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Michael W. Smith music biography continued...

committed Christian at age 10 and throughout his public school years hung out with groups of musicians who were also believers and liked to express their love for Christianity in song. In college, Smith got involved with the wrong crowd and took to abusing drugs and alcohol. He only cleaned up his act and recommitted to Christ after moving to Nashville and scoring the opportunity to play keyboards for the CCM group Higher Ground. After being a gospel songwriter for several years, Smith finally got a chance to shine with his first solo album, 1982's The Michael W. Smith Project. The debut album garnered him a Grammy nomination for Best Gospel Performance. Smith became a headliner following the release of his second album, Michael W. Smith 2. Afterwards, he changed musical directions and began recording more rock-oriented music in order to reach a younger audience. Although fans of his Christian music called him a sell-out, Smith maintained he was just trying to spread the Lord's word to a broader audience.
In 1990, Smith released Go West Young Man, which was his first mainstream effort, including the mainstream crossover hit "Place in This World." That album was followed by 1992s Change Your World (which included the #1 adult contemporary hit "I Will Be Here For You"), 1995s I'll Lead You Home, and 1998s Live the Life. Smith has continued his musical reign in both Christian and secular markets into the new millennium, recording Freedom, his first instrumental album, as well as three live concert albums. All in all, Smith has garnered three Grammy Awards and 34 Dove Awards. Over the course of his 24-year career, he has sold more than 13 million albums and he has recorded 29 number-one hit songs, fourteen gold albums, and five platinum albums. Smith is an American Music Award recipient and he was named one of People magazine's most beautiful people. Regardless of his looks, Smith's musical talent stands even today as a beacon to those who are spiritually-minded.