By Trisha Bleau Smith
T4JYM: How did you get started in the music industry? How did you begin singing and how did you get to where you are today?
JR: I began singing when I was 3 years old. It wasn’t till a few years ago that God started to lay this huge burden on my heart. He told me to sing and go around the country reaching people. I told him, well if you want me to do it then you need to provide people to help me. I met with some guys, shared with them my vision, and we began to pray together, write songs together, and now tour together. I got to where I am today simply by the grace of God and tons of prayer and a lot of hard work and sacrifice.
T4JYM: What is the main focus in your ministry? Teens? The lost? The hurting? Why did you decide up on this as a focus?
JR: My focus mainly is teens who are lost and hurting. I know that’s a big category but that is who I feel called to reach. It was in my teen years that I went through a lot of turmoil and depression, and I had no one to turn to, so I am determined to make sure that it does happen to anyone else. I want to be there and be a voice to this generation.
T4JYM: Where do you see yourself in five years? Ten? The future? Do you ever worry about getting caught up in the world of show biz?
JR: To be honest, I don’t ever look 5-10 years ahead, I might look 5-10 days ahead, but I don’t ever wanna get caught up in what if..and I wanna be there. I am concerned about the here and now. Tomorrow is not even promised for us. I just want to be on stage proclaiming the gospel through song and sharing what God did in my life to teens for as long as God will allow me.
T4JYM: What kind of relationship do you maintain with your audiences? Do you fellowship with them? Or do you remain distant as the performer?
JR: I like to be one of the few Christian rock singers out there who actually spends as much time as I can with the fans. Kids don’t need a rock star who is up on stage and then goes back stage and then to his tour bus and leaves. They need someone they can connect with, talk to, pray with. I will sometimes stay at venues for 6-8 hours after the concert, talking and praying with kids. I also have a website www.jordansmusic.com that I allow people to email and keep in touch with me. I do my absolute best to write each one back personally so they know that I truly do care about them and their situation.
T4JYM: When did you feel called to perform like this? What made you decide to become a performer and why music?
JR: Actually I was getting ready to be a youth pastor before I realized that, being in the church was not really for me. I knew that hurting, lost teens would not come into a church, but they would come to a Christian rock show. I also knew that music was the best avenue to reach them. My music speaks of hurt and pain and life that I have gone through and I point to Jesus as the one who got me through it all. I believe that they hurting kids need to hear that instead of what the world has to offer.
T4JYM: What is the message you are trying to get across with your music?
JR: Simply put..You can get through life on your own, but it will be hard, and full of pain and torment, but if you go through life with Jesus, you have an amazing friend who will never leave you and will help see you through everything.
T4JYM: What is the biggest thing you have learned from performing and ministering through music? What is the hardest thing about ministering through music?
JR: I have really learned the power and awesome platform that God has given me. I could have a 9-5 job and maybe touch a few lives each year, but through music and performing around the united states I have had the privilege of reaching tens of thousands of young people. The hardest thing is that when you do what I do you open your life up for major attack and criticism. I get so many people telling me I am full of myself, and that I do what I do just to get my name out. Its so hard to deal with that, when all I care about is those kids, and seeing that their lives are impacted with the hope of Jesus.
T4JYM: Do you ever get criticized for your lyrics or your music style?
JR: All the time. Some of my lyrics are very blunt and very to the point. I think people get convicted by what I am trying to get across, but I cant help it, I refuse to sing nice fluffy or feel good music. That kind of music is for main stream America and that’s not who I am trying to reach. If I am going to invade the darkness and the streets where kids are at, I have to have an approach that will get their attention, not to mention the musical style is pretty edgy.
T4JYM: Who, or what, are your biggest musical influences?
JR: Petra was always a big influence in my life. The lead singer John Schlitt is a good friend of mine, and he taught me a lot by what he did on and off stage. I also really look up to guys like DC talk, and third day. On the secular side I like Linkin Park. I don’t agree with all the swearing, but their lyrics are very real and right to the heart of some of the very things I have dealt with in my life.
T4JYM: Who are some of the groups you have performed with and what did you think of them?
JR: I have performed with groups such as Christafari, Rachel Lampa, and Jeremy Camp. They were good guys and all, but I just think they are more about selling product and getting their name big, rather than getting down in the trenches and being a part of the revolution that God wants to do in the hearts of teens today. As I watched them before, during and after shows, there was not much that was different from them and secular artists. Kids who come to our shows are hurting, they need more than an autograph and a nice picture or cd. They need Jesus and when these artists are given amazing chances to reach thousands in one night and don’t, I get a little worried.
T4JYM: Do you have an accountability partner or prayer partner to keep you encouraged and uplifted?
JR: Actually I have several. It is very hard as I said to do what I do. I am constantly in the spot light and under a lot of opinions by the public. I need a lot of prayer support and people to keep me accountable. I am so grateful to all the people who have spoken into my life over the years and the few that surround me everyday with love and support.
T4JYM: Do you have any advice to give to the youth of our world?
JR: That is a hard ending question, but one I love to answer. I have begun to feel that is it time to stop doing things the way we have done it for so long. I have noticed at my shows and in talking to fans, that people are so surface these days. No one seems to care about anything or anyone anymore. I have begun to encourage the youth of America to stand up and BE REAL. Its time to start caring for one another. Its time to start being real with our feelings, and with our hurts. Its time to stop being so fake and pretending that everything is going great when below the surface we are dying inside. I want to be one of the first to stand up and say, I care. I also want to be one of the first people to honestly tell you guys that I screwed up in my life, BUT GOD rich in his mercy saved me and gave me a second chance at ministry. Too many kids think that they are so terrible, and how could God love them or take them back. That is a lie from Hell itself. God is a God of MERCY and he loves each and everyone of you, and if he can rescue a sinner like me, he can do it for you. So you teenagers out there, know that you are loved, and be real about what you are going through. Don’t hide your pain deep inside, there are people out there who really do love you, want to listen and be there for you.
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