Howard Gripp traces his way back to childhood faith on “When I Was a Kid,” an Americana-rock single featuring Benjy Gaither.
NRT Music released the song as a tribute to Gripp’s mother. It also honors the spiritual foundation she gave him long before he understood how much he would need it.
‘When I Was a Kid’ Honors a Mother’s Faith
Gripp grew up in a small Midwestern town. His mother sang in the church choir and played the pipe organ. Through Bible stories and her example, she introduced him to Jesus and shaped his earliest years.
However, Gripp eventually moved away from those beliefs. Music, difficult choices and adult life gradually separated him from the faith he had known as a child.
“When I Was a Kid” follows that entire journey. It begins with childhood memories and passes through years of wandering. Finally, Gripp returns to the Savior his mother first taught him to recognize.
Benjy Gaither joins Gripp on the recording. Billy Smiley co-wrote and produced the song. Together, they placed its family story inside an Americana-rock arrangement rooted in Gripp’s Midwestern background.
Howard Gripp’s Story Comes Full Circle
The new song adds another layer to the story Gripp tells across his forthcoming album, Welcome to Your Life.
On “I’m Not My Yesterday,” Gripp addressed divorce, depression and the suicide attempt that came before his return to faith. “When I Was a Kid” looks further back and asks where the path home began.
The answer did not suddenly appear in a church parking lot when Gripp was 46. Instead, the song points to seeds his mother planted decades earlier. She continued to pray and believe after her son wandered away.
The single also follows “Welcome to Your Life,” which introduced the album’s themes of renewal and second chances.
Smiley produced the full project at Castle Recording Studios and Peter Frampton’s Studio Phenix in Franklin, Tennessee. Billy Whittington mixed the album. Gripp plans to release it in spring 2027.
Listen to Howard Gripp and Benjy Gaither’s “When I Was a Kid.”