Cover

Bob Dutko
by MDM4M Staff

FLINT
Interviewed
by MDM4M Staff

Transforming
a Man's Emotions
by Warwick Cooper

Review:
Rock Stars on God
by Ryan Richardson

The Addiction
by David Chipp-Smith

Health & Fitness
by Jeff Consiglio

Review:
Following Jesus
by Stephen Barkley

God's Promises
Part II
by Colin Michael

Review: Welcome
To Diverse City
by Ryan Richardson



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Welcome To Diverse City

TobyMac, Forefront Records/EMI Music
A Review by Ryan Richardson

www.tobymac.com

Buy Momentum Here

"TOBY'S BACK…"

Best known as the frontman for dc talk, TobyMac Got The Party Started with his 2001 CD, Momentum, then mixed it up last summer. It was a beautiful thing.

On this new project, Welcome To Diverse City, TobyMac keeps the Party Going, but this time he's invited lots of friends to Party with him. Diverse City is more cohesive than Momentum, incorporating his appreciation for old school funk and R&B much more this time around. Less rapcore, more funk. Lyrically, as always, Toby has some real insight into the culture of celebrity and the desire to be an authentic believer in the Modern Day.

Here are the tracks that stand out:

Catchafire (Whoopsi-Daisy) - featuring MOC & Papa San - Dancehall at its finest. PapaSan benefits from the level of production that TobyMac is able to pull together. I wish it was the beginning of summer, cause this is the track that needs to be bumpin' outta my sunroof.

Slam - featuring T-Bone (aka the Boney Bone Corleone, aka Boney Soprano) - If you're a dc talk fan, here's a fun game. Listen to "Alleluia" from their debut CD, then Slam immediately after. Then you will know how far the man has come since he was MC Swirl (the chocolate is still "down deep in his soul").

TruDog, The Return - Toby's son marks his shining return to CD. He also does a great job MCing the whole project. Worth the cost of a Happy Meal.

Diverse City - featuring Bootsy Collins. Yes, THE Bootsy Collins, from George Clinton and Parliament days. He fits in perfectly here, as this is a Parliament/Prince-fused track, summing up Toby's lifelong quest for racial diversity, both in the church and society as a whole.

Getaway Car - An excellent parallel for taking the time to "Getaway" for some quiet time with God.

Burn for You - The Truth is out there, to paraphrase a really good show. The best lyric is the slight but powerful spin on Jim Morrison and Kurt Cobain's cop-out line: "I'd rather burn for You than fade away…"

Atmosphere (Remix) - featuring Kevin Max and Michael Tait - It is refreshing to hear the guys together again on such a great song. But fellas, the solo thing is producing three times the incredible music, why not keep on this path? As a dc talk fan, I will appreciate it if you just continue to appear on each other's solo records. Remember Johnny Q. Public's comeback? How about PFR's? Blondie's? Neither does anyone else.

Diverse City is an impassioned plea for the church to once again be that City On A Hill, embracing cultural diversity and welcoming people to the Kingdom together.

Go buy it on the 5th and help spark a spiritual and cultural revolution.