Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
Issue link: http://www.epageflip.net/i/385846
38 UCW SEPTEMBER 24-30, 2014 WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM Concert Connection Sponsored by IT'Z ENTERTAINMENT CITY www.itzentertainmentcity.com HUSKE HARDWARE HOUSE 405 Hay Street • 437-9905 www.huskehardware.com Sept. 26 Casey Cotton Sept. 27 Lotus Sun MARQUIS MARKET 116 Person St. • 483-1337 marquismarket.com Live Jazz every 4th Friday CAPE FEAR BOTANICAL GARDEN 536 N Eastern Blvd. • 486-0221 www.capefearbg.org Sept. 26 Dave Brubek ITZ ENTERTAINMENT CITY 4118 Legend Ave • 826-2300 HILLTOP HOUSE 1240 Fort Bragg Rd. • 484-6699 www.hilltophousenc.com Thursday Live Music FORT BRAGG Main Post Parage Field www.fortbraggmwr.com Oct. 11 Darius Rucker VILLAGE COFFEE HOUSE 3037 Boone Trail Ext. • 484-4515 2nd SaturdayScottJohnson 2nd and 3rd Friday Open mic Fayetteville's Concert Connection Sponsored by IT'Z ENTERTAINMENT CITY www.itzentertainmentcity.com The search for relevance can lead you to conclu- sions on roads you might not have planned to travel. Especially if you're a Contemporary Christian radio programmer. One such search these days might lead you straight to a rapper known sim- ply as LeCrae. It did me. At press time, I awoke to an indus- try headline pro- claiming LeCrae's new album, Anomaly, was second in sales only to the new release from One Direction, arguably the planet's best selling artist. Since 1D's new album isn't even available for download yet, that makes LeCrae the top-selling album among all music currently avail- able. All genres, all outlets, period. How's that for relevance? Of course, it would be easier to just act like rap and hip-hop didn't exist – within or outside the realm of adult contemporary music. Forget that LeCrae became the first rapper to top Billboard's Gospel charts in 2008. Forget that his sixth full-length recording, Gravity, hit the No. 3 spot on the Billboard 200, and won a Grammy for Best Gospel Album in 2013. LeCrae, a Houston-born Atlanta transplant, has gained mainstream ground, but on every front, one thing seems evident: neither Christian nor mainstream music saw him coming. As LeCrae releases his seventh album, Anomaly, some are finally starting to get it. His popularity tran- scends being a lovable rebel in a straight-laced world, and the sincerity, passion and art that comprise his music make LeCrae a noticeable force well beyond the realm of Christian music. He came through Fayetteville in 2013 as part of the Crown Coliseum- filling Winter Jam. I'm sure many people walked through the doors think- ing LeCrae was a Christian rapper, but it doesn't take long to realize he's better described as a rapper who is Christian. There is a difference, and the distinction itself is relevant. His new album, Anomaly, is almost a biographical story. It simply comes alive as LeCrae dives into specifics. The title track's mention of him listening to Outkast, when he was a kid fearing not fitting in, provides a crucial flashback as he calls for "the peculiar" to rise up. In the somewhat militant "Welcome to America," LeCrae spins vignettes of a black man deal- ing with the residual effects of slavery; a war veteran, failing to assimilate to civilian life; and a sweatshop worker from abroad, rejected in efforts to live in the same country as his employer. "Good, Bad, Ugly" is an attempt to walk through past experiences with abortion and molestation. As he gained popularity, LeCrae would repeat to media outlets that he did not grow up in a religious household. He tells of how he didn't consider converting to Christianity until he was 19, when he attended a conference with a friend in Atlanta — hoping to pick up some girls — to see hundreds of other teens dressed like him. Like those conversations, Anomaly makes LeCrae's journey to salvation seem wholly personal. Thanks to his passion, people are bound to keep rooting for him, no matter what their beliefs may be. And for me and fellow Christian radio programmers, it's time we took notice. LeCrae is as relevant as they come. LeCrae by DAN DEBRULER DAN DEBRULER , Station Manager, WCLN, Contributing Writer. COMMENTS? Editor@ upandcomingweekly.com. Adults $15 – Children $5 www.schgnc.org Saturday, October 4 th in Laurinburg, NC Scotland County Saturday, October 4 th there's only one place to be – the John Blue Complex in Laurinburg for the Scotland County Highland Games. Watch athletes compete in tradiIonal ScoJsh events such as the caber, and what would the games be without piping, drumming, and Tartan glory. For the liNle pros out there we'll have events for the kids to try. Kids games registraIon ends at 11:30 the day of the games. You can also register the kids online. And join us aVer the games at 5:00 pm for an "a9er hours" party/ concert. Featuring CelIc bands, beer and food vendors. Cost to enter the concert is $5 – free with your Games Icket. Highland Games