From the Kitchen Table: The Duffys - The Trials And Tribulations Of A Gospel Music Star

Episode Date: April 28, 2023

Sean and Rachel dive into the world of worship music with Gospel Music Singer Dante Bowe. Together, they discuss his childhood, his career in music from the Grammy's to the Gospel Music Awards, and how he manages fame and faith.   Later, they discuss Dante's departure from Maverick City Music, and why he believes that criticism is important in shaping our lives.    Follow Sean and Rachel on Twitter: @SeanDuffyWI & @RCamposDuffy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

At New Balance, we believe if you run, you're a runner. However you choose to do it. Because when you're not worried about doing things the right way, you're free to discover your way. And that's what running's all about. Run your way at NewBalance.com slash running. Hey, everyone. Welcome to From the Kitchen Table. I'm Sean Duffy along with my co-host for the podcast, my partner in life and my wife, Rachel Campos Duffy. We're back in our kitchen at the kitchen table.

And boy, we're bringing the Fox weekend show, the Fox and Friends weekend show to the kitchen table. Because a few weeks ago we had Dante Bo on and, did he bring down the house at our show, at the end of the show. It was like we had church in Fox Studios, and he was amazing. And he has an amazing backstory as well, Sean. So I thought, we've got to bring him back. We want to talk to him about his life, his career.

Dante Bo is a Grammy award-winning and multi-platinum singer-songwriter-performer, and he's based out of Dallas, Texas. And we are so happy to have you at the kitchen table, Dante. Thanks for joining us. Hey, guys. Thanks for having me. It's an honor. I'm excited. Of course. You know, you just killed it at Fox and Friends. I can't even tell you, like, we're still talking about that performance. Thank you. And I'm not generally, I listen to some gospel music, but not a lot of it. Some Christian music, but I'm not steeped in it. And this series that we're having, Fox and Faith, where we're featuring someone in the Christian realm, I've become a fan.

Like, I am a huge fan of you and of the genre. And I heard that your song blew up after. I mean, maybe, yeah, I guess. You know, I don't really check numbers and stuff like that, but I'm sure it did a lot better after I did the show. Yeah, we were kind of following that. So Dante, and for me too, I sit home on Saturday and Sunday and I watch Rachel with, we have nine kids and not all of them are home, but we're watching the show and I'm flipping in

and out and you came on. And again, I will dabble with the Christian music, gospel music, but I was struck, man. I stopped, sat down and again again, amazing, your voice and songs. So, yeah, Noah, when you perform, what kind of – is it stadiums? Is it concert halls? Is it church? Where do you perform at? I mean, as of lately, it was arenas, and I did a bunch of festivals and things of that sort.

But I mean, I performed all over in all different kinds of venues, you know, theaters and churches and you name it. You know what I mean? So, but as of late, I just finished last summer a tour with 4 King & Country. So that was my last tour. And I did Rock the Universe this year in Orlando, Florida. So you've had Grammy nominations. You've also obviously won the Gospel Music Awards. So I'm always curious, does it feel more satisfying to get a Gospel Music Award? Because that's, you know, it's the gospel music awards,

but you've also been nominated many times for Grammys and, and, and sort of in the Christian category, but at secular awards ceremonies, is it more satisfying that your music say is, is acknowledged in a setting like the Grammys? Um, or is it more satisfying that it's acknowledged in the Gospel Music Awards, for example? I'm just happy to be acknowledged in general.

You know, I feel like I'm just grateful, you know, that people are listening to the music and they connect so strongly that it would be nominated for any award. You know what I mean? But yeah, like, obviously, if it's nominated for a G you know what i mean but yeah like obviously if it's nominated for a gma it's a little more expected so when you get a grammy nomination or when you get multiple grammy nominations then it's a lot more of a shock yeah there's a shock value to that you know what i mean but in any capacity i'm grateful that people are acknowledging my music in general so dante we always get to see people when they've actually made it, right?

We see you when you make it. But you tell us just part of your story. How did you get from little Dante to, you know, award-winning Grammy, award-winning Dante? Because I heard that you first came to know that you were talented in a, like you entered a talent show as a kid. I mean, you know, i always knew i was talented i think after the i think i think after the talent show i think um you know you have people affirming you were like seventh grade um yeah so around that age and you

have people affirming you so then now you're you have the confidence to kind of do it publicly, I guess, after that. But yeah, there's multiple things that happened that made me feel like, oh, I'm going to do this. One was my grandmother and grandfather used to put me on a center block and have me just sing songs to them. And they really enjoyed my voice. So that was the first time I felt affirmation

for what I do and so on and so forth you know performing and doing little things here singing in classrooms just gave me the confidence to um i guess pursue music you know for actual career and so i went on tour with a guy named eddie james and i sung background vocals and then i sang for another artist and another artist and started writing songs and um years and years later, I ended up just having a few artists want me to do their album. And these were like, you know, recording artists, real recording artists. And I think that's when it all changed, when I got my first opportunity to write for an international artist. You mentioned your grandparents. They were Christian ministers. right for um international artists yeah you mentioned your grandparents they were christian

ministers and i'm fascinated by your childhood because there there's so much light and you know christian influence and then there's you know there's a lot of brokenness at all and so we were hoping you might be willing to walk us through what happened in your childhood because i think it's really inspirational frankly yeah yeah yeah there was a lot of you know it's crazy because like I always talk about how my parents dealt drugs and but they were the pop they were just the most amazing parents super present took care of us we didn't even know until later you know that they even they were selling drugs you know to put food on the table or to take care of me and my brother, give us a better life in and of itself. It wasn't like something that was pushed in our face. So I was pretty sheltered growing up. Um, and I think

sometimes when I mentioned, you know, that they sell, they sell drugs, people's minds kind of like they just wonder, you know, but no, I had like two, they, they, they're the reasons I'm still here. They're still around and still very present in my life. And, um, it was really more so a part of their life and part of their story than it is mine. If I'm being honest, cause it was hidden from me for so long, but, um, but yeah, I, you know, experienced a lot of different things growing up and, uh, whether it be abuse from you know the church and um whatever that may be and you know just different things that happened i feel like it all led me to where i am right now and um it kind of gave me perspective on life and it uh taught me how to you know maneuver through what i'm maneuvering through now which which is like the music industry. Right. Well, Dante, I don't want to just gloss over it.

I also don't want to, you know, belabor it as well. But I do also know someone who was abused by a church leader, and that person now doesn't believe in God and turned their back on the church. So how did you get past that to continue being such a light for Christianity, despite having that happen? You know, I feel like God's the only thing that can get you through it, honestly. So when it happened to me, I ran closer to God because this individual is just a human being. You know what I mean? They're not in and of themselves Jesus or they're not God. And so I didn't necessarily blame God for it. I think, you know, it takes a lot of maturity.

And also, it's hard. You know what I mean? I think everyone has their own process with that. Me personally, I just never really blamed God for hardships that I faced. I always ran to him when they would happen. That was just always the way I kind of did it. Yeah, that's so important. You know, Dante, you're a handsome, young, buff, really talented guy. He's a great dancer too. Great dancer too. I mean, what don't you

have, Dante? And I think, you know, a lot of people with your talents, your skill sets, all the things you have going for them, you might direct your talents in a different direction. But instead, you said, you know what? Obviously, your faith is important to you. Your relationship with God is important to you. You're like, no, no, I'm going to sing about, you know, the things that mean the most to me in my life and share that and inspire people through my music, which is really cool. But was that a hard decision for you to kind of take this track versus the rock star track? The rapper, the hip-hop star.

I'd say no. It wasn't really hard. I mean, it's like God makes it easy. He just opens the doors that he wants you to walk through. So the doors that were opening for me really fast, it was the actual, you know, Christian music industry. So I just walked through those doors. So I didn't have to like in and of itself, look at the R&B doors or the pop doors and

in the gospel doors and think, oh, what am I going to do? He made it easy. And he'll open R&B and are the pop doors and the gospel doors and think, oh, what am I going to do? He made it easy. And he'll open R&B and pop doors for me. You know, that's something that I desire as well. But I'm just kind of like going at God's speed and doing it how I feel like it's coming. You're not fighting God, Dante. You're actually following his lead. Yeah, I'm just following his lead.

Okay, here we go. Yeah, like if he wanted to make me a pop star, whatever God's will is, like I'm just willing to, for real, for real. But I'm not forcing anything and I'm very, very happy with my life and grateful for my career. We'll have more of this conversation after this. After this. At New Balance, we believe if you run, you're a runner. However you choose to do it. Because when you're not worried about doing things the right way,

you're free to discover your way. And that's what running's all about. Run your way at newbalance.com slash running so you were by the way with performing with maverick city for a while and you've not very long ago faced some controversy with them i'm going to let you people have a lot of opinions about it there's youtube videos about it i going to let you talk about it because I think it's important to hear it from you. Yeah. You know, I was with Maverick City Music and I love them dearly. You know, I don't have any, you know, any malice or, you know, anything against them. And I hope they don't have anything against me. against them. And I hope they don't have anything against me. We had a very good run. I feel like all in a nutshell, God uses people and things to catapult you into your next place and to what

you're going to do next. And through the entire pausing of, you know, me or whatever the case may be, I, you know, created a team around me and, um, made a record label with my really good friends, Field and Sabrina Harrison, two record labels, actually. And I put out my two singles and I don't, I really don't think, I think people think I'm just trying to be like, you know, polite, but it's true. Like I would not have done it. I would not have done any of that if that had not happened to me. And so I'm kind of like, on one end, yeah, it sucks. But on the other end, it's what God had planned for me to get me to where I am right now.

And I'm super, super grateful. There's no way I could have done this by myself. What's happening in my life? Right. I mean, clearly, you were you you were, you know, using social media, you were singing, you're maybe a little bit intoxicated and it just didn't fit the brand and people were criticizing. But it caused you to to break away. What did you learn from it? No, I was intoxicated on the Internet.

Well, that's what they said on social media. So this is a perfect way to clear this up. Let's do that. Absolutely not. No way. So no, I was never intoxicated on social media. Obviously, I think when people, when they don't understand what's happening, then they can create narratives and things just in their head of like what's going on.

I, you know, went to my best friend's birthday party and, um, her name is Sabrina. I mean, and it was an amazing time and it's so crazy how God can like be in a place and we're having the best time loving on each other. It was literally like 10 30. We were heading to the, it was 10 30. We were in this, um, in the party bus because obviously it wasn't a sprinter actually. It wasn't a party bus, but it was, uh, it was a Mercedes sprinter. Um, and we're heading to, um, the venue just to celebrate Sabrina. And it may look like we're intoxicated, but we're really just having the best time. It's just having fun. And then the guy was playing the

music and we're just dancing, having fun, like celebrating our friend. And and the way it looked to people was that I'm just out partying casually. And it's just something I don't even do. Like, you know what I mean? I'm way too busy. I have to be up usually like at 730 a.m. Like I'm having interviews and I'm working on tours at the time. I was going on tour in two three weeks so it was just a bunch of stuff that I think people just didn't understand and then they made it um out to be you know I am drinking and which a lot of Christian artists do but I personally a lot of Christians we're Catholic we're Catholic We're okay with the church. Right, right. You guys. We do it in church.

So, Dante. Yeah, so. Is that one of the hard parts about being a Christian music artist is that kind of level of scrutiny? It used to be really hard for me to deal with scrutiny. And now it's just easy because, I mean, Jesus dealt with it. I feel like anything you do, if it's going to be different, if it's going to be innovative, if it's going to be forward thinking, you're going to have some critics. You're going to have people that don't necessarily believe, or they can't really

comprehend what you're talking about. So maybe you're just a little bit ahead. And you know, sometimes it's our job to teach them. Sometimes it's our job to lead them. Sometimes I just leave it to God. I'm like, I mean, I don't know if I have the right words. Maybe you can talk to him. You know what I mean? So I embrace the critics now. I used to just feel like I want to do it without them. And it's like, it's not possible.

You need critics. Yeah. No one's perfect. But you know what I like, Dante, is through this, you have an event. It's misconstrued on social media. People attack you. Now, hear me out. But you're not the only one. That happens to a lot of people. Yeah. I have to go, you know what?

I went through that and look at me now. Here I am. Obviously, I've grown through this. I've got my own label, two labels, two releases, and I'm crushing it. And I think that's an inspirational story for a lot of people and a lot of young people who kind of have these experiences on social media. So thank you for sharing part of the story and the success of getting through it because we can all get through it, right? For sure. And, you know, it's like, I don't want my fans to think I'm just this perfect guy.

You know, I experienced success when I was 23 years old. You know, I started making money, you know, around 24, 25. Like I'm getting pulled on and called on like crazy. I'm very overexposed and trying to figure out how to be this caricature that people have made me to be. And I feel like now it's finally at this place where I'm totally myself, totally confident in who I am and what I bring to the table. At once, you know, at one point, you know, being in a collective, you know, you can lose your identity, you can lose yourself, you can, you know, just not know where you fit in and you know what it all means, you know? And so

I feel like, you know, I had to go through that and I did make mistakes on social media, but at the end of the day, I feel like it's nothing that's uncommon or, you know, so crazy that I'd have to get kicked out or like bullied or pushed away. You know, if it's something that no one else has done, then maybe, but I feel like, you know, I feel like it's not uncommon and God used it and I'm happy. Yeah. Yeah.

He made room for more. There's room for more now. Jesus gave me the ability to make room for more. Yeah. You can see your happiness, by the way. I always say to people that the only requirement for being a Christian, by the way, is to be a sinner. And so we all are. That's great.

And I agree with you. It seemed pretty minor to me when I saw it. I want to talk about your hit song, Demons, because when I saw you and I heard that, we talked about it and I said, oh, they're real. In fact, we interviewed an exorcist before. Oh, wow. And then you're now part of this. Demons are real. Demons are real. And I want to hear what was going through your mind when you decided to do this song.

Yeah. And so I wrote it maybe a few years ago, maybe two years ago. I got up, went to my piano and started playing those chords. And for some reason, that was a song I felt in my spirit. And so I was just singing, you know, I've had demons underneath my bed, whispering bad things into my head. And what it means to me is that, well, first of all, I feel like we sugarcoat a lot of our experiences and we try to make them lighter than they really are. And I feel like if you've ever been through a divorce, if you've ever been addicted to drugs, if you've ever had your children taken away from you, if you've ever had cancer or been sick, like you don't want to sugarcoat that. It feels exactly what it is. It feels dark. It feels like, you know, there's no light. You know, you can't see the end result.

And I feel like I wanted to create a song that gave language to those people's struggles. And it wasn't something that I wanted to be just super passive about. And I even love the end of the song when it just talks about, you know, there's going to be a party invite everybody that, you know, something has changed and Jesus is going to bring me home. And that line,

that part was just all the critics for all the people that didn't think you would survive. Maybe, maybe it's, you know, the doctors or maybe whatever the case may be. It's just like, you know what?

There's going to be a party invite everybody that, you know, something is changing. Jesus is going to take me home. A little bit of mystery. Everyone around here wants to know, you know what I mean? And so yeah, that, that end part is just about like, you know what? You can count me out. You can think this is the end for me. You can, you know, all these different things you can damn me to hell, but you know, Jesus is always going to bring me home. You know, that's, that's who I rely on.

That's what I depend on. Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely. Um, well, Dante, it has been amazing to have this time with you.

And I hope you come back to Fox and friends. I can't tell you, like I said, we're still talking about that performance and how remarkable your whole group was. Thank you. The energy you brought, the spirit you brought. And any last thoughts?

No, I just want to say thank you guys for having me on Fox and Friends and now on the podcast. And you guys are really cool. And I hope I can come back soon. Awesome. All right. Thanks, Dante. Appreciate it. Listen, thanks for joining us on our podcast.

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