This year’s annual fundraising event, Rabbit Room LIVE, is shaping up to be an amazing night of music. In addition to performers like Andrew Peterson, Andy Gullahorn, Jill Phillips, Eric Peters, and many others, we’ve got a couple of extra special guests this year.
Let me take just a moment to introduce you to one of them. We’re super-excited to welcome Sho Baraka to the stage this year (and he’ll be around to speak in a Hutchmoot session as well). I wrote a post a few weeks ago call “Crooked: My Hiphop Odyssey” and if you read that, you may recognize Sho’s name. I was first introduced to his music by Randall Goodgame and Ben Shive who told me I had to listen to Sho’s newest album, Narrative.
Music advice from good friends is best heeded, and this album is no exception. It’s outside what I’m used to listening to, but I immediately connected with it on multiple levels. I was first sucked in by how literary it was—Sho sings about and quotes from writers like C. S. Lewis and G. K. Chesterton in songs that at times are pure fun and at others are handling difficult social and theological subjects with wit and elegance.
Humble Beast exists in humility to disciple God’s people and advance God’s kingdom through beautiful acts of creativity and theology for the worship of the triune God. Out of this mission comes Humble Beast’s four major distinctives: Creativity, Humility, Theology, Doxology.
And beneath those playful lyrics lays an always fascinating bed of music that draws on jazz, R&B, and Motown to create songs that are constantly surprising and easy to listen to. On top of that, Sho is part of a Rabbit Room-like community called Humble Beast that draws artists together around the gospel. Call me a fan.
We’re super excited to welcome Sho to the Rabbit Room community this year, and we can’t wait for you to hear and meet him. He’ll be playing at RR LIVE, which will be live-streamed across the globe (!), and he’ll join Ben Shive for a Hutchmoot session on the mysterious art of songwriting.
If you can’t make the show, you’ll be able to live-stream it for free (more information to come), and please consider supporting the Rabbit Room’s mission with a donation or membership. Click here for more information on becoming a member or to make a tax-deductible gift.
Here’s one of my favorite songs off Sho’s newest album. It’s called “Fathers.” I have a hunch you’ll love it as much as I do.