Chris Dickens |
What's your full name? Christopher Ronald Dickens Where's home for you? Watertown, TN--just east of Nashville Tell us about your musical journey--when did you get into music and who would you name as your top musical influences? I've always loved music. I started off listening to things like Midnight Star and Prince, but later got into bands like AC/DC and Twisted Sister. My dad force fed us country music, and I didn't have a taste for it. I liked to rock! So, I listened to AC/DC, Ratt, Motley Crue, Bon Jovi, Twisted Sister, etc. for a number of years. I started messing around with a bass during that time, and learned to play by listening to those old tapes and copying what those guys did. In 1990, I went through some bad depression and ended up hospitalized for it. During that time, God was really trying to get my attention on a lot of things. Music was one of them. It had become a god to me. I remember God asking me one question: how do you sing along with songs that glorify things that you say you don't agree with? I would wrestle with that for months. But, I felt that the Lord was asking me to leave those bands behind, and I did. He introduced me to a ton of Christian metal acts during that time. Bands like Bride, Whitecross, Guardian, Ken Tamplin, Petra, etc. The messages in those songs really helped me to grow closer to the Lord. The commitment I made to the Lord in 1990 to leave secular music behind still stands today--nearly 18 years later. I don't miss it, and I'm not going back. Do you have any hobbies/passions besides music? Would music count? I do have other passions. I love being a pastor.
I am a youth pastor at a rural Baptist church here in Tennessee. I love
working with teens, and I love communicating God's word to others. I
also love to read, and am constantly finding new books to devour. But, my
main two passions are making music and spreading the word of God. Tell us a little bit about your music projects and where we can check 'em out? Well, I've done 3 CDs in the past few years. The first one was called Missionary One "Take Another Swig". It was just old school hard rock/metal. The sound quality needed a lot of work, but I like it. I've put out around 200 of those. Not bad for a one man project who does almost no gigs! That CD is almost out of print. You can only get it from me. On the second CD, I changed the name. I just felt that Missionary One just didn't really stand out. The name just needed a little something more. I decided to go with Mission Of One. Why? Well, Jesus' mission was to tell people how to enter the Kingdom of God. He passed that one mission to the Apostles and on to us today. It is His mission--that Mission Of One, if you will--that I hope I am helping continue with the music. The disc was called "Show Me The Way", and went in more of a metal direction. As usual, I did all the vocals, rhythm guitars, and bass. I used 4 different local drummers. Mark Howell did the leads. The high point for me was getting Scott Wenzel of Whitecross to sing on 3 tracks. That was so awesome! A nobody like me got to work with a musical hero. Scott was very humble, and gave me a great performance. You can get the CD here: www.cdbaby.com/missionofone The new CD will just be self-titled: Mission Of One. On it, I have tried to incorporate several styles into one cohesive sound. I like 70's rock, 80's rock/metal, blues, modern rock/punk, moderd worship music, etc. I experimented with all of these. While it could have been a total failure, I think it works great. The sound comes off more early 80's rock than anything. The CD is not yet available, but will be after getting it mastered and the CDs made. On this disc, my brother Darren handles all the drum work, and I cover everything else. I even ventured out on lead guitar. I did have Mark Breton (another local guitarist) come in on two songs. I hope everyone loves it. While it may/may not be my best work to date, it is definitely the most "me" as I have not really tried to do any one style to please an audience. I just made music & songs that I like. I believe it will show. |
