On January 12, 2006, Gotee Records (founded by dc Talk's Tobymac) announced the production of a 10th anniversary Jesus Freak tribute album entitled FREAKED!. This album, which was released in June 2006, features songs from such Gotee Records artists as Relient K, Sarah Kelly, House of Heroes, Verbs, Liquid, and Family Force 5. It also features a reunion of the Gotee Brothers.

In 2004, Toby McKeehan and Michael Tait reunited to write a book called "Under God". The book chronicles America's struggle with racism. Featured in the book are stories about Rosa Parks, Emmett Till, and Martin Luther King, Jr.. They also released a sequel called "Living Under God", following the same formula.

In September 2005, dc Talk briefly reunited during a concert in Washington state. They played the songs, In the Light and Jesus Freak.

In August 2006, an album titled The Early Years was released. It is a compilation of songs from their first three albums.

On December 26, 2006, a 10th Anniversary Special Edition Jesus Freak album was released.

Despite the lack of a recent group CD, Christian radio stations continue to play the band's music heavily. As the three friends find success separately, millions of fans across the world hopefully wait for dc Talk to reunite. In a recent interview, Tobymac talked about a possible reunion tour sometime in 2007.Template:Fact

Discography

Cover	Title	Year	Label(s)	The Billboard 200 Chart Position	RIAA Certification
100px	DC Talk	1989	ForeFront	N/A	N/A
100px	Nu Thang	1990	ForeFront	N/A	Gold
100px	Free at Last	1992	ForeFront	N/A	Platinum
100px	Jesus Freak	1995	ForeFront Virgin	16	2x Platinum
100px	Welcome to the Freak Show	1997	ForeFront	109	Gold
100px	Supernatural	1998	ForeFront Virgin	4	Platinum
100px	Intermission: the Greatest Hits	2000	ForeFront	81	Gold
100px	Solo:Special Edition	2001	ForeFront	142	N/A
	The Early Years	2006	ForeFront	N/A	N/A
	Jesus Freak: 10th Anniversary Special Edition	2006	ForeFront	N/A	N/A

Literature

Title	Year
Jesus Freaks	1999
Live Like a Jesus Freak	2001
Jesus Freaks Volume II: Stories of Revolutionaries Who Changed Their World Fearing God, Not Man	2002
Jesus Freaks: Revolutionaries	2005
Jesus Freaks: Martyrs	2005

Videography

Title	Year	RIAA Certification
Rap, Rock, and Soul	1992
Narrow is the Road	1994	Gold
Welcome to the Freak Show	1997, 2003	Gold
The Supernatural Experience	1999, 2003
Free at Last: the Movie	2002

Gospel Music Awards

Name	Year	Award Title
Nu Thang	1991	Rap/Hip-Hop Album of the Year
I Love Rap Music	1992	Rap/Hip-Hop Recorded Song of the Year
Rap, Rock & Soul	1992	Long Form Music Video of the Year
Can I Get a Witness?	1993	Rap/Hip-Hop Recorded Song of the Year
Jesus Is Just Alright	1994	Rock Recorded Song of the Year
Socially Acceptable	1994	Rap/Hip-Hop Recorded Song of the Year
Luv Is A Verb	1995	Rap/Hip-Hop Recorded Song of the Year
dc Talk	1996	Artist of the Year
Jesus Freak	1996	Rock Recorded Song of the Year
Jesus Freak	1996	Song of the Year
Between You and Me	1997	Pop/Contemporary Recorded Song of the Year
Like It, Love It, Need It	1997	Rock Recorded Song of the Year
Jesus Freak	1997	Short Form Music Video of the Year
Colored People	1998	Short Form Music Video of the Year
Exodus	1999	Special Event Album of the Year
The Supernatural Experience	2000	Long Form Music Video of the Year
Dive	2001	Modern Rock Recorded Song of the Year

Grammy Awards

Title	Year	Label(s)	Award name
Free at Last	1993	ForeFront	Best Rock Gospel Album
Jesus Freak	1996	ForeFront	Best Rock Gospel Album
Welcome to the Freak Show	1997	ForeFront	Best Rock Gospel Album
Solo	2001	ForeFrontVirgin	Best Rock Gospel Album

External links

• Official website
• tobyMac
• Tait
• Kevin Max
• tobyMac MySpace
• Michael Tait MySpace
• Kevin Max MySpace
• DcTalkUnite.com
• dct3.net