10 Questions with ... Caleb Rowden

BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:

LABEL:

• Executive Music Group

DISCOGRAPHY:

• The Demo Sessions Digital EP (Executive Music, 2009)
• Made to Worship Digital EP (Executive Music, 2009)
• Free From Ordinary (Slanted Records, 2005)

1. What has been happening in your world since the debut release "Free From Ordinary"?

After "Free From Ordinary" released in 2005, we toured like crazy. We saw some radio successes [the single "Made" went to #12 in the country] and doors opened as a result of that. In 2007, I joined the staff at my home church in Columbia, MO, as the Worship and Creative Arts pastor. I decided to take some time away from touring to really pour into what God was doing in and through the church. It was really in that time that God was preparing me for this next season of "road ministry." I just didn't know it right then. We kept our connections strong and I kept writing and in 2009 I really felt the nudge to get back out there and keep telling the story God wanted us to tell. So we've recorded some new stuff and have this new single coming out soon. Definitely an exciting time.

2. What's the story behind your new single "All I Need Is You"?

I think all of us are more than aware of the economic struggles that we are experiencing as individuals and as a nation. I really think it's in these times that the call of God on us to put our faith and trust in him becomes all the more important. It's in these moments that God is preparing us for something bigger and better than we can fathom. The premise of the song comes out in the title: at the end of the day, all we need to make it through seasons of despair is the faithfulness of God. One of the lyrics of the song really sticks out to me: "gold to rust, treasures to dust, I know that all I need is you." Everything we want to find our worth in (status, financial gain, etc.) is in things that won't last. I think the heart of the song is for believers to remember that the impact we can make during seasons of challenge and transition is HUGE, because people actually begin to feel their need for something more.

3. Talk a little bit about the writing process for that song. You worked with Ricky and Ran Jackson?

Yeah, those guys make up 2/3 of an Los Angeles-based band called The Daylights. They have toured with OneRepublic and Katy Perry, as well as being the backing band for Katy during her last tour. Their association with a somewhat controversial artist like Katy might lead you to believe one thing about them but they are the real deal. Those guys love Jesus and want people to know it. When we sat down and started the process of writing this song, I think we were all just "over" all of the cliches and things that some times show up in pop songs. We just wanted to write something that was real and relevant to where we were at as three broken guys who love Jesus and want more of him in our lives. The first lyric kind of sums it all up: "Lord, here I stand with nothing to give, a line in the sand, a life to be lived."

4. Who has inspired you the most personally, professionally and/or spiritually?

I think I am inspired more by ordinary people who are living extraordinary lives than someone living or doing ministry "in the spotlight." I think when people who don't have a stage to speak from and are still able to impact the world around them for the fame of Jesus, that is truly inspirational and kind of sums up the way in which we are all called to live. I want to have influence because of the person I am not because of the songs I write or because I can play an instrument or sing.

5. Which do you enjoy more: the process or the performance?

Five years ago, it would have definitely been the live performance. I still love getting up in front of an energetic crowd and going after God with them, but I think I've learned to enjoy the process of crafting a thought or idea into a song way more than I used to. I don't know that I like one more than the other, but I definitely believe that without a top-notch song, that live performance will not be all it could be. At the end of the day with all that has changed about this industry, it's still about the song.

6. What are you most looking forward to in 2010?

I'm very excited about the release of this single and excited to get back out on the road a little more frequently. I definitely miss the people, just having a conversation with someone at the merch table or hearing a story that encourages me. I'm excited to experience that a little more frequently this year.

7. Can you describe your event Shift?

SHIFT is a very intentional effort to help the churches of a community come together to share the love of Jesus in a very tangible way. The idea is to go into a city or town and gather up as many church partners as we can. With people on the ground, we will seek out service projects and compassion-focused initiatives that the churches can come together and make happen. The culmination of this "Serve Day" will be a citywide concert with myself and other local and national artists. I don't want to just be an artist or a musician. I really want to make a difference that the world around can see. That's the heart behind these events.

8. Do have any interesting or funny stories from your visits to radio stations?

At one of the first station visits I ever did, I was doing a song acoustic on-air but didn't really know that you're not supposed to put your headphones on for those types of performances. You're not in control of your mix usually, so you are at the mercy of the DJ at the board, so they just tell you to take your headphones off. Well, I didn't know and played the song with NOTHING coming through my headphones. I think the station added the song but I'm sure the listeners were probably wondering why after they heard that performance.

9. If you could have any job outside the music business, what would you like to try your hand at?

I LOVE POLITICS! I know. That automatically makes me a nut. But I would love to be a Senator or member of Congress. I don't know if it will ever happen, but I'll probably give it a shot some day.

10. Do you have time to listen to much music? What other artists are you listening to right now?

Phil Wickham's "Heaven and Earth," Seabird's "Rocks Into Rivers," Phoenix's "Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix," OneRepublic's "Waking Up," and Gary Go's "Gary Go," just to name a few.

1) Who would be your dream artist to record with (any genre)?

Paul McCartney

2) Favorite city to visit:

I love the Midwest, probably Dallas or Austin.

3) Favorite or best meal on the road:

Chicken Caesar Salad from just about anywhere

4) Any musical guilty pleasures?

Owl City and Taylor Swift. Not the most masculine stuff to be listening to while working out, but very catchy nonetheless

5) What song do you wish you had written?

"Daughters" by John Mayer is still one of the coolest songs I've ever heard!