Christon Gray's 'The Glory Album': A mix of sounds, emotions, current issues

Christian singer-songwriter Christon Gray has released his second solo album titled "The Glory Album." A mix of contemporary Christian music, R&B and hip hop, he explained that it fits more in the mainstream market than in any other genre.

"I've always been interested to go the mainstream route simply because the messages that I present I felt would be more accepted, or at least not as taboo in the mainstream market," he said in an interview with The Christian Post. "It's not that I wanted the applause from a mainstream market, it's just that sonically it doesn't fit into gospel, contemporary Christian music or even a Christian hip-hop demographic."

The album is under the Fo Yo Soul Recordings/RCA label of Kirk Franklin, the multi-Grammy award-winning contemporary Christian musician and record producer. Gray said that Franklin is "known for going against the grain," something that let him see that he does not have to limited to one type of music.

"There's definitely a wide range of emotional things that I'm looking to accomplish spiritually as well as musically," Gray said.

It is not only the sound that is diverse, however, as the album also tackles different issues, including racism and faith, among others. The 29-year-old singer, married with one daughter, also tackles marital issues as he also finds that finding the right balance between being a father, a husband and an artist. For him, this balance can only be "achieved through the grace of God."

Composed of 13 tracks, "The Glory Album" features the carrier song "Open Door (See You Later)," along with "The Glory Part I" and "No. 51 (The Glory Part II)," "Stop Me," "Ft. Knox," "Afraid With You," " 50 Shades," "Connor McDees," "My Love Is Real," "Nowhere, ""Blackmail (Black Male) Interlude" and "Blackmail (Black Male)," and "Follow You."

"The Glory Album" is available in stores such as iTunes and Amazon.