Worship Keys Convo with Marlon Roberson & Leonard Ray Jarman Jr

Watch On YouTube

Thank You to Our Sponsor: Aerospace Audio for Atmospheric Worship Pads

Recorded live in Nashville during pre-production for DOE’s upcoming recording, this episode of the Worship Keys Podcast features Carson Bruce with Leonard Ray Jarman Jr. and Marlon Roberson sharing honest insights on worship, ministry, and musicianship. They talk stewardship, preparation, holiness, and keeping intimacy with God first, along with their Nord, Ableton, and multi keyboard setups and lessons from working with Eddie James, Maverick City, Kirk Franklin, and Matt Redman. If you are a worship leader or creative who wants to grow without losing your heart for God, this is for you. Don’t miss out.

Marlon Roberson
Leonard Ray Jarman
Leonard's sounds
WTRWAY Ministries

Transcript

0:00

Welcome to the Worship Keys YouTube channel. My name is Carson Bruce, so glad you're here. We talk all things music theory, gear, industry and ministry for your worship keys playing. If this episode is beneficial for you or you have any questions as you continue to watch, feel free to comment below and I'd love to hear any feedback that you have along the way. So let's get into today's episode. Alright guys, welcome back to the Worship Keys podcast here for a quick, more impromptu episode. But look at these two guys. If you're on YouTube, you can already tell, and you already know. You've seen the thumbnails, you've seen the titles, Leonard and Marlon. Mm-hmm. I cannot believe it. Now, of course, when I, when I hear your names, I oftentimes, I hear your whole name there, like Leonard Ray Jarman, Jr. Is that right? Junior? Okay. Like the whole phrase. And I've heard nothing but great things about you guys. Seen y'all from afar for a long time. And Marlon, I've seen you with Eddie James back in the day. Mm-hmm. Um, as like a nine, 10, 11-year-old kid. I went to the ramp in Hamilton, Alabama and saw you up there on stage and we could talk about Damon Thompson, Karen, me, Wheaten Ministries, Eddie James, and um, but guys, welcome them to the Worship Peace podcast. I'm gonna actually jump behind the, the camera and let them speak more so you guys don't wanna hear me speak anyway more than you have to. And I've only got two mics anyway, so I'm gonna pass it on over to, um, to Leonard here, but. You guys are in for a great impromptu episode. And, um, let's do it with the studio we're at right now. Uh, we're in Nashville, uh, known studios and, uh, the very beautiful place. I mean, we're, we're having fun here, you know. Rocking with my brother here. We're, we're working on, um, uh, do Jones and her new project that she's, um, uh, setting up. So we're just doing some pre-production, getting everything locked in, putting muscle to music, you know. Uh, and then we'll take a break and then come in and do the live recording the following week, uh, here in Nashville. So we're gonna, we're having some fun. Lock it in, man. Having some fun. So I'm technically from Kansas City, Missouri. That's where I'm born and raised. I've been, you know, a coach, a kid my whole life, you know, and now we're, I'm living in Atlanta, Georgia. Uh, been there for about, for the past, say about 10 years or so. Um, you know, Georgia's a great place, so we're having fun out there, you know, doing ministry and Yeah. Yeah. So I'm Leonard and I'm with the homie Marlon. We're here working on Doe Jones live recording, like you said, doing pre-pro. Just getting everything right, dialing in the songs, kinda figuring out the flow, and then we're gonna come back and do a night of worship, capture the songs. It's really great stuff. This is a really great team. Yeah. I love being in this space. I love being in this space with Marlon specifically. Um, we've gotten to do a lot of things together in the more recent years. Mm-hmm. And it's made my heart glad. Yeah. Um, I live in Vegas, but um, I'm from la I was born in LA but I moved to Lubbock, Texas. So my childhood is all North Texas, like 14 years there. Then another 12 years in the Inland Empire. That's where my wife and I met. Like Moreno Valley, Riverside area, then lived in Orange County, Irvine for some time and now we've been in Las Vegas for literally nine years. And we there, we have a discipleship ministry that we launched prior to moving, but we'll be celebrating 10 years of that. And we have several different initiatives that we do citywide initiatives with different churches. We run a house of prayer near the Vegas strip. We pastor a house church community, and we're actually launching a discipleship school this year in the fall school for worship and creative evangelism. And so it's really amazing things that are taking place that the Lord is doing in Vegas. Wow, that's incredible. So my start with Eddie James. Um, I was fresh outta high school actually. Um, I, I graduated and I did a semester college and, you know, it's just. It didn't hit. And I was just, and I was just like, okay, God, why am I not, you know, feeling this and the Lord, you know, I remember the Lord telling me I have something else for you. So I was like, okay. So I took a break from school and I got a call from my cousin who was actually the drummer for Eddie James, um, called me He was like, Hey, we need you on the road. What are you doing? So I was like, I'm not doing anything right now. So he was like, Hey, we need you on the road. I said. Let me pray about it, you know, and I never left Kansas City that like that was home. I didn't even see myself leaving the town. Uh, so then Eddie's brother, Justin called me, shout out to Justin James, my boy, and uh, he said, Hey. It is either you, in or you out brother, listen, we need you. He said, we don't want you to become, I, I remember this vividly. We don't want you to become another random bass player that plays for Bishop Larry Trotter. I don't know, that's a whole nother random story. But I was like, okay, let me pray about, lemme see what happens. And you know, the Lord was like, yeah, you know, he gave me the kind of the, the release, uh, and the grace to, to leave. So told my family, you know, my family was kind of like, huh, you know, you should. Think about this, you know, I was like, no, I, I, I did get the peace from God. You know, he told me, you know, you know, he got the approval. So when I got there, it was completely different from what I imagined it would be. Um, my first event with, with Eddie was at a, uh, a church in Cleveland, Tennessee, uh, north Cleveland Church of God. And it was an event where it was kind of like southern gospel and, you know. I wasn't raised at, you know, I was just straight doggone church koic boy. You know what I mean? So it was a whole big experience. And then listening to Eddie's music at that time, it was like, it was technically on the other side for me in that era. So I was like, it was like my eyes just started opening up to like other sides of, you know, uh, ministry and evangelism and musical gospel, you know, and it was kind of like, it helped me shape me to where I am now. So it was, I'm forever grateful for Eddie James. EJ on ministry, even found my wife, uh, and with Eddie James. So shout out to Eddie, uh, for helping me find my wife. Uh, yeah, met her, you know, while we were on the road and she, she jumped on the road with us as well. And, you know, we connected and, and, and became really good friends. And then it became something else and we started to date. And you know, the Lord told me that's my wife. You know, and I feel like the Lord leads you in different places to, you know, find that kingdom connection that you're supposed to have, uh, when you obey. You know? So I felt like I did the right thing and obeyed, and the Lord rewarded it, so I love it. Yeah. Explore the uncharted territories, that there's more to access. There's more to access, not just from a musical perspective, but from a depth of intimacy with the Lord and for me. I look at the responsibility of stewardship with what we have in our hand as critical. When it comes to spaces like this, we have a responsibility to prepare, like God shows up in prepared places. We recognize that in scripture where the woman built out the room in her attic for the prophets of stay in her house. Even the story of creation is a story of God establishing order. And even when the temples were created, when Moses' Temple, when the tabernacle of David, uh, when Solomon's temple was created, the place was dedicated. It was built and it was dedicated, it was prepared, and then the Lord had have it in the place. And so we have a responsibility to prepare what we have in our hands, which is our skillset, and submit that preparation to the Lord, and he comes in and breathes on it and inhabits it. We have a responsibility to show up in spaces like this. Fully prepared to be able to walk in freedom. So when the Lord says, I'm shaping the environment this way, we can underscore his song appropriately. What's unacceptable is to say, oh, I didn't practice that because I felt like it wasn't worth it, or I don't like that genre, so I didn't really wanna take the time to do that. Or, I'm too, I was too scared to do it. The Lord will always remove excuses for disobedience. Mm-hmm. He and his kindness will set up things. He'll give us a time. Differential, he'll connect us with people. He'll give us opportunities that are meant to be threshing floors that are meant to make us like a Swiss army knife. And both of us can attest to that. We've been in so many different musical spaces, and each of those environments have served to be an amalgamation of our sound. Yes. Like individually and collectively. And so we bring all these things to the table, or really we bring all these things to the altar. That's a better way to say it. Mm-hmm. We bring all those things to the altar and lay it. At the Lord's feet and he says, use this here. Don't use that here. Use that one over there. And our responsibility is to have the move in a way that we have the freedom to say yes to the Lord. And we all we can trust. We can trust him. We can trust his master compositional. Framework. He is a master composer. He is a master producer. He is a master creator. He is the ultimate creator. So creativity flows from him. Yes. So I feel like as musicians exploring, the more first begins with exploring the deeper places of intimacy with Jesus and correlating them with our musical development. They're not mutually exclusive. His voice singing over us helps us play better because we tap into what he's singing over us, and we're able to play it in a way to where other people hear that same song. And they don't even know that they need to hear it at that point in time. They may rely on that moment 10 years later. There are seeds that are planted. So we have a responsibility to be obedient in the immediacy of the moment because we don't know what key a breakthrough that's gonna have Yes. Have to be for someone later on in their life. That's that's so true. You know, have an ear, you know, to hear what he's saying. You know, and that's where we're, we were talking about that earlier, just how you know our. Great. Corey Russell said it, you know, glory follows order. Yep. You know, and if you don't allow the order to come into play, you the, the dove can't, can't land. You know, the, the cloud can't come, you know, and is able to be able to have a connection and. And lock in with everybody who's on the same page one a chord. You know what I mean? And everyone's in the same, uh, uh, uh, mindset, the same, uh, uh, knowledge of who we're doing it for. Um, I'm telling you, man, like even devotion to home, that's, that's key for me. I mean, I. There was moments I had with God that I'm, you know, that were the biggest at home than it was at church. I don't, you know, if that makes sense. Like there were moments where, you know, I'm just playing the guy and I'm just, I'm asking, you know, I'm a kid, just Lord. Put the cord in my hand, put the cord in my hand, you know, I'm begging for it. And I remember this one moment, you know, I first encountered as a kid, uh, was playing and I just, I was in C sharp and I, I, I hit a four over six. I don't know what was up that with that moment. A four over six. That four over six. Literally changed the way I think about life. You know what I mean? Literally, it's like God's weight literally just came as to a 17-year-old. You know what I mean? Just whew. And I was like. I felt the father, you know what I mean? In that moment, on that chord. And I, I found like a heavy shoe and put it on the sustain pedal and I got on my knees and I just wept and I cried and I was just like, I don't want this moment to end. You know what I mean? Like it was like one of those moments like, okay, Lord, okay, you're in music, you know, you're in this music thing, so therefore. I wanna remain in this moment. I wanna remain in this posture, you know, of, of, of, of caring for what you've, the talent that you've given me, you know? Um, so yeah, exactly. And which also means that we want to orient our lives to where we don't lose sensitivity to the Holy Spirit. Because the Lord can visit a space that has disorder, but he won't stay there. Yeah. Yeah. Like God can use whoever he wants. God's glory can encounter environments even where people are doing wicked things, but that doesn't mean that he's pleased with it. Mm-hmm. So the reality is we want to pursue holiness without which no one will see the Lord. Not legalism, not ticking a bunch of boxes, but I love the presence of God so much that anything that could remotely break his heart, anything that could remotely interfere with my ability and perception to hear him and sense his nearness is not worth having. I don't care if everybody else is doing it. I don't care if it means I don't travel as much as everybody else. I don't care if it means I don't get certain auditions. I don't care if it means I don't make much money because his presence is worth it. Like what is his presence worth? Is his presence worth spending time in the practice room and correlating it with prayer? Mm. If it's not, then do we really value him the way we say we do? It's, it's that black and white and so, and it translates to our musical development. We will never hit a pinnacle. No, we'll never hit a pinnacle un. We will, we'll never see the end of it until we are face to face with Jesus. Yeah. So I, I, I'll say, I'll say this, so talking about my, my upbringing on how I haven't started the play keys. Uh, so I, I took, I'll say, say a quick story. So I was 10 years old, right? And. We were in the church service. You know, I was a kid at Boone Tabernacle Church, God in Christ, you know, in Kansas City. And, uh, you know, back in the day, you know, had those praise breaks and you know, you're going through a fire tunnel, you know what I mean? All the church mothers on the side hitting your head. How say Jesus say, jeez. You know what I mean? I'm just a kid going across, you know, getting prayed for it. And my pastor's on the other side. And, you know, we're having praise break. He stops the music and he's, he's like, Hey, put your hands out, son. And so I put my hands out. This a 10-year-old, you know, he's praying for it. And he, he said something that, that, I mean, now it makes sense. He looked at me, he said, Hey son, these hands are gonna be worth something one day. So I was just like, okay. You know, me being a 10-year-old, I said, yes, yes Lord, I'll receive it. Um, fast forward six years later, I had a dream and. The dream was my hands were out the same way. Um, but this time my hands were, was, was in under a waterfall. Uh, it's like a big waterfall, right? Uh, but the waterfall was not water. It was actually oil. So usually, you know, you would have those dreams that were kind of like, you know, three seconds, you know, and you wake up, you know, it's the next day. Like this dream literally felt like six hours, six, seven hours with me just doing this. And it was just a waterfall oil just coming down the whole time. And it was so weird to see it in real time. So now I woke up, you know, you had those heartbeat moments like, Lord, what was that? You know? Um, and now that I know it's the Holy Spirit, you know, he kind, he impressed me to turn on the radio. You know, it was a Hiscock Walker song, uh, and to grab my brother's Cassio, and I was a drummer during this season, by the way, and. Told me to turn on radio and grab my brother Casio and it was, you know, a Heads Kyle Walker song. And for the first time I was actually able to like detect, you know, the notes that were being played or whatever, being sung in the song. So it was like that moment started my keyboard, musical journey. And I remember he said, listen, I gave you this gift if you. Keep doing this gift for me, you'll do this for the rest of your life. And, you know, and I try to make that commitment to him like, Lord, this everything I touch musically will be for you and nothing else. Uh, so I've been trying to, you know, uphold that side of the bargain, you know, with what I'm doing here, you know, play people like Leonard, you know. Um, but yeah, that's, that's my heart, you know, and like as a child, you know, if I was talking to my, my younger self, I was just saying. You know, stay on the right path, you know, um, um, hear his voice, you know what I mean? Listen to his voice, listen to his whisper, you know, and be able to, uh, um. Obey the first time. You know, be obedient. So then you can see what he's trying to do. He won't tell you everything in the, in the beginning, you know, and you have to be okay with what he gives you. Uh, because he's trying to direct you in the right path for your, your purpose and for the kingdom and where he sets you. It's, it's all planned out. He's already got it taken care of. You just have to just walk in it, you know. So my story's kinda interesting 'cause I grew up Church of Christ. Which does not have instruments in worship. Wow. I've been playing keys since I was five, but I didn't start playing in church till I was 17. So my dad was a pastor for about 25 years playing two churches in Lubbock, Texas where I grew up. And then, um, when my family moved to California, relocated in oh four, then that was when I started playing in church. And I, and also Church of Christ is not a charismatic denomination, so I wasn't exposed to like koic or other environments where there was more expressive musicianship until like high school. I started seeing guys that played multiple instruments and like killing players like that exposed to like stuff like tie trip. Um, I listened to a lot of Israel growing up, so I wanted to sound like Aaron Lindsay from the time I was 12. Didn't we all so and so, I would, I would study the old new breed records and know all the parts, be able to like flesh all those out. And one, I started programming for my dad's church. 'cause we didn't have a band when we started. So I had a, he got me an ASR 10 from my uncle with a Floy disc. And that was what I learned how to program on. And then he got me a motif. And he wouldn't let me play it until I read the whole manual. So I, because of that, I know the Yamaha engine pretty thoroughly. And so I was real heavy into programming all through high school, even in college, different experiences. Um, started playing with older musicians, doing like top 40 stuff, playing ox keys when I was still in high school. And then when I met my wife in college, like I did jazz band in high school and all that. And then I was playing for a male corral in college, playing in a jazz band. I couldn't read music, so I had to learn how to read music in college. And my wife, when we became friends, she started exposing me to different genres of music that I had never heard before. And it really opened my ears to hear music in a different way. And that from that blossomed a genuine friendship. Then we started dating and flash forward, like now we're married, we've married 12 years and have a 6-year-old daughter, and so she's a huge part of my musical growth. But then within that space, I was playing in so many different, uh, musical environments and the Lord just taking me on journeys with cultivating and authentic in intimacy with him in that process as well, where it not just became, oh, I can play, but music being the vehicle by which I encounter him. And correlating the musical language with how he sings over people. In Zhan I three 17, it says, the Lord rejoices over you with singing. So, um, I always would get this picture of the Lord sitting in heaven singing. Um, in spaces of worship or in any kind of musical space. And over the years, I've just gotten better at playing what I hear, and he's allowed me to be in different environments and people that I look up to, like Israel and Aaron, Lindsay, um, I've been able to do a lot of things alongside them and they've been able to speak directly into my life, and I've gotten to have some amazing experiences and grow as a person, as as, as a husband, as a father, as a musician, by just like being. Able to absorb how the Lord has navigated their journeys. Mm-hmm. Um, and I gleaned so much from those spaces and just with different peers of mine within the worship community and my wife, especially alongside my wife. It's been such a beautiful journey. And even this space as well, like every space that I've been in has been a beautiful learning experience. That's, each room is a th threshold floor. Yeah. And the Lord's kind of taken me on that journey. Of seeing rooms as threshing floors rather than stepping stones. When I see the room as a threshing floor, then I'm able to, one, see what the Lord wants to ring out of me and I'm able to see what he wants me to gain for whatever the next assignment is, but enjoying the assignment that I'm currently in rather than viewing the assignment as some ancillary thing that's meant to catapult me to something greater. So that's been something that the Lord has really instilled in me. On not just my musical journey, but spiritual disciplines as well. And for me, they, like I said earlier, they're not mutually exclusive. Right. And so, yeah, what I would tell my younger self is, and I'll preface this by this, because I didn't grow up playing in church, I didn't grow up playing B three. I didn't grow up playing like a lot of the shouts. I learned that stuff late, and I never felt like I was like a true gospel. Keys player, like I never really felt like I had the West, a like West Coast sound like the legends, like Jason White and Mike Burrell. I never felt like I had like the east coast vibe all the way down because it's very jazz heavy and very aggressive and I love it. And like how different regions of the US have these sounds. I never felt like I had that, like the quartet thing, I never felt like I was like authentically that because I, like, I wasn't born into that. And so I would feel like I wasn't as valuable in spaces when I'm next to people who have that insane facility. Yeah. And like guys that could play circles around me. Mm-hmm. And I'm in spaces and I would often feel like the weak link, like, oh well. I'm gonna play aux keys. So it's the secondary keys role. It's gonna get turned down in the mix anyway. So like, like I would always carry this kind of like self degradation. This like, like, like this low self-worth thing. Yeah. So what I would tell my younger self is this, your experiences will not take you down the same trajectory as people you will encounter, but they are deliberate. The experiences that I allow you to have will be a critical component in why I inhabit your sound. Wow. Trust my process. You're not late. You're not missing out. You are exactly who and what I designed you to be musically. I, I feel like we need to break away from the spirit of preference, if that makes sense. Um, you know, God is, is, is is all things. You know what I mean? He's, he's, I am. You know what I mean? He can do it all. And I feel. Like if we need to, and you may even hash in on this too. If we need to sound and look like Heaven, uh, then we should be able to present everything that Heaven is bringing as well, uh, in the same settings. So it's basically musical preferences. Lay it to the side basically, uh, and hear what the Lord is asking for. You know, we don't wanna just let, keep singing the same, you know, songs that are the top 50 Christian hits, uh, you know, the songs that, that, that. Certain people want to hear. Um, my wife says it best, you know, diversity is not just one color. Uh, diversity is, is different versions of of, of, of, of, um, ministries. Um, there can be, you know. A black arm, a white arm, yellow arm, you know what I mean? And they're all doing the exact same thing, you know what I mean? Uh, just because it's the different color doesn't mean that it serves a great purpose. You know, it has to be different parts of the body that works, that create the motion, uh, altogether. So I feel like that's a huge, uh, hot topic as of late, and I feel like, I feel like all means of worship is welcomed. Even when it comes to musicianship styles, uh, feels, approaches. You know what I mean? If, if, if a drummer has a little feel and whatnot and it makes you feel uncomfortable, uh, then. I feel like then we need to go back to the prayer room and figure out why, why is that, you know, making you frustrated musically? Um, I feel like just all kinds of styles of music is worship, you know what I mean? Is, is is honored and accepted, uh, to the king, you know? I feel like a area of division in the body of Christ. One of many. I think there are many different. Iterations of it, but it really stems down to idolatry. When you distill it to its elements of forms, idolatry in the body of Christ has caused the church specifically in the West to be more like the Roman Empire than the Acts two church where you're more concerned about political status and prestige and influence rather than carrying the fragrance of Christ and the fragrance of Christ, which is the knowledge of him is meant to. Permeate the world around us. It will be offensive to some, it will be attractive to others. But there's been a gross adulteration of the fragrance of Christ, I'll say in specifically the American church. And that's not saying that one church is more guilty of it than the other because the, when one part, part of the body is hurting, the whole body is hurting. Yeah. We can't other ourselves from the church. Mm-hmm. Like when one part of the church is engrossed and scandal and abuse and various things, then the whole church suffers. Yeah. Like. We can't separate ourself in a lot. We use the church unfortunately as these social cliques and social clubs and these elite hierarchies that honestly are more about propping ourselves up. Like in second Chronicles five when the glory of God inhabited the temple of, so that Solomon Bill, the priest couldn't even stand up because of the cloud. Um, the word that he uses for glory is a Hebrew word kabad, and it translates to weight, like the weight of God's glory was so tangible because there was a united atmosphere of consecration. They consecrated themselves without regards to their divisions, and there was a united acknowledgement of the Lord that he's good in his faithful of endorsed forever. So when that happened, the glory came and the priest couldn't even stand up to minister. We often try to take the weight of God's glory and use it as a pedestal to look down on other people, and that's been happening for too long in the church in the west. God will not be mocked. God will glorify himself, so we have to take his glory seriously. We have to take his presence seriously. And I think we approach the Lord too flippantly. He's the Lord. Yes. He's our Father. Yes. He's our friend. Yes, he's our counselor. Yes, he's the prince of peace, but we need to recognize the seat that he sits in. We need to recognize who we are in the presence of, and it should inform our thoughts, behaviors, and actions. And the mercy of God should inform our thoughts, behaviors, and actions. We present our bodies as living sacrifices. We don't try to facilitate worship, but live a double lifestyle off the platform. The overflow of our private intimacy with the Lord is broken open for people to see and people to taste that the Lord is good. They're able to see hard evidence of his goodness. They're able to see hard evidence of his kindness in us that leads people to repentance. We. Often have lost that in the West, and it's very easy to lose sight of that when we don't fix our eyes on Jesus. When we fix our eyes on a platform. Mm-hmm. When we fix our eyes on being more visible, when we fix our eyes on Spotify streams or CCLI charts or various things outside of Jesus being magnified. Yeah. How I approach my gear. I am personally, uh, a minimalist. Uh, I was once the kid who wanted, you know, the granular things but didn't know how to use it. So now I know I'm, me knowing me and my personality. I need something that's more focused. Concrete, you know, shout out to the adds. Um, something that I can lean in and be able to do things all in, in one setting. Uh, that's how personally my brain works. So I personally use like a Nord you know, you know, I see red and, and use it as, and we were laughing about this as a really good midi controller. Sorry guys. I love the Nord. Nord is great. Um, but the reason why I love the Nord is because it has great faders and knobs for Keyboarders. I personally use the Nord for all ccs and faders. Um, when I'm using Nord on is Ableton and all of my ccs are are in, you know, in Ableton and I, I. Connect everything in the Nord. Uh, now if my computer goes cuckoo and shuts down, then I can just plug the Nord right in and I can get a piano, you know what I mean? And call it a day. Um, I was talking with a good friend of mine, Luke Hendrickson, uh, he's at Bethel and he kind of, kind of broke this down for me, kind of help me out with it. Um, so yeah, so everything I have is, is. Straight on the board. Uh, I have different faders for different moments. You know, my main of course is the keys. Uh, on the left side though, I have, uh, uh, a setting to where it's only bass and it's like a synth bass you know, if there's moments, you know, the bass player wants, you know, quits or whatever, you know what I mean? I can jump in and kind of carry that moment. Um. So there's like, there's a stack layer, there's a piano layer. Uh, I have pads as well. So I have a me a Mellow and Bright Pads. Uh, kind of took this idea from Nick Staley. He has a really cool, uh, template that's really cool, and he has, uh, bright pads and mellow pads to where he is like low moments for mellow, bright pads for like high energy. Um, I have faded for that. And then I also have a top key section, uh, to where I can play all of my, um. Ear candy type effects and sounds that could help get the moment going, you know, kind of take it to the next level. Uh, so it's all on one keyboard bed, you know, main keys, low synth bass high ear candy things, uh, and it's all in faders and, you know, it kind of helps me, you know, lock in a little bit faster. So yeah, that's my settings. Love it. Now let's get to the fun stuff. I'm the opposite. I am, what is it? A maximalist? Yeah, Maxim. Is that the way to say it? Yeah. Quite literally. Marlon has one keyboard I have 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8. Yeah, I have eight boards. Eight. Eight. Yeah. That's kind of insane. But every last one of them has a purpose, though. It makes sense. So I like to have a, in the same way that Marlon has intentionally crafted within one keyboard, I will intentionally assign keyboards to control, let's call them universes or multiverses. Mm-hmm. If you will. Um, everything's a controller. So it, for me, it really, I'm not brand specific. They're brands that I like, but it's more I like them because of I, 'cause I like the way the keys feel. Mm-hmm. And I like the tactile interface, or I like the amount of physical real estate that is open on the keyboard for me to set a novation launch control or like a launch pad or some sort of other like master media control that I'm gonna use as a brain. So I'll typically travel with like a Novation launch Key 37 and a. Uh, launchpad XL and I'll have those be kind of my brains, my master control. I use a keytar. That I trigger my vocoder with. I have a synth palate that I keep assigned to that, and my wife is actually the one that got it from me when we were on staff at a church leading worship when we moved to Las Vegas. She got it so that I would not hide behind the piano while I'm leading worship. So it forced me outta my comfort zone. Mm. And now I love it. So I use it. Um, I have a sticker from our prayer room on it. So like it's, I love that thing. I take it with me everywhere. Um. Okay. One of my best friends and I worked on a PEDALBOARD project for about a year, so you can't see it, but there's a huge pedalboard that houses a Mac Studio. My vocoder pedal chain, my Apollo X four and a USB hub that's powered that has an eight USB cable loom connected to it. So as many USB cables as I can get to my computer is as many control surfaces as I can have, so. There's really no limit with the process, unless it's the processing power of the machine, the interface outputs, and just what I'm doing inside of the ableton session, which is a whole other conversation in and of itself. But yeah, that is incredible. I love, I love using controllers because I can just come in and serve. I, I have a rider, but I don't have to be rider specific. Mm-hmm. I can just say, what do you have, does USB work Cool. It's easy because more often than not, like I'll go to places and the back line is not necessarily like SIR or something like that. And so I don't want to have to be limited in my capacity to be able to serve the space that I'm coming into be hindered because I need a specific piece of gear. Yes. So software. That's good. And so I've been using software for a long time. Yeah, but, alright. I'm gonna say this. Nothing beats hardware, nothing. And this is coming from somebody that has used Omnisphere exclusively since 2012. Yeah. I have used plugins on everything that I have touched. Every tour, every session, like every live recording, everything that you have heard me on for the past, man. What's, how, how long? 13, 14 years now. I was gonna say 15. Is plugins, specifically Omnisphere? Yeah. And the Spectrasonics stuff. I love their stuff. Absolutely. Nothing beats hardware. The best software is an emulation of someone else's intelligent use of hardware. Yeah. Like this sub 37. You will not find anything that sounds like that. You won't find anything That sounds like a Moog Mm-hmm. Or actual Rhodes The Keyscape Rhodes is killing, but there's a actual Rhodes right there. And if you run the thing right there is nothing like it, like a piano. There's an actual C seven. There's an actual upright right behind us. You can have the best sample library, but there's something about the real thing, warmness. Now, software is convenient. Um, it gives you access. You can repeat things like, because a lot of those old boards, you can save anything. It's like you gotta build it right there. So if you treat software like hardware and put limitations on yourself with the software, then you can step into different levels of creativity. Because the thing about hardware is the limitations force you to be creative in a different way. Yeah. Software can almost feel like an endless rabbit hole. Mm-hmm. And you can end up in, what is it like, um, analysis paralysis. Yep. And so that you have to take the time to really. Grab the nuance of software and then like the synthesis laws, like the filters and all of that stuff. The oscillators, they do the same thing as software that they do in the hardware. So if you can get, if you can get a handle on how it functions in software, apply the same principles to hardware, and then you can use a Juno 60 or a profit six and use the internal sounds and, and, and then, and you'll be great. Yeah, sure, sure. I mean, okay, so you said the past projects Yes. Yeah. That I've worked on. So of course, you know, I was with Eddie, you know, in, in the Eddie era, you know, uh, I know we mentioned, we talked about, you know, my first big kind of project with Eddie was when he came out with the God album. And uh, I know a lot of the ramps know about that project. It was cool 'cause that was like my first big kind of like. Situation, you know, musical, like, you know, uh, uh, uh, uh, ordeal. He let me kind of like spearhead and Was it on one track? Someone said like, Hey, Marlon or something. Oh, okay. Wait, okay. The project before that. Okay. It's what started the wave? Uh, it was that, was it the track? Yes, the, Hey Marlon, are you ready? Yeah. Oh gosh. It like a loop that started and then you did something. Yes. And it was the You Are Jehovah Song, right? Oh, we were bored. Okay. In rehearsal. Shout out to my brother Richard Town. He was the drummer of Eddie James at that time. Richard Town. Your Overtown? Yeah, I traveled with Richard. Oh yes. Cold man. He coldblooded, you know what I, Richard's my guy, you know? Oh yeah. And, uh, he's, he's, he's amazing musician. Amazing musician. So we were in the, in the studio working on You Are Jehovah, and we were cooked. We were just, we were tired. You know, you know, you studio time, you're in the cave. And we thought it'd be go, Hey, what if we just say your name? Hey, raw. Are you ready? Because that's what he said when I was just playing and I said the exact thing. Yeah, I'm ready, you know? And we, he said, Hey, we should put that on the track. You know? So we did it, and now it haunts me for the rest of my life because now I have children come to me pulling my coat and say, Hey Marlon, are you ready? And their parents are back there like giggling and I'm like. Oh, why did we do this? So yeah, that kind of, that's where everybody kind of knew who I was at that moment. Kind of embarrassing, but you know, it is what it is. Love you man. So like, you know, doing that and then went into, you know, Eddie started to really lean on me on the musical side. Hey, I really want you to, you know, kind of jump in on this, you know, along with my brother Matt back, and we kind of co-produced that together. And Matt, he's amazing musician. I mean, just a savant. And we were doing the, uh, the God album. And that was kind of like my first kind of like, big thing as a musician, you know, to really like, you know. You know, he allowed me to like, really like, use my brain. Uh, you know, it was cool the first time 'cause like the first project was like with like Calvin Rogers and Dale Freeman. You know, that's kind of a scary first. It's, it's a scary situation as our first song, you know, using those two guys. So shout out to Calvin Rogers, shout out to Dale Freeman Ghost, you gotta save my life. And, uh, yeah, that kind of really like, you know, helped me like, you know. Uh, uh, um, do some really cool reps, you know, on what, you know, the Lord has given me in my production and different things like that, which led into other thing, you know, connecting with other, you know, cool people. You know, you got to jump in with, uh, uh, Maverick City. We did a lot of, a lot of project with Ma Maverick City. Uh, uh, they had me come in and play the Juneteenth project. Uh, we did the Kingdom Project with Kirk Franklin, and that was a fun one as well. Um. Yeah. Many other projects that we, we did on Christmas, of course we did the Christmas project with Maverick City. That was fun connecting with those guys and, you know, having, you know, Harold having my back during that, during that season. Uh, yeah. Did a few things. You know, I was with at Free Chapel, who for a while we did a cool project then, uh, with those guys and, you know, my brother Jonathan Etan and, you know, doing some great things with Bryce Kretz and those crew. And then, uh. Good friend of mine's, Kevin LaVar did a cool project with him. Kevin LaVar. Kevin's a gem man. He's a gem. That's my brother Kevin LaVar is amazing, amazing singer. Um, did some things with him, you know, had Teddy Campbell on the drums and yeah, he's, you know, goat goat. Uh, yeah. And then of course, you know, I finally got the link up with my brother here when we did Joel's project, and it was a dream come true. You know, that week was divine and he'll probably speak in more on that as well. Um, you know, shout out to Lizzie Morgan did, did a project with her not too long ago, and that, that, that project was a. Was beautiful. You know, when she's going into doing Alabaster Box and, you know, all that fun stuff. Uh, now we're here with, do you know, and doing some, some great stuff. Excited for the future people when y'all hear this project, because I'm, I'm gonna leave it right there. I'm gonna leave it right there. That's amazing. It is awesome. So, yeah, have fun. I, I have a really great friendship with Multi-Tracks. Been able to partner with them over the years, so I have some. Sound packs for atmosphere that are available. There some ambient pads that I have on there that have crafted and more of those are coming down the pipeline as well. Just really excited about how they service and resource to local church. So I've really been able to dive into that. I've had the privilege of being on just a lot of different projects. Um, some of the more recent ones being like Joel l Barnes, good Shepherd, which was just a masterful experience, just the way he personally walks with the Lord and how just the revelation of Jesus, it really oozes out of him creatively, like it pours through him and just being around someone like that, a brother like that who sees the Lord that way, like you can't help but just like. Exude creativity. Yeah. So it's, it was such a joy to be part of that project. Um, lots of collaborations with Israel. I got to be a part of the Ritos record, the over dubs, the one that, and, and it won a Grammy. Yeah. So congratulations, by the way. Yeah. Yes. So, so I, I was a part of the Alive and Asia record that won a Grammy, so that was cool. I'm really happy. That's a. Like Cool is an understatement. Let me say that's a iconic moment because of what those songs mean to an entire community of believers, man. So that is a huge stake in the ground. So it's something worth celebrating. And so, so grateful to Israel, so grateful to Aaron, Lindsay that open so many doors for me. Um, long time collaborator, both my wife and I with Matt Redmond. Um, over the years, I've done like five records with him. Um, this last record that he did, I'm on five of the songs as a rider, and so I've been writing, uh, a lot in this season, both my wife and I. So that's been really incredible. Just involved in different things and for us, really the biggest thing is just our ministry in Vegas. Like I said earlier, we're getting ready to launch a discipleship school in the fall. Uh, school of Worship and creative evangelism. And so that's been like the biggest thing. So, um, you can follow our ministry on Waterway Ministries on Instagram. So it's at WT RWAY Ministries. So like, I have my personal stuff and like that's good and there's some other creative things that I'm looking to roll out. But for me, the biggest things are just the investment that the Lord is. Making and pulling out of the city that my wife and I are assigned to in this season. So, oh. So also, you know, working with, uh, I'm very excited about this. Finally get to work with my wife for the first time and, and, and finally put out a record for her. Yeah. Uh, I'm very excited for what she has to bring. And my wife, she's a worshiper at heart. Uh, all day. And she's coming out with a very cool album that's going to be, uh, more of a songrider, but it's going to be, uh, a ministry as well, heavy ministry, uh, to people who's been hurt, you know, uh, people who's, uh, dealt with disappointment, uh, in life and, you know, just speaking to their heart and saying, you know, you're gonna make it, you're gonna be okay. 'cause she's a witness herself. Of, of, of failures at things that happened in her life that, that, you know, hurt her and, you know,