Imagine what it felt like to be a child at the gathering on the Mount of the Beatitudes to hear Jesus’ famed Sermon on the Mount. While the older folks might have been more concerned with his teachings and the implications they had for the Jewish faith, the children had no such worries, instead joyfully basking in his sacred presence.
This is exactly the feeling that we got from Terrain’s recent release, “Matthew 5,” which was inspired by the biblical passage. The song radiates the joy that this singer finds in her faith, with a bouncing rhythm and a carefree melody that creates an all around relaxing atmosphere. It’s made all the better by Terrain’s fun new music video, in which she seems like she’s having an absolute ball.
Terrain references the scriptures many times throughout the song, but only a few times overtly with “Blessed are the poor in spirit” taking center stage after the first verse. Others, however, are subtly changed to fit into the hip-hop lingo. For example “Blessed are the peacemakers” became, “Make peace, be salt, put ya eyes up.”
In true hip-hop fashion, Terrain brought on Christian rapper Anike for a verse in which she laid down lyrics about how she was saved by Jesus Christ. It was refreshing to hear a young singer broadly proclaiming her faith, encouraging humility, and speaking of the confidence that comes from feeling secure in your savior. When the pair are on screen together, their joy in their faith is down right magnetic.
One of the things we loved so much about this song is that Terrain included a dance, for which the tail end of the song directs the listener. We’ve been covering Christian and Catholic musicians for almost a decade now and this is the first time we’ve ever seen an artist do this. Millennials, especially those who recall the “cha-cha slide” that was played at every school dance, will appreciate this fun and wholesome throwback.
Terrain was even kind enough to upload a video of just the dance, so that all her fans can learn it and dance along.
Hear more of Terrain’s joyful music at Spotify, Apple Music, or your preferred streaming service. Be sure to follow her on YouTube to keep up with all her releases.
And today we celebrate...