Fans and friends know that Michael W. Smith isn’t just a musician.
He is a father of five who flies home constantly. He’s a husband of 18 years. He’s the CEO of a record label who gave Ginny Owens her break. He’s the pioneer of a Christian dance club for troubled teens. He’s the worship leader and planter of a community church. And a man who continually returns to Christ for his identity and strength.
Michael says, “Being a husband and a father is not my job, it’s my life.” When on break from tour or in between shows, Michael comes home to ride four-wheels, play ping-pong, ride horses or go to the mall with each of his five kids. Ryan, his oldest, has played guitar on stage with his dad during summer tours. Tyler, 12, plays football. Emily, 8, is the family comedienne. And Whitney, 14, and Anna, 9, both love to sing and have joined in on previous records with their dad.
One night while in Frankin, Tennessee, Michael thought of a way to reach out to teens other than his own. While driving down Main Street on a Friday night, he explains, “I saw kids out on the street getting in trouble with no place to go.” This gave Michael a vision to develop a place where young people could find refuge. Now, “Rocketown” is a non-alcoholic, teen dance club and community center across from the Hard Rock Café in Nashville, Tennessee. More than just providing entertainment, Rocketown impacts teens’ spiritual lives. “We want to offer them Jesus. The love of Jesus. It’s that simple.”
Two years later, Michael’s fatherly heart was also evident in his approach to young Christian musicians. Wanting to nurture new artists, pour his knowledge and experience into them as a mentor, Michael started a record label in 1996, also by the name of Rocketown. One of his first young talents was Ginny Owens, a 24 year old singer-song writer whose songs have now been on several prime time television shows like Felicity, Roswell and others. Ginny is impacting mainstream culture with her creative pop sounds mixed with traditional hymns, found on her first album Without Condition. Acoustic guitar player Chris Rice is also on Michael’s label. Rice’s newest album is called Smell the Color 9.
Lately, Michael and his wife Debbie’s most encouraging project is the new church they started with a planting team of pastors — New River Fellowship, which began meeting in the Smith’s barn. Sunday mornings are worship centered, with almost an hour of intense praise. As he said to interviewer Jimmy Stewart from Charisma & Christian Life, “Worship is not two or three songs. We worship a long time…But nobody wants to stop!” Now the church has grown and meets to the YMCA in Nashville. “It’s a wonderful thing,” Michael told Teresa Lockhart of Living With Teenagers magazine. “I just felt like God laid it on my heart that we need to create a place for our family and other families that really was a true community — an Acts church.”
Through out Michael’s diverse life, Christ, family, and church keep him grounded and strengthen him in times of need. He challenges everyone to “get plugged in spiritually, whether that be a church or a Bible study group. Have some accountability…If you give your heart to the Lord and commit your ways to Him, I believe He’ll make your plans succeed.”
