Making your first album can be pretty tough. But just how tough?
"Oh, it was so-o-o-o-o emotionally draining!" says Jaci Velasquez, one of Christian music's newest and youngest solo artists. "There were times I'd just cry! It was very stressful."
And how has this 16-year-old singer dealt with all the stress?
"Well, I started taking karate lessons," says Jaci (pronounced Jackie). Then she adds with a laugh, "Kicking and punching other people is a great stress reliever!"
The end result of all the hard work, and of all that stress, is Heavenly Place (Myrhh), a collection of ear-pleasing pop tunes showcasing Jaci's passionate and mature vocals.
Although most of the music is penned by experienced songwriters, Jaci did co-write one song.
"A friend and I wrote 'I Promise,'" says Jaci. "It's about abstinence. The chorus goes, So I promise to be true to You/To live my life in purity/As unto You/Waiting for the day/When I hear You say/Here is the one I have created/Just for you.
"Sex is a sacred thing and shouldn't be taken lightly," continues Jaci. "I really want to share this message with other teens. I hope it can encourage them to save themselves for marriage."
In talking about the overall direction of the album, Jaci says, "I just want the music to communicate my faith and my hope in Christ."
"Communicating faith" has pretty much been a way of life for Jaci. When she was 10 years old, she and her parents packed up the family car and began a "music ministry" in churches around her home state of Texas and other Southwestern states. The bilingual Velasquez family sang to both Spanish and English-speaking congregations.
"We lived off tape sales and love offerings," says Jaci, who's been home-schooled since the early days of her family's music ministry. "Sometimes things were really hard. Money didn't always come easily. But we survived, and we've been able to reach a lot of people with the gospel. I learned an awful lot about faith and trust."
Jaci, who now lives in Nashville with her family, got her break in Christian music a couple of years ago.
"Point of Grace was singing at this big church in Houston, and I was asked to sing for them," says Jaci. "So I showed up in my jeans and T-shirt, planning to sing for Point of Grace. I was asked why I wasn't dressed up, and I said I didn't think I needed to, since I'd just be singing for Point of Grace.
"Then I was told I would be opening for Point of Grace, and I needed to get dressed up. I was shocked!"
So Jaci changed clothes and opened for POG. She also got the attention of POG's management and soon landed a recording contract with Myrrh Records. Since then, she's not only completed her album; she's also toured with 4Him.
While Jaci enjoys all of the new challenges, she wouldn't mind it if her life slowed down just a little bit.
"Don't get me wrong," says Jaci, "I really like what I'm doing, but I'm dying to spend time at a mall with some friends!"
Or some time at home with a few really old friends.
"I could spend the whole day watching old movies, especially ones starring people like Audrey Hepburn, George Peppard and Clark Gable," says Jaci. "I'd just like to grab a package of fat-free Fig Newtons and a class of milk, plop down in front of the TV and watch movies all day long."
