“Window” by Out of Eden, Saturday, November 4, 2023
In 1994, Toby McKeehan, better known as Toby Mac, founded the record label Gotee Records along with business partners Todd Collins and Joel Elwood. As one-third of the perhaps the most successful Christian Rock act ever, dc talk, McKeehan has also proven to be one of the top business minds in the Christian music industry since the formation of a record label that aimed to sign a diverse sound compared to what had been popular in mainstream, mostly white, Contemporary Christian Music. Early Gotee signees included the reggae group Christifari, the alternative rock band Johnny Q. Public, the hip-hop duo GRITS, the singer-songwriter Jennifer Knapp, and pop-punk band Relient K. Today, we have a song from the first signee to Gotee Records, Out of Eden.
WHEN ALL IS DARK, NO LIGHT TO SEE. Out of Eden is a trio of three sisters from Richmond, Virginia, who moved to Nashville with their mother, DeLise Perkins Kimmey Hall, after she divorced their father, Robert Kimmey. DeLise was offered a teaching position at the private historically black Fisk University in Nashville. Lisa, Andrea, and Danielle Kimmey sang backup for their mother, a classical pianist. Seeing their talent, their girls’ stepfather tried to get the sisters a recording contract. No label was interested in signing the Kimmey sisters until they met Toby McKeehan. The trio recorded six studio records with Gotee between 1994 and 2005. They released a greatest hits album in 2006 and haven’t produced music together since then. From their first album, Lovin’ the Day, which featured a cover of Bill Withers’ 1977 hit “Lovely Day,” Out of Eden was a success on both Gospel and Contemporary Christian radio.
I CAN FINALLY SEE THE LIGHT. Similar to how Billboard counts pop and R&B as a separate category, Christian music, too, divides sales between Contemporary Christian and Gospel. While there are a few exceptions, Contemporary Christian is typically white artists and Gospel is typically black artists. Out of Eden was perhaps one of the most successful crossover artists in the pasty-white genre of CCM. This was probably due to the success of TLC and later Destiny’s Child on Top 40 stations in the ‘90s. With their third album, 1999’s No Turning Back, Out of Eden began to make a huge impact on Christian music. Between key placements on WOW CDs, compilations of songs that were either the year’s biggest hits or songs that were projected to be big hits in the following year, Christian music video shows playing the video for “Lookin’ for Love,” being featured on SonicFlood’s cover of “I Could Sing of Your Love Forever,” and the multiple radio singles, the trio were one of the biggest acts in CCM. But unlike their secular contemporaries, Out of Eden didn’t produce a Beyoncé. Instead, the group simply retired. Today’s song, “Window,” wasn’t one of their biggest songs, but because it was on a mission trip compilation, I know it very well. It’s cliché, but it’s a song about hope. Although things may look bleak, if we can just hold on a little more, it will get better.
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