IN CONVERSATION: Jason Crabb and Jay DeMarcus

The first time Jason Crabb stepped into a vocal booth with Jay DeMarcus at the production helm, he was nervous. He had just won “Male Vocalist of the Year” at the GMA Dove Awards, but that day, he felt like a timid rookie.

“When we got in the room—it was so funny—I’ll never forget this. I was a nervous wreck,” he remembers. “I walk in the studio, there’s stuff everywhere. I mean, every kind of award you can imagine, millions of records sold. Just pictures of him on every late night show, playing the Super Bowl, crazy stuff. And I’m in there going, ‘I’m from Beaver Dam, Kentucky. How did I even get in this room?’”

Crabb has come a long way from his Kentucky roots. He sang with his talented Southern Gospel family for decades before jumpstarting a solo career that has seen him effortlessly blur genre lines. In truth, Crabb’s voice is one that knows no bounds.

“There’s very few singers put on this planet who have that kind of touch on them to where they’re just extraordinary. And he certainly is an extraordinary singer,” DeMarcus observes of Crabb. “I put my cousin, Gary LeVox, in that very same category. Michael English, Jason Crabb, Gary LeVox—those folks have the natural ability to hold people in the palm of their hands with their voice and keep them on the edge of their seat to see what they’re going to do next, and Jason is certainly one of those guys.”

More than his anointed vocal range, DeMarcus—who signed Crabb to his own Red Street Records in early 2020—is even more in awe of Crabb’s character, something he recognized the moment he met the burgeoning singer back in the mid-’90s. Following a stint in Christian duo East to West, DeMarcus played in the backing band for Christian vocalist Michael English. (This was all before he went on to become part of country supergroup Rascal Flatts.) When The Crabb Family booked a run of shows with English, Crabb and DeMarcus forged an immediate friendship.

“What struck me most was how outgoing he was and how easy he was to talk to. I remember immediately going, ‘Wow, he’s got one of those magnetic personalities that you’re just sort of drawn to,’” DeMarcus recalls. “You can’t really teach somebody how to be that way. You can’t really manufacture that—you either have that naturally, or you don’t.”

Anyone who’s been in Crabb’s presence for even five minutes knows exactly what he’s talking about. The singer is one of the most genuine, congenial personalities in the business. And his larger-than-life disposition and even bigger heart are a perfect fit for Red Street Records, whose immediate goal is to execute their artists’ visions. When they first met, DeMarcus might not have been able to predict he’d go on to sign Crabb to a deal. At the time, he simply knew he wanted to be around him.

“I just wanted to be a part of what he was doing any way I could,” DeMarcus says, “whether that was as his label, songwriting collaborator or producer; I wanted to be in the Jason Crabb business.”

Crabb shares a roster with a diverse group of faith-focused creatives that include award-winning vocal group Avalon and new pop singer Cade Thompson, among other newly-minted acts. With DeMarcus leading the charge, Crabb believes the young label is well on its way to becoming a force in the Christian music industry. DeMarcus might be the CEO of the indie label, but he brings a different perspective to the position than most corporate suits after touring for more than two decades with one of the most successful vocal groups in country music.

“I think we are very blessed to have Jay in the CCM world. He’s not scared to go after some things that a lot of people would go, ‘Ah, let’s just wait and see how things work,’” Crabb says, referencing Red Street’s bold move to put his face on the hood of a NASCAR vehicle earlier this year promoting his EP, Just As I Am. “If he believes in it, he’s all in. It isn’t like, ‘Hey, let’s go out here and try this.’ He goes, ‘Let’s go out here and win this ballgame.’ I’m telling you, you just wait. Five years from now, people are going to be knocking the doors down. I’m glad I was there first.”

Crabb might have been the third artist to sign with Red Street Records, but his professional relationship with DeMarcus dates back years. In fact, the pair even won a GRAMMY® together in 2018 when DeMarcus produced Crabb’s acclaimed studio project, Unexpected.

Their latest collaboration is Crabb’s holiday EP, Home for Christmas. The three-song set previews a full-length seasonal record expected from the multi-Dove Award winner in 2022—a classically-produced project the singer calls the record of his dreams. Yet, it’s a bittersweet topic of conversation for both men as the collection also marks Tim Akers’ final work following his battle with leukemia. Akers, who has scored music for Disney and artists like Faith Hill, Amy Grant, Idina Menzel, Reba and Glen Campbell, was working on arrangements for Home for Christmas from his bed in the ICU up until his death.

“I mean, this guy is the real deal. He’s a friend, and we really connected,” Crabb shares of Akers. “We were starting to talk this thing out, and we were really working it into something special. He put his mark on it.”

After Akers passed, DeMarcus and a host of local studio aces stepped up to finish the songs and honor their friend. “The musicians in Nashville—I can’t say enough about them,” says Crabb. “They said, ‘We want to come together and finish what Tim started.’ And so my hat’s off to all of the Nashville musicians. I’m thankful we got to honor Tim in this.”

DeMarcus was humbled to fill Akers’ production shoes. “Tim and I have been dear friends for, gosh, 25 years. We go way, way back to our CCM days together, and he played on the road with the Flatts for about seven-and-a-half years,” he shares. “So I lost a really, really dear friend and a wonderful music collaborator.”

It was actually Crabb’s wife who affirmed that DeMarcus was the best person to fill the void Akers left. “She said, ‘You don’t need to let anybody produce your vocals except him. He’s the best for you,’” Crabb recalls of her advice.

Her observation seems accurate. It appears DeMarcus has always brought out the best in Crabb, who circles back to their first studio session together when his nerves started showing up.

“I remember Jay said, ‘Hey, what was that award you won this year at the Dove Awards?’ I said, ‘Well, I think, Male Vocalist of the Year.’ And he goes, ‘How about trying to sound like it in there?’” Crabb howls. “It broke the ice, and at that point, honestly, it lightened everything up. We’ve been dear friends ever since.”