At age 19, Lecrae attended a conference at the prodding of a friend and heard James White deliver a message that he says “turned his world upside down and showed him his need for a savior.”

An evangelical Christian rapper has taken over the iTunes hip-hop/rap chart. [Editor’s note: the original URL (link) referenced is no longer valid, so the link has been removed.]

Three of the top 10 spots, including slots No. 1 and No. 2, have belonged to Lecrae ever since his new album, Gravity, dropped on Sept. 4. With the deluxe version of the album atop the chart all week and the regular rendition sidling right behind it in the second position, Lecrae is expected to sell 60,000 copies in the opening week, easily a first for a Christian rapper. His lyrics certainly don’t match those on the rest of the hip-hop chart, giving his record a distinctly family-friendly feel. Here’s what you need know about the new hip-hop king:

• Lecrae is certainly no stranger to topping charts. In 2008 his album Rebel became the first Christian rap album to take the top spot on Billboard’s Top Gospel chart. It spent 78 weeks there.
• Reach Records, the label that released Gravity, is actually an independent label owned by Lecrae. He has a stable of Christian rappers signed to it.
• The lyrics are what set Lecrae’s albums apart from other rap discs. When he raps about going “higher,” he’s referring not to drugs but God, saying, “the closer I get to you, the higher I feel.”

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