Community is at the very core of who Brandon Heath is both as a private person and public figure. He shares his idea of community with friends and followers alike, both of which have grown considerably since the release of his 2006 debut project Don't Get Comfortable which produced national touring and multiple radio hits, including the No. 1 blockbuster song "I'm Not Who I Was."

Heath has garnered professional accolades, to be sure, with the success of songs like "I'm Not Who I Was" also generating the steam that earned him multiple Dove Award nominations in 2008, including taking the trophy home for New Artist of the Year. He was also nominated for Songwriter of the Year and Song of the Year for "I'm Not Who I Was."

But even as success as an artist started to come his way, Heath knew that his personal, creative satisfaction was always going to come in the form of his songwriting. And where many new artists get caught up, for good or ill, in the swirl of activity surrounding that first record, Heath buckled down and maintained his focus on the talent and skill that brought him to the table in the first place.

The result is a powerful sophomore release title, What If We and Brandon recently spoke with Bill Lurwick, host of NewReleaseTuesday.com’s New Christian Music PodCast, about the album and the journey that lead to its release.

Hey Brandon, thanks for joining us here at NewReleaseTuesday.com. I understand you’re on your way to a video shoot for your first single from the new album, “Give Me Your Eyes.” It’s doing pretty well at radio.

Thanks a lot man, I appreciate it. I think it’s been out for about six weeks now. It’s the little song that could.

It’s your very own Thomas the Tank Engine.

That’s right. You put these songs out like they’re your kids and hope that they do well in the world.

So you were born and raised in Nashville, TN, the heart and center of Christian music. You’re not an outsider in any sense, right?

Yeah, you know, it kind of worked out pretty well to be a local. I go to church with most of the guys that I ended up working with.

That’s a nice bonus! Now, you started playing guitar when you were about thirteen. Did you always want to be a musician, or was it just something you fell into as kind of hobby?

I learned how to play guitar so I could write this girl a song. I was really trying to impress her. I think it worked, but we ended up breaking up two weeks later, which is pretty good for 8th grade.

Yeah, that’s not too bad.

I kept playing the guitar though. I quickly discovered that there was a thriving community of songwriters in Nashville that no one knew about. They kind of lived undercover. They could go to the grocery store or to a restaurant and nobody would ever recognize them, but they wrote these huge songs. It was almost like a secret society, and I was really intrigued by it. I also loved to write and so that’s what I always wanted to do--be a songwriter.

So I went to college and studied a bit. I was an English major and as soon as I was done, I signed a publishing deal. That’s how I got my start in the music business.

Last year you won the Dove Award for New Artist of the Year. Your singles continue to perform at radio, and you’re finding more and more success. I’m sure you’re still a part of that songwriters group, but it’s not such a big secret anymore. Do you miss that anonymity at all?

I do, and I don’t at the same time. As a Christian artist you can lead a pretty anonymous life. The majority of people don’t know who you are and my face isn’t super recognizable yet. I’m still a new artist, so I still have the luxury to go out of the house. Most people probably aren’t going to recognize you. I won’t say that I don’t enjoy being recognized every once in awhile, because that’s pretty fun.

So the new project is called What If We which is an interesting title that it ends with a preposition. What’s that about? Finish the sentence for us.

Nice English major term Bill! “What If We” is a statement, but it’s more like a question. It talks about possibilities, and it talks about doing things together. I think God has called us all to serve together and to come as a group of people to serve and love the world, rather than as individuals. The “What if” in that statement talks about endless possibilities. As a believer, how cool is it to know that there really isn’t anything holding you back? You’ve got God on your side. I mean, what can’t you do for His Kingdom? The songs on this album are all responses to that title. They can all answer the begging questions: “What if we listened? What if we went? What if we communicated?” To me, it’s a challenge.

It seems like somewhere along the way we’ve lost that childlike faith, doesn‘t it?

Yeah. I think we sometimes complicate things a little too much, when it really is a very simple gospel. Jesus wants us to love the world and to love him. If we can just accept the fact that he forgave us, and we lived in the freedom of being forgiven and being loved, life will be easier. I think we can extend that to other people as well. I love being able to be spontaneous and not plan out my life. I want to be able to always say to God, “I will do whatever you want me to do. Don’t let me be too afraid or too over-committed that I can’t go and do whatever it is you want from me.”

Take us through the process of how you create an album. How long does it take you?

My favorite thing has always been co-writing. Thankfully, there are some great guys in Nashville that helped me through this creative process. I had everything written by the beginning of January 2008. That put us in the studio in February and March which would allow us to put the record out in August. I took about three months to really focus on the songwriting, but we also drew from songs that I had written even before the first record had come out. For me, songwriting is like a relationship that you have with the audience and the audience has with you. You don’t want to just spill everything all at once in the beginning. There’s a time and a place for certain songs. For example, I had written “London” five years ago. It wasn’t until now that I was really ready to put it out.

Yeah, I’ve listened to that song. It’s kind of a love song.

It is. Chad Cates wrote that for his fiancé, who he is now married to. He was in London and missing her. We can all relate to a song like that, because we’ve been places by ourselves that you can’t really enjoy as much alone. I certainly find myself in that situation quite often.

You’ve talked about that three month period where you dedicated yourself to writing and new ideas, but during that time you’re still touring, promoting and everything else, right?

Yeah, the world doesn’t stop. It’s a demanding job, but I won’t pretend to say that it’s the hardest job in the world. I think the hardest part is just being away from home, and home is really where I like to write. So you have to be very intentional when you are home to get things done.

Do you have a personal favorite on the project besides the first radio single?

I’d say “Love Never Fails” is probably my favorite. It’s either that or the last track on the record, “No Not One.”

“Love Never Fails” is right out of 1 Corinthians 13, isn’t it?

Yeah, I wrote that one with Chad Cates as well. Chad and I were in a Bible study together, and the whole thing was based around 1 Corinthians 13. For me, it was relaying the message of what love is and what love isn’t and focusing on the specific order to what it says in the scripture. If we are called to love the world, then this is how we’re supposed to do it.

Tell us about “No Not One.” You mentioned that as one of your favorites as well.

“No Not One” was written with Christy Nockels, who is formerly of the band Watermark. She is now a worship leader with Passion, traveling with Louie Giglio and Chris Tomlin. I have always loved her voice and we had coffee one day after deciding to try to write together. I don’t think Christy does a lot of collaboration with people, but for some reason, within thirty minutes we had the song. I think it might be one of the most powerful songs I’ve ever been a part of.

Really?

It’s a very exalting song, and I love that it finishes out the record. It gives the record a triumphant ending, saying “God, you are worthy to be praised because all these things come from you.” And just a proclamation saying, “There’s never been a greater love, no not one.”

Tell us about the guy Brandon Heath. Married with kids yet? What do you like to do in your rare down time?

You know, I’m a single guy so I’ve got lots of time on my hands. But my new love is motorcycles. I bought a Triumph Bonneville T-100 two months ago and just finished a trip from Mexico to Canada with three of my good friends. So, I think it’s a good way to spend your summer. I knew that I would be busy later on this summer with the new record coming out, so it was good for me to take a little time off and invest with friends while doing something I’ve never done before.

Well, we appreciate you spending time with us here at NewReleaseTuesday.com. We are really excited about the new album. I am sure it is going to be just as good as the first Brandon Heath project that came our way. God’s blessings to you, brother.

Thanks Bill. Great talking to you, too!