Toby McKeehan

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tobyMac
Background information
Birth name Kevin Michael McKeehan
Born October 22, 1964
Genre(s) Rapcore
Alternative Metal
Hard Rock
Alternative Rock
Funk
Contemporary Christian
Occupation(s) Singer-songwriter
Years active 2000–present
Label(s) ForeFront Records
Website tobyMac.com

Toby McKeehan, professionally known as "tobyMac," is best known for his role as frontman for Christian music group dc Talk. He has released four solo albums, Momentum, Re:Mix Momentum, Welcome to Diverse City, and Renovating Diverse City.

Contents

[edit] Personal Life

Toby was born Kevin Michael McKeehan (see discussion page) on October 22, 1964. He got the name Toby from having been born in October. His older brother started calling him Toby before he was born. At some point in his life, his parents divorced, partly influencing the song "Stories (Down to the Bottom)".

Toby and his wife Amanda live in Franklin, TN. They have five children: Truett, Moses, Marlee, Leo, and Judah. Moses and Marlee were adopted in 2002. Leo was born in 2004. Judah was born in 2006. Truett appears on the albums "Momentum," "Welcome to Diverse City," and "Renovating Diverse City" as emerging rap artist "Tru-Dog."

[edit] dcTalk

He grew up in the Washington, D.C. area and met Kevin Max and Michael Tait while in college at Liberty University. The three formed the band dc Talk in 1987. A unique approach to combining rock, pop, and rap quickly rocketed the trio to success, not only in the contemporary Christian music market, but also in the mainstream market. Their album Jesus Freak was a significant milestone, selling over two million copies, making it a double platinum record.

dc Talk's latest album was released in 2000. The members have each pursued individual careers since then, but caution fans that dc Talk has not split up, but has simply "taken an intermission." The album Intermission: the Greatest Hits was a dc Talk compilation put together when the group members started their "intermission."

dc Talk reunited to perform a solo on the album Let's Roll about the events on September 11, 2001, and again on Toby's third album "Welcome to Diverse City." They remixed the song "Atmosphere," an original song appearing earlier on the album.

Throughout the 1990s, tobyMac achieved considerable success with his Grammy winning group dc talk, stockpiling a number of gold and platinum albums with seven million combined copies sold. As the group moved into the rear view window, tobyMac boldly stepped out on his own with his solo debut, Momentum. Earning rave reviews from Billboard to CCM Magazine, the 2001 album debuted atop the Billboard Heatseekers chart, sold over 400,000 copies, and landed two number one singles, "Extreme Days" and "Somebody's Watching." The DC born artist went on to win several Dove Awards, including Producer of the Year, and two BMI honors as Christian Songwriter of the Year.

[edit] Solo Career

Toby McKeehan's solo music differs from dc Talk's rock-based musical style, leaning toward a more urban, hip-hop/rap sound. His sound is much more reminiscent of what was heard when dc Talk originally started out, on the albums "DC TALK", "Nu Thang", and "Free At Last", their most widely known album besides "Jesus Freak".

McKeehan composed and recorded the song "Extreme Days" for the 2001 Truth Builder Productions film Extreme Days. The song was subsequently featured on the 2001 debut tobyMac album Momentum and was used in the movie, Hangman's Curse, based on the popular book by Frank Peretti. McKeehan also composed and performed the song "New World" for the album Music Inspired by the Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. His song "The Slam" was featured in advertisements for the films Transporter 2 and The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift, as well as advertisements for the television show Prison Break . The song was also featured in car commercials, men's NCAA clips, NBA Finals (Miami Heat, 2006), World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) programming, and "The Ultimate Highlight" on Sportscenter. Ohio Valley Wrestling performer Matt Cappotelli, who currently is unable to perform due to a brain tumor, uses "The Slam" as his entrance theme. Toby's songs "Atmosphere" and "Burn For You" have also been used in commercials.

Toby is working on a new album called "Portable Sounds". It will appear in stores February 20, 2007.(orginally planned for late 2006 though) However, the song "Made To Love" is available for listening pleasure on Toby's MySpace site. Plus TruDog, his son, has been featured on all 4 albums. This will be his 6th album (Momentum, Remix:Momentum, Momentum Christmas, Welcome to Diverse City, and Reinventing Diverse City)

[edit] Miscellaneous

Toby has also written two books with Michael Tait titled "Under God" and "Living Under God."

Toby is also the President of record label Gotee Records. Gotee features artists such as DJ Maj and Relient K. However, as a recording artist, he is under contract with ForeFront Records.

[edit] Discography

[edit] Guest Appearances on Other Albums

[edit] Filmography

  • Momentum DVD (2002)

[edit] Music videos

  • Get This Party Started (2002)
  • Extreme Days (2001)
  • Irene (2001)
  • Gone (2005)


[edit] With dc Talk

  • The Hardway (1992)
  • Jesus is Just Alright (1992)
  • Luv is a verb (1992)
  • Colored People (1995)
  • Between You and Me (1995)
  • Jesus_Freak (1995)
  • Minds Eye (1995)
  • Like it, Love it, Need it (1995)
  • Since I Met You (1998)
  • My Friend, So Long (1998)
  • Consume Me (1998)

[edit] GMA Dove Awards

  • 2005 Rap/Hip Hop Album of the Year for "Welcome to Diverse City"
  • 2003 Short Form Music Video of the Year for "Irene"
  • 2002 Rap/Hip Hop Recorded Song of the Year for "Somebody's Watching"
  • 2002 Rap/Hip Hop Album of the Year for "Momentum"

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ New Album Title and Release Date. tobyMac.com news item, November 3, 2006.

[edit] External links

dc Talk
Toby McKeehan – Michael Tait – Kevin Max
Discography
Albums: DC Talk – Nu Thang – Free at Last – Jesus Freak – Supernatural – Solo
Live Album: Welcome to the Freak Show
Compilations: Intermission: the Greatest Hits – The Early Years
Movies: Free at Last: the Movie
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