One song in, Lecrae Moore told the 6,000 fans at Winter Jam: I don t know if you were expecting some cookie-cutter message about how I ve got it together. I don t.
The Christian hip-hop artist from Houston said that most of his friends are either dead or in jail, and that he has made mistakes, too.
There is grace today for yesterday s mistakes, he said, adding that he doesn t regret confessing his brokenness to God. I d do that again in a heartbeat.
Moore, who goes by Lecrae, was among the headliners Thursday night at Winter Jam, the contemporary Christian music tour that came to the USA Mitchell Center. The concert also featured appearances by Newsboys, Tenth Avenue North, Thousand Foot Krutch, Plumb, and .
A pre-Jam party featured by Love The Outcome, Everfound and Derek Minor.
Lecrae, a fan favorite, strutted down a walkway into the crowd, which was already bouncing and punching the air to a song from his latest album, Gravity, which debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and No. 1 on the Christian, Gospel, Independent and Rap Album charts.
Fakin , he yells, with fans repeating the song s title: Fakin !
The crowd roars.
The event wasn t a sellout for the 10,000-seat arena, but officials attributed the smaller audience to the switch in scheduling from Sunday to Thursday.
I d like 8,000, said Arena Manager Victor Cohen. It s a Thursday. We can live with that.
Still, he said the tour is a strongly attended event for the Mitchell Center. As far as one-day impact show, it ranks among the top three shows, he said.
Dove Award winner Newsboys, an Australia-based band founded in 1985, rocked the crowdwith "Restart," the title track of the album released in September 2013 tocritical acclaim.
"Sweet Home, Alabama," crooned lead singer Michael Tait, who grew up the youngest of nine kids in Washington, D.C. He added, "My father was born in 1923 in Mobile, Alabama."
Soon, he had the crowd singing and dancing to "Love Like IMean it" and "Live With Abandon." To "He Reigns," Tait had the crowd swaying, he said, "like a black gospel choir made up of a lot of white people from Mobile, Alabama."
He slowed things down with "That Home," dedicated to his mother, who died last fall, and "We Believe."
When NewSong took the stage early in the night, fans were on their feet. Swallow the Ocean had them waving their hands.
Earlier, Dixon, known for his performance on American Idol Season 11, warmed up fans with an energetic performance, even leaping atop the piano.
Before doors opened, Everfound and Love The Outcome stepped outside the south nterance to greet fans and perform a couple of songs. Vocalist Jodi King of Love and The Outcome, a Canadian duo, signed CDs for waiting fans, including Doug Practor of Silverhill, who was first in line.
That was unexpected. It was definitely worth being up here (in the front of the line), said Practor of Silverhill. Practor had arrived at the Mitchell Center at 8:30 a.m., expecting a crowd. But the Thursday crowd was delayed, arriving after school and work hours.
It looks like a late crowd, said Cohen, the arena manager, prior to the final count. No doubt it s the day of the week.
In previous years, he said he has watched the crowd of 10,000 sing along with the artists, creating a worshipful atmosphere. I m talking about Acapella, just listing to the voices of 10,000 people singing the same song. That s my reward, he said. They come spirit-filled and they leave spirit-filled.
Winter Jam comes to Birmingham on Sunday, Feb. 9, 2014, at the