William Lee Barefield III (born December 17, 1987), better known by his stage name Trip Lee, is an American Christian rapper, singer, songwriter, and poet. Signed to

Reach Records Reach Records is an American independent record label specializing in Christian hip hop. The label was founded in 2004 by Ben Washer and the hip-hop artist Lecrae. In addition to Lecrae, the Reach Records roster contains artists like Tedashii, ...

, he has recorded both as a solo artist and as a founding member of the 116 (formerly known as the 116 Clique). Originally from

Dallas, Texas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

, he served as a young adult pastor at Concord Church until 2021. His third album, '' Between Two Worlds'' (2010), was nominated for two Dove Awards and won the Stellar Award for Best Hip Hop Album in 2011.

Biography

Early life

William Lee Barefield III was born on December 17, 1987, in

. As a young boy, Lee had dreams of being a professional athlete or a famous rapper, and he began to hone his lyrical skills at the age of 12. "I rapped about random stuff… how hot I was, how many girls I could pull," Lee says. But upon giving his life to Christ, at age 14, his focus changed from fortune, fame, and women to serving and ministering the Gospel. Lee slowly recognized that all of his life should be centered around Christ. "One day, I just decided, I'm only doing Christian hip hop. Rappers like

Ambassador An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or so ...

and Da' T.R.U.T.H. helped provide a model for how I would begin to do that," he says. He also had an immense desire to learn and teach the Word of God, so he became a leader in his youth group where he preached his first sermon at age 17. In 2004, Lee met

Lecrae Lecrae Devaughn Moore (born October 9, 1979) is an American Christian rapper, singer-songwriter, actor, and Record producer, recording producer and Music executive, executive. Since having begun his career in 2004, he has released ten studio alb ...

at a concert; months later, after talking and building with each other, Lecrae began to disciple him. While still in high school, Lee was given the opportunity to pen a few devotionals for the

website that dealt with theological matters and showcased his spiritual maturity. Lee attended Cairn University and Boyce College, the undergraduate school of

Southern Baptist Theological Seminary The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (SBTS) is a Baptist theological institute in Louisville, Kentucky. The seminary was founded in 1859 in Greenville, South Carolina, where it was at first housed on the campus of Furman University. The s ...

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville is the List of cities in Kentucky, most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeastern United States, Southeast, and the list of United States cities by population, 27th-most-populous city ...

.Ethan Cole
Rising Christian Rapper Trip Lee on What Makes Jesus Irresistible
''The Christian Post'', USA, July 9, 2012

Music career

Trip Lee signed with Reach Records, and his debut album, '' If They Only Knew'', was released a few days after his high school graduation. His first full-length album introduced hip-hop fans to his distinct southern sound, unique delivery, and gospel-saturated lyrics. That same year, he was also featured on the Dove Award-nominated, '' Jesus Muzik'' with label mate Lecrae. His second album, '' 20/20'', was released in 2008 and garnered much success, breaking into the Billboard Top 200 and reaching No. 11 on the Billboard Christian albums chart and No. 4 on the Gospel chart. Back with his third studio album, '' Between Two Worlds'', Lee offers a collection of reflections on life in a fallen world. His hope is that his reflections not only resonate with listeners, but also point to Jesus as the hero. Since his first album release, Lee has traveled the world doing concerts for thousands of listeners, and his last three summers have been spent on national and international tours with his Reach label mates. His Christ-centered hip-hop message has also built a platform for him among churches and other Christian organizations, which has led to numerous opportunities to preach and teach at conferences and other events. Lee released two new singles "Brag on My Lord" and "King Like Mine", the latter featuring Alex Medina, on March 29, 2011. Trip Lee released his fourth full-length studio album, entitled '' The Good Life'' on April 9, 2012. The album featured various notable Christian artists, such as Sho Baraka (formerly signed with Reach Records), JR., Lecrae, J.Paul, KB, Andy "C-Lite" Mineo,

Jimmy Needham Jimmy Needham (born August 22, 1985) is an American contemporary Christian musician signed to Inpop Records. He released debut album, ''For Freedom'', an independent release, in 2005, and after signing with the Christian record label Inpop Reco ...

V. Rose Vienna Rose Dare (born January 9, 1989), better known by her stage name V. Rose, is an American Christian electronic dance music singer. Formerly signed to Clear Sight Music, she released two studio albums under that label, ''V. Rose (album), ...

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, Jai, and Leah Smith. As a continuation to the album, Lee has worked with Moody Publishers and has authored a book titled ''The Good Life'', to be released October 1, 2012. On October 9, 2012, Lee announced he would be "stepping away" from music altogether. The Unashamed 2012 tour with the Reach Records roster was his final tour before pursuing a career as an author and pastor. He later clarified that while he would continue to make music, he wouldn't be touring as much.
He is currently training to be a pastor at his local church, while still engaging in public ministry. On October 27, 2014, Trip Lee released his fifth studio album, ''Rise''. On January 27, 2015, he released his second book called ''Rise: Get Up and Live in God's Great Story'' to accompany the album. He was part of the Winter Jam Tour 2016 along with KB and

Tedashii Tedashii Lavoy Anderson (born March 8, 1977), known simply as Tedashii, is an American Christian hip hop artist and member of the hip-hop troupe 116 Clique. He also hosted the NGEN Radio show "Serium". Tedashii has released five solo albums, ' ...

in the central and eastern parts of the United States. On December 9, 2016, Trip Lee released a mixtape titled, "The Waiting Room."Leonardo Blair
Rising Trip Lee on Being a Pastor; New Music in 'The Waiting Room' (Interview)
''The Christian Post'', USA, December 5, 2016 The title was inspired by a line in the song, "Take Me There" from his, "The Good Life" album. He says the album highlights the fact that, as a Christian, his life is much like sitting in a waiting room, looking for what God has ahead. On March 4, 2022, Trip Lee released his sixth studio album "The End." his first project in six years (first since 2016). The album released three singles "Supernatural," "Stone" and "Right Out The Gate." The album also featured artists WHATUPRG, Anike, Taylor Hill, KB, and Desi Raines. On October 27, 2023, Trip Lee released his seventh studio album "The Epilogue". It includes a collaboration with

Kirk Franklin Kirk Dewayne Franklin (born January 26, 1970) is an American Gospel music, gospel musician. One of the List of best-selling gospel music artists, best-selling gospel music artists, his accolades include 20 Grammy Awards. ''Variety (magazine), Var ...

, Hulvey, Madison Ryann Ward,

, KB, WHATUPRG, and Jonathan Traylor.

Ministry

In early 2011, he did the pastoral internship at Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington, D.C. In 2014, he became pastoral assistant at Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington, D.C. In 2015, he became pastor at Cornerstone Church West End in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

. In 2019, he became young adult pastor at Concord Church

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

, Texas. He stepped down from his position as pastor in 2021. He attributed the move to his battle with chronic fatigue syndrome.

Personal life

Trip Lee married Jessica Barefield in 2009. The couple have three children.

Discography

Studio albums *2006: '' If They Only Knew'' *2008: '' 20/20'' *2010: '' Between Two Worlds'' *2012: '' The Good Life'' *2014: '' Rise'' *2022: ''The End'' *2023: ''The Epilogue''

Books

* ''The Good Life'' (Moody Publishers, 2012) * ''Rise: Get Up and Live in God's Great Story'' (Thomas Nelson, 2015)

Award nominations

;

GMA Dove Awards A Dove Award is an accolade by the Gospel Music Association (GMA) of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the Christian music industry. The awards ceremonies presented annually and have been held in Nashville, Tennessee excep ...

Emma Schkloven
Rising Christian rapper Trip Lee to perform at Liberty University
newsadvance.com, USA, February 5, 2015 ;

Stellar Awards A Stellar Award is an award presented by SAGMA to recognize achievements in the gospel music industry.Sagma
The Stel ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Trip 1987 births Living people 20th-century African-American musicians 21st-century African-American writers 21st-century American male writers 21st-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century American poets 21st-century American rappers 21st-century Baptist ministers from the United States African-American Christians African-American poets African-American rappers American evangelicals American male non-fiction writers American performers of Christian hip-hop American religious writers Baptist writers Cairn University alumni Cross Movement Records East Coast hip-hop musicians Musicians from Philadelphia Rappers from Dallas Reach Records artists People with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome