Grammy-winning musician Amy Grant is sharing how a life-changing bicycle crash helped shape her newest musical project. The 65-year-old artist, who has spent nearly five decades in the music industry, suffered a traumatic brain injury in 2022 that led to extensive recovery work.
Grant’s latest album, “The Me That Remains,” released Friday, emerged from her healing process following the serious accident. The crossover Christian-pop star, whose cultural impact peaked in the late 1980s and early 1990s, has faced both acceptance and criticism from Christian audiences throughout her career over personal decisions including her divorce, transition to mainstream music, and choice to host her niece’s same-sex wedding.
During a recent interview with The Associated Press, Grant explained how songwriting became therapeutic during her recovery journey. “Two summers ago, I just started writing. It felt so good to write. I used to write as really a therapy process, and I had kind of lost touch with that a little bit, just because I was in other kinds of therapy — like physical recovery,” she shared.
The musician described reconnecting with her creative side as “magical” and noted significant changes in herself post-accident. “I think that the entrance into my creative self to go, ‘You’re not who you used to be, but you are somebody’ — everybody is — and that was the first lyric,” Grant explained.
When asked about how the injury affected her, Grant mentioned that even family members noticed differences. “I have a niece that said, ‘God, I think I like you better now,’” she revealed, adding that her processing abilities have changed but her physical health continues improving. She recently returned to bicycling in a controlled environment, describing the experience as deeply emotional.
The album explores themes Grant describes as sometimes going to dark places, which she views as authentic expression. “To me, the superpower of music is that it connects you, first and foremost, to yourself, and then to others, to God. Why pretend?” she stated. “I go dark sometimes. But I think everybody does.”
One track on the record, written by longtime songwriter Sandy Lawrence, took 15 years to complete but found its direction following the January 6th Capitol events. Grant noted the song addresses unrest, a theme she sees as universally relevant.
Addressing current global tensions, Grant emphasized individual responsibility for positive change. “There’s a lot going on, which, by the way, as a global community, there’s always a lot going on,” she observed. “I try every day to remind myself of the amazing power that every one of us has to affect the world by the daily choices we make.”
Throughout her career, Grant has worked to avoid being confined by others’ expectations or labels. She believes curiosity draws people together more effectively than predetermined categories. “Sometimes the way I’m introduced, I’m on the side of the stage waiting to go out and just the verbiage, I’d go, ‘Whew, I wouldn’t stay for that show,’” she admitted.
Regarding her faith journey, Grant maintains that spiritual seeking involves questioning and uncertainty. “I have stood outside under stormy skies, under a full moon at different times in my life and said, ‘Am I just talking to the ceiling? Are you really there?’” she shared. “I don’t know where else to turn. But that’s my journey.”
