If I was to tell you my favourite Christian band, it would be DC Talk. No other band had such a major influence and impact on me as this trio. Their groundbreaking music changed the Christian music landscape. They not only made Christian music more mainstream, they reminded Christians to be proud of following Jesus. They helped people understand that “Jesus is just alright” with them. I collected their cassette tapes, and CDs. I must have worn out those albums from the hundreds of playthroughs I listened to repeatedly. I bought their merchandise, clothes, and I even went to my first and only DC Talk concert when they came to my city. It was a blast, and I will never forget it.
Out of all of their albums, ‘Free at Last’, ‘Jesus Freak’, and ‘Supernatural’ had the most critical commercial success. All three albums had unique styles, but all of them were special in different ways. And this all made sense because all three band members had unique styles to their writing and singing. Yet all three of them made a special contribution to the critical success of this group. Their music touched on topics such as racial equality, embracing diversity, loving others, and not being ashamed to follow Jesus. Had I not been introduced to this group, I would have never been introduced to reading, as they also released their ‘Jesus Freaks’ volume book series. These books were a collection of short stories of various Christians all over the world who were either persecuted or died for their faith in Jesus.
I was obviously sad when I learned this band separated in 2000 as they decided to branch into their own solo music careers. And since all three of them have different music styles, this kind of forced fans into choosing which solo career they would follow based on their musical tastes. If you were to ask me who was my favourite of the three it was Toby McKeehan or as we all know him as Toby Mac. Coincidentally, he also happened to have in my opinion the most successful solo career out of the three of them. Micheal Tait’s solo career only lasted several years with only 2 albums before he became the lead singer of Newsboys. Kevin Max released several albums before having a short stint as the lead singer of Audio Adrenaline, before returning back to his solo career. But all three of them have had great music careers, and are still making music to this day.
In 2017, to my excitement, DC Talk kickstarted a reunion tour which was exclusively done on a cruise ship. This was a big deal because of how long they have been separated. For 17 years they could not find a time where all three of their schedules could line up for a reunion. 2017 was that year that worked and I couldn’t tell you how much I was tempted to attend that. I have never been on a cruise ship and I always wanted to do that. So to mix that with a reunion tour of my favourite rock band, that seemed like a perfect idea. I ultimately declined not only because of how expensive it was, but even the cheapest rooms sold out incredibly fast. Perhaps it was for the best that I did not attend, because DC Talk received quite a bit of criticism for doing the tour in this way. It was only a one venue tour rather than a traditional multi-locational tour. So that right away cut out so many fans. Also, as I mentioned earlier, it’s expensive to be on a cruise ship. Which in doing this also marginalized its fan base. It outpriced many of its loyal fans that wanted to go, but could not afford. I personally was not upset about how they did it. I was just glad DC Talk was getting back together again for a short time. I could see that doing a cross country tour was not practical or possible for their schedules, But I definitely agree with the fans that there could have been a better way to do this. My idea would have been to perform at one location, in one arena, but for seven days straight. That way, if a standard arena holds 18,000, DC Talk could potentially have given 126,000 fans an affordable opportunity to see them rather than only 3500 passengers on a cruise ship. They did one more cruise ship tour in 2019, but it just resulted in the same criticism.
And perhaps they may have listened to their fans. Because in 2020 it was announced that they would be doing a land tour. To this day, I have no idea when it will happen. While I would love to see and hear this group perform again, to be honest, I would be content if they just made one last studio album together. I mean their Greatest Hits album was called Intermission. You could say this intermission of not making albums as a band has been going on for over 20 years. I would love for this intermission to end and have one last encore album.
But now there is a new challenge that may potentially affect the group from getting back together. And that would be Kevin Max. Throughout 2019 and 2020, Max has been expressing his views on politics and his spiritual deconstruction. On May 14, he tweeted that he is an ‘exvangelical’. If you even look at his Twitter bio, it clearly states that he is a “Poet. Singer. Rebel. Hubs. Dad. Leftist. Mystic. Gothic. Liberal. Hippie. Zen-Motorcyclist. Bespoke Jesus Freak.” Bespoke meaning custom made or specific. So he is not just a Jesus Freak. He is a custom made specific type of Jesus Freak, or as he later states a universal Christ. Which begs the question…What Jesus does he believe in? Because it may be difficult for all three to get back together if Kevin’s views do not line up with the DC Talk brand or mission.
The Christian Post reported more in detail about this on May 18. While many seem surprised by Kevin’s words, I actually am not. I believe he has always felt differently about his views, and this has been going on for decades. This was hinted at in his autobiography Unfinished Work. It was published in 2001, which would be about 20 years ago today. He opens up with his thoughts and feelings towards his faith and many other things. While Toby Mac and Michael Tati were closer in friendship and more on the same page, Kevin was writing his own page. He considered himself to be the outcast of the group or the third wheel. There were some difficult times and disagreements within the DC Talk camp. So much so, that it was Kevin that kickstarted the idea of all of them branching off. Despite their disagreements, there is no question that they all remain good friends and I believe they will always treat each other like family.
It is still possible they can get back together, but it may be difficult for fans to view Kevin the same way. Which is too bad because while Kevin Max was not my favourite member, he had the most beautiful voice on many of those DC Talk tracks. He added such a unique flavour to their music. He is an amazing poet and writer. But before Christians draw their own conclusions about Kevin for the things he has said, I would say hold off for a bit. You can disagree with his views, but I think you will learn so much more about Kevin if you read his autobiography. Although it’s 20 years old and we are all not the same person we once were, there is still much of what he says that holds true. There are things of course I do not agree with either, but an autobiography certainly helps us understand his character better. It helps us gain a far better understanding than what any social media post could ever do.
And if you read his book, you will know it’s been a rough ride for him growing up. He reveals how he was given up as an infant by his parents. That alone immediately carries a weight on its own. Also, he writes about his marriage to Alayna, but since the book was published in 2001, it is not mentioned that they both divorced in 2003. He later remarried in 2005, and has 4 children, which is great news, but a divorce is not something you can just erase from your memory. He goes on to mention how he has been spiritually attacked with temptations that came with the lifestyle of being in a rock band and being associated with the wrong people. None of this justifies his recent comments as truth, but it shows us the place where he is coming from.
As a teen, if I knew in the future there would be such a thing such as social media and that I could send an instant message or an email to either Kevin, Toby, or Michael, and at the very least know they would have read it, or better yet respond within hours, I would be so excited for that technology to come. It’s weird to think that I grew up in a time where there was no social media and email was just starting to become popular. All I could do is write and mail a letter, and you just hope they would have the time to write back. You likely did not get a response after all that work. Yet social media is here and to be honest, it has become too much of a good thing. Social media has made things too personal to the point that it has exposed people’s true inner feelings and thoughts. I think the mystery of not knowing who they truly are as a person made things fascinating for me as a kid. An autobiography gave more of a back story to help us understand what events helped shape them to who they are today. And there was still enough mystery behind the person. But with short social media statuses, pictures, and videos, we know too much of their thoughts, feelings, views, and desires. It’s not a bad thing to show transparency, but it has taken all of that mystery away. I guess for some fans, that doesn’t bother them. They love being able to learn everything about that person. But for me, It feels like, “oh, you are not anything like the person I thought you were. You have a very different life outside all of this.”
I think how I see it is that Kevin is not much different than many other people who grew up in the church and got burned by Christians. He desires Jesus, just not organized religion or the people that claim to represent Christianity. Even Ghandi once famously stated, “I like your Christ. I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.” And I am sure many people like Kevin can relate to that. He doesn’t desire the path evangelical Christians travel on, and wants to blaze his own. I think then the question many of us ask is..which path is he on? Because Jesus makes it clear He is the only way, and that way is narrow, and few find it. When Kevin says he is deconstructing his faith, he means that he is not walking away from Jesus, but he is walking away from the church. While the idea of having Jesus but not the church looks attractive…the only problem is that… it’s not possible. It’s not an ‘either or’ situation. Christians are the church. And the church is meant to be the bride of Christ. Think about that. If Christians are the bride, and Christ is the groom, that is a holy union. So to walk away from the church is the same as walking away from being a bride which essentially means walking away from having a holy union with Christ. This is something Kevin needs to wrestle with. Perhaps he should consider renovating his faith rather than deconstructing it.
I also think Kevin’s statements on twitter are not very helpful because he just states a bunch of labels he subscribes to. In his book, he doesn’t care for labels or categories, so to see all the labels he gives himself now seems odd. But also if there is no further expansion to what he stands for, I don’t exactly know what he means. Because of that, some of the responses Christians have said to Kevin are not helpful either. They have not taken the time to try and understand what he means. All of this banter just causes further division and adds to my concern that social media does not help further any discourse. In DC Talk’s song, “What if I stumble”, the prelude begins with a Brennan Manning quote which states “The greatest single cause of atheism in the world today is Christians who acknowledge Jesus with their lips and walk out the door and deny Him by their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable.” While Kevin Max is not an atheist, I can imagine that the deconstructing of his faith probably was a result of what he saw in Christians. Or is Kevin the one denying Jesus by his lifestyle? I don’t know, but in that song it asks the questions “What if I stumble? What if I fall? WIll the love continue when my walk becomes a crawl?” The lyrics of this song seem so applicable right now because if Kevin’s spiritual walk was at a crawl, did the love from Christians continue for him? Probably not. Which is sad because he shares in his book that he has an uncontrollable desire to feel wanted and loved.
So why am I talking about all of this to begin with? Especially since I take no joy in commenting about people’s personal lives or matters, even if they are made public. Well I wanted to share how the Kevin Max of Dc Talk had an impact on my life, but also point people to a book that will help give a better understanding as to why he is where he is with his faith. There is still a lot of truth in what he shares and he is not afraid to humbly admit the mistakes he has made. I am not hurt or sad by any of Kevin’s statements. I believe God can work through any person no matter where they are in their life. To be honest I stopped closely following Kevin, Toby Mac, and Tait’s careers several years ago. I think I will always remember them as DC Talk, and they will always hold a special place in my heart. While Kevin has been deconstructing his faith, it was DC Talk’s bold declaration of being a Jesus Freak that helped reconstruct my faith.
20 years ago Kevin Max considered himself ‘unfinished work’. 20 years later, he is not finished yet. But with Jesus, the work has already been finished. As long as Kevin continues to walk close with the real Jesus, his best work is still to come, and he will finish well.
