Christian Hip Hop Veteran Da' T.R.U.T.H. Rebrands Himself as Emanuel and Releases New Album "Not Just for the Youth But for the Adult Listener"

Known to the Christian hip hop community as Da' T.R.U.T.H., Emanuel Lee Lambert Jr. is ringing in 2023 with a new name and a new album that proves hip hop is not just for the youth and, he said, "to build a bridge between the generations and cultures."

"Early on, pastors and church leaders promoted Christian hip hop as exclusively for youth," Emanuel said. "That discouraged those who were into Christian hip hop but were older from coming to the concerts. In mainstream hip hop, you have forty-somethings, fifty-somethings, and sixty-somethings going to Kendrick Lamar concerts, so the same should be true in Christian hip hop. You don't age out of it."

Emanuel added that the new album, titled Emanuel and released in partnership with Mixed Bag Entertainment, is a "sonic journey through my entire career." That career includes years spent as a classroom-trained percussionist. 

Born in West Philadelphia on December 15, 1977, to a pastor father and a missionary mother, Emanuel Lee Lambert Jr. naturally grew up in church. "My father was pastor of a church called St. Peter's," he said, "and when I turned ten years old, we went to a church called Sharon Baptist. It was at Sharon Baptist where I flourished as a Christian, grew into my faith, and got involved in the ministry."

By age sixteen, that ministry included Christian hip hop. "I was literally on street corners, rapping. At the lunch table, rapping. There'd be 75 people standing around listening, with someone thumping on the table for the beat, and I would jump in with my Jesus trap!"

All the while, Emanuel participated actively in his high school's music department and played percussion in the all-city jazz band. He studied percussion at Berklee College of Music, earned a partial scholarship to the University of the Arts, and did independent study in music at Temple University. Although he set his percussion career aside to pursue Christian hip hop full-time, he pays homage to his roots by incorporating his musical training into his compositions.

Emanuel arrived at the stage name Da T.R.U.T.H. after an intense conversation on religion with someone of another faith shook him to his core. "The man undermined the credibility of the divinity of Jesus," Emanuel reflected. "I struggled with my faith for weeks. I didn't know what to do with the information because I wasn't well read enough, but later I realized that what I heard was a lie in the shell of the truth. I wanted to be something comprehensively true, not just true in part. The name Da' T.R.U.T.H. came from that experience."

The pioneering Christian hip hop ensemble The Cross Movement, also from Philadelphia, was Emanuel's earliest influence. "They were among the first urban revivalists of our time," Emanuel said. "They were the first to gain access into mainstream spaces, the first to sell tens of thousands of records. They packed out shows. They were intentional about using their craft to communicate something of eternal value."

Likewise, The Cross Movement took an interest in Emanuel. He opened for them on their 1999 international tour. Five years and a few more tours later, Emanuel signed to the group's Cross Movement label. "I'm standing on the shoulders of The Cross Movement," Emanuel stated. "They're the reason I'm here."

Moment of Truth (2004) was Emanuel's recording debut. Emanuel's phone wasn't ringing off the hook after the album's release, but it nevertheless established him and gave him roots. The 2005 follow-up, The Faith, did much better, landing in the top ten of the Gospel Album chart. Successive albums Open Book (2007), The Big Picture (2009), The Whole Truth (2011), Love Hope War (2013), and Heartbeat (2014) each rose as high as #2 on the Gospel Album chart and also crossed over to the top ten Christian Album chart, suggesting Emanuel was reaching a multicultural audience. 

Along the way, Emanuel influenced Christian hip hop artists like Andy Mineo, KB, Flame, and Trip Lee (who met Lecrae for the first time at a Da' T.R.U.T.H. concert). "Not everybody started rapping because of me," Emanuel said, "but many did it differently because of me. I was able to blaze the trail for guys who are now doing it at a high level."

Having just celebrated his forty-fifth birthday, Emanuel felt it was now time for a refresh. The first was to retire the name Da' T.R.U.T.H. and go forward under his given name, Emanuel. It was a decision four years in the making.

As a self-proclaimed "middle child in Christian hip hop," with the genre's pioneers before him and a new generation following him, Emanuel trusts that he has "experienced life a bit more. So I can say, 'Here is some wisdom, based on my journey.' Being older and wiser, I feel more stripped down, more vulnerable. Da T.R.U.T.H. is strong, and he knows it. Emanuel is more like one of the guys. I have been thinking for the past four years that this is something I wanted to do, and this was the perfect time."

Plus, he added, "Emanuel means 'God is with us' in Hebrew. That resonates with me more now than before. God being with us is the most comforting thing a person can wrap their heart around, regardless of their season or their experiences."

Despite the changes, Emanuel is unwilling to compromise his convictions and commitment to the truth. "What has changed is how I disseminate that truth. Things that were once black and white to me are grayer now. As I grow older, I understand the complexity of life, and that it's more about the conversation than having all the answers."

As an example, he points to "Gray Hair," a song on Emanuel, which features PJ Morton. "I played the song for an artist friend of mine. He looked at me and said, 'I am literally about to cry!' That surprised me, I admit, but I think there's something about the song that speaks to the challenge of getting older in a world of ageism. It speaks to the person in that forty-something range who's struggling with where they are in life. The song says there is a wisdom and a seasoning with growing older."

To reinforce that point, Emanuel was intentional in choosing featured artists with a legacy in the industry, people like Fred Hammond, Kim Burrell, and Yolanda Adams. 
Even the album cover reflects a more mature approach. Hearkening back to his musical roots, Emanuel made sure the sound of the album "is live instrumentation, not just rap and beats." And Greg Cox, Emanuel's longtime collaborator, remains on board. "He's my Dr. Dre!" Emanuel laughed.

Emanuel formed NXT Agency (pronounced next) to supplement his Christian hip hop ministry. "NXT signs artists to two-album deals, then we platform them and take them as far as we can, with the expressed purpose of some record company acquiring them." The agency's initial success was with Nigerian-born artist Limoblaze, who was signed by Reach Records after appearing on a 2020 album with Emanuel.

"I craft music for a mature listener," Emanuel said. "If you love music, you will love Emanuel. If you love Christian hip hop, but think you are too old to listen to it, I'm here to tell you that you're not. I want people to feel comfortable 'still liking this.'"