interlínc : Maximizing Music and Media in Youth Ministry

We'd love for you to get to know Brian Littrell & we even have a cool video for you to hear from the people who know his heart (like Brian's wife & pastor). Go here to watch the video (Quicktime required)

Brian, tell us about your journey from the Backstreet Boys to releasing your new solo album into the Christian market?

In order to explain my journey I need to back up before I was ever a Backstreet Boy. I was singing Christian music long before I was singing secular music. I grew up in Lexington, KY singing in church as a 4 and 5 year old little boy. I grew up in a Southern Baptist church in a faith based home in the Bible belt. A huge part of my life was going to church. My mom and dad sang in the choir, I had wonderful relationships with youth ministers, music ministers, as well as pastors growing up that really kept me tied to the church, a lot closer than let’s say...my friends. I realized at an early age that I did have a God given gift which was song, and I was able to sing, but at a young age I didn’t know how I was touching peoples lives in a strong way because I was a little too young to realize that then. Growing up I was singing in church choirs and school choirs and going to All State chorus, and singing in the talent shows in school. I did Boys II Men cover tunes and New Edition cover tunes. A part of my life was performing at churches and I was a lot of times the special music for revivals, I would do a lot of extensive traveling in the state of KY, traveling around to various churches giving a testimony of how God has truly changed my life and had his provision on my life ever since I was a little boy. I have had a lot of things that happened to me at a young age that have helped me stay so closely tied to the church and my family. When I was born I had a heart murmur, which is a hole in your heart, and at age 5 I got a bacterial infection that consumed my bloodstream that I wasn’t supposed to live from. I had a 0% chance of living in 1980 from this disease called bacterial endoconditas, I was in the hospital for two months my first grade year. It is only by the grace of God and by a miracle that I am here today. And I think that God has allowed me the success and the stages to stand on all over the world so that I could tell my story through being with the Backstreet Boys. I thought God had a plan for my life and that plan was to study youth ministry and music ministry. I had a four year scholarship to the University of Cincinnati Bible College, in Cincinnati, OH. It was a four year ride, books paid and everything on a vocal scholarship. I really and truly in my heart thought that God had that plan for my life. And it was two weeks before my Senior year and in order for me to make my commitment to the school I had to be a Senior and the scholarship was offered to me as a Junior. Two weeks left in my Junior year after signing up for all of my classes, my cousin called me on April 19th of 1993, when he called me and said, “I’m singing with these guys down in FL and I wanted to know if you would be interested in coming down and see if you would fit in. And on April 20th I was on a plane by myself flying through Atlanta where I live now, at age 18 and here we are 13 years later. God has truly multiplied my audiences all over the world. And I truly give him the glory for the things He has done in my life. Furthering my career in the Christian market is really where I have know where I would always be, I believe that God’s plan is truly coming full circle. He has brought me the success on the stages all over the world like I said and to really shine for Him in a positive way, in a different way, for people to see the real me, for people to understand what I am about as a person, as now a husband and a father. God has truly had His hands on my life and still does and always will.

It was just a different path than you expected to take, right?

He gave me more than I expected. He gave me A LOT more than expected and I am very grateful for that. And like I said my on-going comment that I always share with people is that God truly multiplied my audiences. From singing in front of 85 people in church to being in Hyde Park in London singing for 125, 000 people to being in the Tokyo dome singing in front of 70, 000 people and do that three nights in a row. God has truly multiplied my audiences all over the world and there is a book I was reading several years ago called the Prayer of Jabez that talks about how you pray for God to enlarge your territory. The things that you ask for through God’s grace, He will grant you those things. Not maybe directly but indirectly in some way. And if you stay patient though prayer and stay steadfast through God’s love He will show you. You pray for wisdom and you pray for all these things and God will allow those things to happen in your life if you stay true to Him and stay true to yourself. I truly think that He has blessed me with the gift of songwriting and producing and all these things where He has allowed doors to open up in my life. The songs that I write are somewhat Christian songs, they are somewhat inspirational songs, they are somewhat also pop secular songs, I have written all kinds of things but I also use my platform through the Backstreet Boys to touch as many lives as I can in a special way and that special way is to share my story of what I am about. Even in the BSB heyday during the Millennium Tour and making of the Millennium record, which to date has sold almost 40 million copies worldwide (just that one record). I wrote and produced a song called the “Perfect Fan”. The second verse of the song talks about how God has been so good in my life. Blessing me with a family who did all they could? And I have had many years of grace and it flatters me when I see a smile on your face. That song was dedicated to my mom because she truly was my perfect fan in this life. And I used the BSB platform and the BSB stage to talk about God has been so good in my life on a secular record; anytime God allows something like that to happen. My job is jump on it and to be able to touch people’s lives and for them to truly know me.

Do you think that was your witness while you are with the BSB’s is to shine that light?

I do. I think, God put me in that situation and still has me in that situation to reach as many people as I can and to touch as many people in a special way so that they know my story. Companies like interl'inc and articles that are written to the youth of our church so that they know that is exactly where I came from, where they are sitting right now reading this article is exactly where I came from. Anything and everything in my life the glory is given back to Him. It’s not me. I can’t take all of this stuff with me. We hear about that all the time in sermons and that is so true, you can’t take anything with you. You can only take your heart that you have for God and the passion that you have for God. And it is so real how He has been so evident in my life.

You were talking about how you had that 4 year scholarship to a Bible College and that you thought your desire was to be a youth minister or a music minister. Do you think that desire is still within you?

I think God is using that passion in my life today more than ever because of situation like this. Being able to tell my story so that people can know where I came from, I think better opens their minds to religion in general. A lot of people I talk to don’t believe in God. And I think God has put me in that situation in order to proclaim God in the secular world which is something there that doesn’t really happen. And I find that God is using those passions that I have always had in being a youth minister and a music minister to allow me the opportunity to talk to the youth of our church and that is even what you guys are helping with. If I was a solo artist just coming out I don’t know if I would have such an impact without the BSB’s success. It is hard to be a new artist in today’s music market. Like I say, God is good. He has put me in this situation I think to touch more people across the world, rather than just a small town boy from KY, which is what I am.

You were talking earlier about the heart condition that you had as a child and I know you have the Healthy Heart Club for Kids. You want to talk a little about what that is?

We founded the Healthy Heart Club for Kids in 1998 and we wanted to do something a little different. The Healthy Heart Club for Kids provides knowledge it provides awareness about eating healthy, exercising, and for families to not battle each other but help each other in holding each other accountable. We talk about being accountable to God; I wanted to create a program where families can be accountable to one another. There are so many kids that come in from school and they sit right in front of the television screen and they watch cartoons and they play video games and they sit in front of that television for hours and hours. When I was growing up it was a little different, we would go outside and be as physical as we could. I enjoy about every sport besides water polo, I can swim, but I rather not play that. The Healthy Heart Club has been blessed to have so many donations from all over the world. The BSB’s fans have been nothing but supportive for the club and we are changing lives. We are helping kids live a heart healthy lifestyle. We are helping families also live a heart healthy lifestyle. The club has grown so much in the last years that we decided to split the club into two different divisions. We have the Healthy Heart Club, which is actually the club itself. But we also have the surgical assistance program and the surgical assistance program provides money to families whose children are having surgery. We got the idea from a young lady that was our first patient that we were able to help and it was an 8 year old girl named Angel. And we chartered a helicopter for her to fly from KY to OH, where she had to have her surgery. Insurance companies will cover certain things but they don’t cover everything and that is what our surgical assistance program provides. It provides almost like a per diem type thing. Parents and siblings what to be with children when they are going through something like that. What we provide is the money for them to eat on, for rental car service, for hotels, things that insurance companies don’t really look at as their expense.

Where do you see God leading your ministry in the future?

Wow, good question. I think that through this project He is going to put me into even more homes. There is a thing out there that I have realized with the secular world and the Christian music world. A lot of people that are Christian turn themselves completely off to the secular world of music. And a lot of people in the secular world turn themselves off completely to what is going on in the Christian world of music. And I think that I am the perfect example of why both of those things can work together through the experiences that God has allowed me to have with the BSB’s has taught me to be a better person, taught me to be a better husband, to be a better father., to be a better Christian and believer. I think what God has in store for me is to be in even more homes across the world. He is allowing my ministry to touch people that don’t even serve God. I think that is a huge thing. I am just kind of along for the ride. I am just a filter for God’s message of what He wants people to get out of it. I am just His tool in the process. So what is left is to be seen and I am excited to go where He has me go and do what He has me to do.

How can Youth Workers be praying for you and your family?

Pray for strength, pray for guidance, pray for wisdom, pray for the anointing of the Holy Spirit to take this project and have it do things that people didn’t really think that it was possible for them to do. Pray for people eyes to be open to the message of what these songs have. Like I said a lot of people close their doors and close their eyes to different styles of music just because of the message. There is such a cloud over Christian music sometimes when sharing that I am in Christian music, coming from the secular side people are like, “what?” They turn it off before they ever give you a chance. I pray that this has a chance to really move mountains but not for any other reason then the message.