Cross Movement Records artist Flame returns to the Christian Hip Hop scene with his sophomore release Rewind. The album is uniquely presented as a radio show where Flame serves as the host of the program. Reminiscent of his mentors, The Cross Movement, Flame takes the listener on a Biblically-based, musical journey to contemplate man’s sinful nature, the importance of studying scripture and the need for salvation.

The opening track is the radio show’s theme song where Flame presents humorous metaphors to explain why he named the album Rewind (“Man, I’m back like when dudes used to rock biker shorts.”). The St. Louis native explains that his album/radio show serves two purposes: to answer some questions posed regarding his debut album, and to point people back to the holy scriptures of God that instruct man how to live on Earth.

Flame displays his talent for doing what many Christian Hip Hop artists cannot seem to pull off: rapping to tracks outside of his signature style without becoming the trendy, flavor-of-the-week lyricist. Evidence of this is clearly shown in “No Silence” featuring Lecrae. The song is a heavy, Dirty South dance floor hit laced with 100% of Lecrae’s flavor, yet Flame holds his own while maintaining his Midwest style of rhyming.

The album’s title track features Flame spitting lyrics to an East Coast-flavored, old school track. In “Rewind,” Flame is watching a preacher on television win the affection of 20,000 people while using scriptures out of context. Flame refers his fans to the Bible’s complete scriptural texts to explain what God really meant and does this to warn the listener about taking scriptures out of context to support their arguments.

Other elements in Rewind depict Flame’s struggles with sin such as “Give Us the Truth, Pt. 2,” the powerful, extremely transparent testimony of Flame’s backsliding state during the time he entered college. There’s also the radio friendly, “To My Heart” where Flame holds a conversation with what the Bible deems as deceitful above all things and desperately wicked. The track features East Coast rapper Shai Linne as the voice of Flame’s heart. In the song, Flame blames his heart for getting him into so much trouble, but his heart reminds him that he was supposed to guard his heart from the temptations of sin.

As Flame’s radio show closes, he leaves the listener with the thought-provoking “We Preach Christ.” The song is a powerful Q&A on the need for salvation. Flame uses everyday situations to get the listener to ponder whether or not they would seek life-preserving necessities such as food, water and God’s love. He questions whether or not we really understand the meaning of the love of Jesus Christ.

Cutting edge sound, superior artistry, authentic Hip Hop beats, mesmerizing hooks and uncompromising lyrics are still the standard as Flame continues to burn brightly.