Rhema Soul's forthcoming album Red
When you think of the color red, what comes to mind? Rhema Soul’s new album Red. With the album release soon to come, BREATHEcast has talked with musical group Rhema Soul about their 4th production. As we take a deeper look behind the creation of this album, artists of Rhema Soul: K-Nuff, Juan Love, and Butta share with their audience their ministry, their cause, and their inspirations behind the album.
How did the name Rhema Soul come to mind?
K-Nuff: The name Rhema involved me and Juan Love. We were in a previous rap group doing missions. This is where we met someone named Rhema. We thought the name was really cool and at the time, we said if we ever formed another group or change the way the group dynamics is, we would make this our name to show that we’re continuing to do what we do. We also wanted to add an enlightened word to it. So, we chose to add “soul” because that’s what we feel like we show as a ministry.
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With the “Red” album coming out, we know you want people to feel your music, but what specific emotions do you want people to feel?
Butta: I think with this album, we want people to walk away with feeling inspired and understanding that they may be in a place that they may not see their dreams coming into fruition as fast as they hoped or dreamed that God has promised. However, there’s still a promise that God has made and we need to hold on to that promise. Trust in God and know that he gave us visions and dreams for a reason.
The roads and journeys may not be easy to accomplish it, but God loves us enough to put us through a process so when we do come out of it, we’re able to look back and ultimately see that He gets the glory, not us. The album talks about pursuing things with passion; being committed to your cause, committed to your love for Christ, your walk with Christ, and staying committed in relationships. In general, we need to have a sense of urgency.
Because we live in a crazy world, it’s our job as Christians to approach these bad situations with a sense of urgency and know that we have the answer to a lot of these problems. It’s our job to make it known. We want people to walk away with that, feel inspired, and know they have the ability to change the world. We need to hold on to the promise that God has given us.
Is there a specific change/cause that you hope to accomplish in people with the release of this album?
K-Nuff: Yes. What we want from people that listen to the album [is], people who aren’t saved would gain an understanding that when they hear about God or when they hear people who talk about the feeling of God, those people saying it are not people who are selfish human beings, they are people with questions, people who are weak. It’s just that they are people who can find the answers to those questions and know how to find solace in Christ and gain an understanding that you don’t have to go through things alone or handle big decisions by yourself. There’s a God above you that wants to be a part of your life.
That’s what we want to train in the mindset of a person that isn’t a Christian. For the person that is a Christian, we also want Christians to be inspired to know that they may feel like it’s a lonely walk for kids in college, kids in high school, and even people on jobs. We want them to know that these problems and struggles are echoing across the world and God is still showing up and he wants to move people’s lives. He just wants us to know where and who we are in order for us to move effectively. The album echoes the identity of Christ and the urgency of knowing who we are and taking that identity on so we can actually move. God is with you through anything because we can do all things through the strength of Jesus Christ.
What do you say sets this album a part from the others?
Juan Love: We try to mature with every project. This is our fourth official album. We try to grow on every album we create and send each other to the next level in every aspect as far as lyrically, sonically, and just taking risks.
That’s something that artists are afraid to do because of the thought of alienating the audience or they may think they may not be accepted for whatever reason. I think this is what never held Rhema Soul as a group back. We just have to do what’s natural to us. We always wanted to dabble in different genres.
So, I feel like we made a project that’s going to appeal to people of different musical tastes and not just people that love just hip-hop. We probably attracted people who are interested in dub-step, R&B, or Pop and I think we did a pretty good job attracting different audiences.
What song do you think people will feel the most?
Butta: It’s a few of them, but one song is called “Not Forgotten”, which people can definitely relate to because I think everyone has gone through life feeling forgotten because God has moved friends and family through different seasons in their life. When you graduate from college, you see a lonely path because you go into the real world, you see your friends heading different directions with their careers and you feel stuck in this rut. When you get older, your friends are getting married, which is why I see this as a song that people can relate to.
Another song is “All My Way” featuring Ryan Stevenson, which talks about even though things don’t look as right as you want them to, you have to keep moving on and forward towards what you got to do. A lot of the songs that we did on this record we try to relate to people in general such as our single “No Walking Away”, that talks about being committed. It’s a message that you’ll never see victory if you walk away so you got to stick it out, go through it, and allow yourself to go through the journey.
Describe the area you were raised and how it inspired you to serve Christ.
Juan Love: Well, I didn’t grow up in a Christian home or anything close. Around the age of 18, I was a crazy young kid just looking for trouble, then some friends invited me to a youth group. At first, I went because I thought it would be cool to be a part of a fellowship and it was cool because we enjoyed the same music, sports and other things. So, I went because I was interested in what church was about because I believed in God, but I didn’t understand that you could have a relationship with Him. I guess I was most interested in the fact that there was a bunch of young people serving God and it was such a dynamic [thing] looking [at that] atmosphere because I saw things there that I’ve never seen before and it just attracted me to it. From then on, I consistently went and God slowly changed my mind and heart then He eventually gave me ministry. Now, I continue to serve Him with my whole heart and I love Him.
What is your favorite Scripture?
Juan Love: Individually, we all have different ones. The bible meets you wherever you are at different points of your life on a personal level. However, my favorite is Psalms 95:1, ‘Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord. Let us cry out to the Rock of our salvation.’ I like the whole concept of God being this Rock that doesn’t shift and doesn’t waiver even though our minds, hearts and our emotions waivers so much on a daily basis that His just never changes.
With the release of this album, what message do you hope to send to your audience?
Butta: Be inspired and know that everyone is created for a purpose and what you do with that purpose is what’s going to matter. If you live your life sitting on the sidelines and watch everyone fulfill their destiny, you’re not living your life with a purpose. Ultimately, you are created for more than just being a normal person and with having Christ in your life, you are able to accomplish whatever your heart desires as long as it is in God’s will.
