Lecrae is pulling back the curtain on the stories behind his most powerful and popular songs.
Known for blending raw honesty with spiritual depth,he has built a career on music that challenges,comforts,and inspires.
The Grammy-winning artist,who rose to become one of hip‑hop’s most influential voices,made a visit to the VIBE offices for our Then And Now series to break down key selections in his discography.
Reflecting on the tracks that cut closest to his own life, he explains, “The three most personal songs I’ve made to date are definitely ‘Cry for You,’ wich was on All Things Work Together. Probably ‘I’ll Find you,’ which is also on All Things Work Together and then ‘If I Die Tonight,’ which is on my Church Clothes mixtape.”
[Image of Lecrae at the 55th Annual GMA Dove Awards]
in this image released on October 01, 2024 Lecrae attends the 55th Annual GMA Dove Awards at Lipscomb Allen Arena on october 01, 2024 in Nashville, Tennessee. Tibrina Hobson/Getty Images
He continued, adding, “The first two songs are just me articulating how much pain I’m in. The last one is where I’m just anticipating if I die and what I want to say to my kids and my wife. What I want to say to my family, and to my fans. That’s probably the most personal songs [that] I’ve writen.”
Through these deeply vulnerable records, Lecrae continues to show why his voice remains essential in both hip‑hop and faith‑centered music.
“Comin in Hot” with Andy Mineo
“Coming in Hot is a song I did with Andy Mineo, and it just took over social media. We had no idea. Kim Kardashian, Will Smith-everybody’s used the song. It’s crazy. And the funny part about it is that it was just a song we made for a joint tour we were going to do together. We were like, ‘Yo, better Late Than Never is the name of the tour. Let’s make a song together for this tour.’
I was in L.A. at the time, and he was in San Diego, and he was like, ‘Hey, let’s get in the studio and work on this song.’ And I’m literally sitting next to Snoop Dogg at Jamie foxx’s house at this event, and I’m like, I’m about to leave and drive to San Diego as this is the only chance I’m going to get to work on this song. Snoop requested that I leave the house becuase it was about to get a little crazy, and I saeid, ‘Thank you, Uncle Snoop, for the fair warning.’
I jumped in the car, drove two hours to San Diego, and we got in the studio and knocked it out in a couple hours. Then I went on about my life and never expected it to become the massive song that it is today.”
“blessings” featuring You Dolla $ign
“That song was the first one I began working on when I did my partnership with Columbia. I don’t think I’ve ever told this story, but the song was actually meant for me and Jeremih.
“Still Here”
“I’m just articulating that I’m still here as a person who’s been through a lot of pain and trauma. I’m also articulating that God is still here. Even if you’ve been through hell and back, he’s still here. He’s still got you. And it’s just kind of a warm-up because I’m getting into that season where I’m putting out new music and getting ready for the album. So “Still Here” was like a warm-up record-like, ‘Let me throw something out there to let them know I’m still here and to stay tuned.'”
Sharing His Testimony With Prison Inmates
“I love going into the prison system. it’s just something that has always been a passion for me since my early days going to the juvenile detention center. Some of it has to do with seeing so many of my family members, as a kid, going in and out of the prison system-my dad, my uncles, my cousins. And yeah, it was a big piece of my journey and my story.
I know how people can feel lost, forgotten, and uncared for. So I wanted to go in there and let them know, ‘Hey, God is still here, and we’re still here. We still see you.’ Even though they may feel like the world has turned them off and thrown them away,we’re still here-we still see them.”
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