Lee Streby sat down to answer a few questions about his new original song, Preaching To The Choir (POM2602DD), which was released on Friday, February 27, 2028.
Q: What inspired you to write "Preaching To The Choir" and what is it about?
A: This song is dedicated to a certain famous artist known throughout the world as Amy Grant, the ‘Queen of Christian Pop,’ some label her. She's just the Queen to me, my pop diva of divas. Everyone who knows me personally pretty much knows that I'm an extremely avid fan of Amy and her music and always have been. As the song opens with the line "I first heard her voice when I was seventeen," that's not exactly true, I was only twelve when my older sister gave me a bootleg tape of "My Faher's Eyes" in 1979. One listen and I absolutely fell in love with her music. Understand, though, I was raised in a strict, non-denominational, evangelical fundamentalist "hippie church" that my mom had joined in the late 70’s. We were absolutely forbidden from listening to secular music or watching television, going to movies, and Amy's first few albums had about as much "beat" to them as my mom would allow in the house. And in fact, when her next project came out, "Never Alone" in 1979, it was immediately ruled way too secular in musical style for my ears. I did not own that album for many years, but when "Age to Age" was released in 1982, the big singles were "El Shaddai" and "Sing Your Praise To the Lord" and both of those were stamped acceptable, and so I was able to buy that LP and I knew that some of the songs on there were were still pushing that rock envelope so I would skip over them when mom was around! By the time Amy got her first crossover deal with A&M in 1985 with "Unguarded," I bought the cassette version because I knew I had to hide it! But I was already a master at hiding. Because I already knew by 1985 that I was... drum roll... gay.
Q. How has your connection to her music remained all these years later? How did that lead to your song?
A. This year is 50 years since Amy Grant signed her first record deal. All these years, I've stayed deeply connected to her music. I know I've been one of the long-time, sincerely and deeply loyal fans. I know that Amy does not accept gifts from fans, but after Amy’s recent health scares, about 2023– I started working more on songwriting, and exploring this wild AI technology, I started thinking about how to say thank you to Amy after all these years of songs attached to so many of my life’s moments. I thought what better way to express my gratitude than with a little song. Also, as I am childless, I am starting to think about my legacy, what I may leave behind as evidence I lived, you know? I started writing the lyrics and playing around with melodies. I finished the song in 2024 and I had fed the lyrics and melody into AI and had basically a demo track, not great quality but very stripped down coffee house vibe. A guitar, cajon, bass, and very Jason Mraz sounding. I live in Fort Lauderdale and Amy came to town for a concert that year. I had dinner with some fellow fans and I played it for one of them, Amy Colonna-Robinson, also has written some music. She looked at me and said this is really good but I think the Chorus needs to say ‘You. You turned my life into a song.’ I had written ‘she turned…’ but Amy said, ‘If this is your tribute to her, tell her directly in the chorus. The rest can be your speech to the audience introducing that message in the chorus.” She was right. I put the song away for a long time. I did talk to a couple friends about helping me record it live in my living room with my uke and all—still might do that, but the plans weren’t coming together. By late 2025, I decided to put together my AI holiday album, my country songs under Ronnie Lee Robbins were getting a little buzz. Amy announced a return to The Parker for Feb. 24, 2026. I took that as a sign to share the song by that day.
Q. Did you get to share it with Amy?
A. Well, yes and no. I released it on YouTube on Monday, the day before the show. I was going to write a card and include a short link to the video and give her the card, or hand it to someone to get it to her. But my dear Mom had gone into the hospital just a few days earlier, by Monday I knew I had to fly up to Indiana to see her and help out my dad and brother. She’s back home on the mend, but I had to miss the show. There was no soundcheck at that show either, so giving her a card would have been hard directly. So all my grand release plan fell apart. However, I released it on streaming platforms Friday, the 27th, because it’s my song and it is dedicated to her, I trust she will hear it and I just hope it makes her smile. I also hope the audience who hears it will relate to the message of what it feels like to be a lifelong fan of a musician. Anyone. To be a fan from childhood to my senior years, that is real connection to the fan and I’m sure the artist gets that. I know that Amy probably has that connection to songwriters over her lifetime. But it is sacred and special. I wanted the song to be relatable to anyone, and so I don’t name the artist in the lyrics. The closest I get is in the first verse, I name one of her albums in the line ‘Age to age, year after year.’ Couldn’t resist.
Q. You refer to the artist in the song as the soundtrack to your life, which is very relatable, but what does that mean to you? How so?
A. Two examples I mention are in the pre-chorus on verse two. ‘One song got me on my feet as a dancer,’ well the first live concert I attended was in 1986 in Fort Wayne, IN near where I grew up. It was the Unguarded tour. And Amy and band, along with Rich Mullins, just rocked the house. Everyone was on their feet and dancing like crazy along with Amy herself. I was so sheltered but I was gay, almost done with high school, it was the era of MTV everywhere. I learned to dance a little by watching videos. But that night, I was on my feet dancing for two hours straight practically. That was my first ever live concert. I went by myself, and in rebellion to my mother. I told her I was going and nothing would stop me, that I would run away like my sister had. I was dead serious. It changed everything, that night I saw all these good Christian kids having fun, dancing. The other line is “helped me cry when my sister got cancer.” My dear older sis, Traci, fought triple negative breast cancer twice, hard, valiantly, and far outlasted physicians’ expectations. But the second time around, it was more aggressive. In Octobet of 2014, Amy put out a song called ‘Welcome Yourself,” to shine a light on breast cancer awareness month. Amy was on TV, choking back tears, and soon as I heard it, it certainly made me start tearing up and by the second spin, I found myself sobbing. I hadn’t really cried yet over Traci’s diagnosis because she was still alive — I was believing in a miracle inside, but we knew her fight was likely ending soon. That Christmas, I spent it in Texas with sis and family. She passed in February, 2015. I did get to briefly meet Amy at the next fan weekend I attended in Nashville. And I thanked her for it. She gave me a hug, we had our picture snapped. It meant a lot to tell Amy thank you in person. But the bigger picture is that those moments when a song connected to particular things in my life were so numerous. I tell people ‘it’s like she reads my freaking disry.’ It’s uncanny how her songs connected to pivotal moments in my life - at just the right time. The year I moved from home to Georgia was the year that Lead Me On was released. I remember driving over the Ohio River into Louisville, and my little Ford Escort blew a tire right over the water on that rickety sounding steel bridge. But my stereo was blaring ‘All Right… get down on my knees… tell me that it’s all right… whatever comes.’ I am on my knees on the side of this bridge, barely any room. Trucks flying by shaking the car on it’s hitch. My car was stuffed to the gills with my belongings, now unloaded behind the car, to get to the spare and change the tire. I could go on and on. On and On! Watch your feet, I dropped an Amy Grant song title right there.
Q. How has the reaction been since releasing the song?
A. Honest, I don’t really know. It’s probably better that way, too. I know a few friends that heard it early on in demo form loved it. My co-writer loved it. My mom said it’s good. She counts the most to me, for whatever reason. And look, I know I waded deep into the AI pool, but my heart told me it’s right for me to do this. I finally took a huge artistic risk in life and it wasn’t too late. Ya know, classical folks rarely take risks, period. I am almost 60, I don’t have a music career anymore, though I am a well trained musician in classical violin. But I love songs and song writing so much. I don’t have money, connections, or children to remember me when I’m gone for very long. Here comes this tech magic wand and I can’t help it. I am like Glinda with the wand just swingin’ out these full musical miracles and knowing I wrote that? It’s just too much for me to resist. I know that using AI is frightening to a lot of people. But guess what? I know a lot of professional musicians that are right with me here, they’re like kids in a candy store, too. I labeled it “the great equalizer” and I’m pretty upset that the major labels are buying it up to control it’s impact rather than fight it in court battles, because they know it’s here and not going away. The commercial music world is being disrupted again. And there’s a lot of power and influence behind that hatred.
But I’ve lived through the beginning of the Internet era and I’ve seen what it’s done to music already, and it is already tragic enough what streaming has done. The industry is horribly damaged from digitization in the first place. I’ve also studied the arguments about generative AI tech, and I’ve got my own opinions. I’m not gonna argue them here. Personally, I don’t have the marketing budget, or the influence, or the inclination even to push my songs beyond some momentary social media promos. Ronnie Lee Robbins and Lee Streby’s Amazing & Imaginary Band are never going to perform live at $300 per ticket, ok? Relax. This is a creative outlet hobby for me. I’m not looking for a Grammy award or getting rich. I’m thrilled at any positive feedback I get, I see that my songs are heard around the world and that amazes me, it makes me smile. That’s enough. I read negative comments now and then but I don’t take it to heart. I do not care. Music is so subjective and personal to people! I know I wrote a couple good songs, to my own trained ears, and I wanted people to hear them, end of story. That’s just how it is. People can hate it or love it. It will be ok. Stop following me, unfriend me, block me if I offend thee that much. But just entirely ignoring it has hurt the most.
What I don’t understand are the people who know me, they claim to be my family and friends but have completely ignored this work, this aspect of who I am. They don’t block me or ignore me otherwise. The silence from family and closer friends, that’s been a little tough. I would never unfriend someone for something they’ve done I didn’t care for and I would probably encourage it — just to lift them up. It’s only a song. I can hate it and tell them something kind and honest to let them just do their thing!
If people hate it musically? Well like Mark Morris would say about his beautiful dances, “well it’s just one dance (or song)! It will end soon.” Just turn it off. If they hate it just because it’s AI technology, that’s not my engine in the car I chose to design. To me, that’s like telling da Vinci you hate the brushes but love the paintings. The song is part of who I am. The tech is a tool, it just made the song sound better than my own resources would have allowed. Using a tool I did not invent doesn’t make me the most awful person in the world. Especially to people who know me better. I have paid for every license for every tool I’ve used, with all rights to my outputs.
If nothing else, I hope people laugh or scream, have some reaction! I think laughter is great medicine. And it begins with a smile. I know Amy will hear this song at some point — but she and I have already connected through her music for over 50 years. That’s why I said she’s just preaching to the choir every time I hear her. Others may not see the genius, I always do. I love it still. I hope it just makes her smile. I don’t need anything back. I did this for her, because she’s done enough for me. End of story.
Q. What’s next for Lee Streby’s Amazing & Imaginary Band? Or for Ronnie Lee or Predicament Omnimedia? Anything else coming?
A. People should breathe a sigh of relief if they’re all upset about my song writing era. The productions are a work of fiction, the lyrics and melodies are really 100% me. But “Preaching” is the last song I had to release for my ‘band’, at least for a while. I have been working on parts of a memoir project for a long time. Despite my passion for music and all the varied things I’ve done, whether through the Afinat Records label or directing operas, or even having pandemic fun strumming and playing uke in my living room, I am a writer probably beneath everything. I’ve had a fascinating life so far and I’ve got some stories to tell and leave behind. So I’m gonna focus on some real, non-fictional writing for a while. However, I have a couple fun country tunes a-brwein’ for Ronnie Lee Robbins. Stay tuned, y’all.
For information, contact:
lee@ukulelee.com
Written by R. Lee Streby & Amy Colonna-Robinson
© 2024 Murphenator Music, Ltd., Bitey Face Records (ASCAP)
Recording © 2026 Predicament Omnimedia Music, an Afinat LLC company.
All rights reserved. Used by permission
* DISCLAIMER: The audio and visual elements of this recording were created partially using AI technology as tools. This single utilizes 100% human written lyrics and a core melody. The visual and vocal performance personas of the artist were generated by AI from images and voice print training models originating from the creators, and parts of the studio recording were created by both generative AI and human performance elements, including tracking, mixing, and mastering tools. Lee Streby is the sole human creator, songwriter, and producer. “Steven Streby" is a purely fictional character, created by the author(s), and presented to consumers in this project and others entirely for entertainment purposes. The artist’s likeness, sound, photography, lyrics, melody, arrangements, and other creative elements are protected by US trademark and copyright protections to the extent allowed by current law, and belong exclusively to Afinat LLC and/or the individual creators whose work was used with permission, with all rights reserved.