For many of us, we crave a legacy that lasts for generations to come. We want people to look back on what we have done and celebrate our hard work. For platinum-selling recording artist Carman, many onlookers will look at his career and say his legacy is set. His list of career accomplishments is stunning on any level:
- 25 full-length albums
- 10 million cumulative career record sales
- Seven Dove Awards
- Four Grammy nominations
- 16 RIAA-certified platinum and gold albums
Over the years, more than 4.5 million people have attended one of Carman’s three national tours. At one of his concerts, more than 72,000 people filled Texas Stadium to hear him. I asked Carman about that concert at Texas Stadium, and he offered, “That concert shows that God can do something bigger than any natural means. Everybody knew that event was bigger than music, and it was bigger than me. It was a God event.”
With all of these concerts, albums and awards in hand, things had seemingly drawn to a close in 2004 with Carman’s last nationally produced album. It seemed that Carman’s legacy was safely cemented. Yet God was not done with him just yet. First came a diagnosis of multiple myeloma in February 2013. When Carman released news of his diagnosis through his Facebook page, his fans filled that post with well wishes and prayers. That post alone received more than 20,000 comments in the days that followed. Even after 10 years of musical silence, the fans had not forgotten Carman.
Then, with such strong fan support and encouragement from close friends, Carman decided to pursue a new album in the months following his diagnosis. However, many record labels seemed to have forgotten Carman. “The music industry was looking for newer and fresher voices,” Carman says. To continue pursuing his dream of a new album, Carman turned to Kickstarter, where he crowdsourced his new record. The campaign was wildly successful. In fact, it is the second-highest-funded Kickstarter music campaign of all time. Carman is back to making music again.
His new album, No Plan B, is set to drop May 27 and is full of deeply personal tracks. The album features songs such as the title track, “No Plan B,” and “God Made Man.” One song on the record is titled “Jesus Heal Me,” which carries even more meaning for Carman given his recent cancer diagnosis. “Sometimes healing from God comes in all sorts of ways,” Carman states. “You expect the healing to be instantaneous, but it isn’t always that way.”
Given that there has been a decade between Carman’s last two albums, he realizes many people may be more familiar with his legacy than with his music itself. He believes a new generation can appreciate what God has done through his career. He says, “As a music fan, I was always interested in what people from older generations did that worked. I was fascinated by what moved people and what set other artists apart as successes.”
Carman’s legacy is not yet fully written. The opportunity waits for a whole new segment of fans to see why he was one of the biggest names in Christian music and what he has to offer now. Listen to No Plan B on your preferred music service when it drops May 27.