NEEDTOBREATHE is back after four years with the single, “Who Am I,” from the band’s forthcoming seventh studio album, Out of Body.
Harmonizing vocals mix with piano, guitar and drums in this rousing alt-rock, Gospel-tinged song, with frontman Bear Rinehart taking listeners on a soul-led journey. It’s a journey that recognizes the tie between human imperfection and the beauty of God’s unconditional love.
This track gets right to the heart of a man who is vulnerably pouring out his innermost thoughts: “White lights and desperation/Hard times and conversations/No one should ever love me like You do.”
He wrestles with the idea that he could be loved, even after he has made mistakes (“Sometimes my bad decisions/Define my false suspicions”) and battled with self-hate (“My wounds and my past was saying/No one should ever love me like You do”).
But, he remembers, that’s the beauty of unconditional love: It accepts you and holds you no matter how undeserving you may feel: “Somehow you really love who I really am/I push You away, still You won’t let go/You grow your roses on my barren soul.”
NEEDTOBREATHE cuts to the heart of the matter with depth and resonance in this latest track. Focusing on God’s incomprehensible love, listeners hear that they will never be abandoned, nor do they have to strive to earn the love of God. They simply have to embrace and receive it—though Rinehart admits even that can be a challenge.
“Probably the biggest and most constant struggle I have in my life is being able to accept love. At some place in my core, it’s hard for me to believe that I’m ever worthy of it, or somehow deserve it,” Bear Rinehart told Jesus Freak Hideout. “‘Who Am I’ is a song about the fight to accept, embrace and trust that the greatest love requires nothing in return.”
Kristin Smith joined the Plugged In team in 2017. Formerly a Spanish and English teacher, Kristin loves reading literature and eating authentic Mexican tacos. She and her husband, Eddy, love raising their children Judah and Selah. Kristin also has a deep affection for coffee, music, her dog (Cali) and cat (Aslan).
