LITTLE ROCK — Arkansas guitarist Jason Truby, who wrote the title song for the Matrix Reloaded soundtrack, has wowed Hollywood with his hard driving, high-decibel musical arrangements.
But on Dec. 18, an unplugged Truby will sing, play and call attention to the 110,000 children in the United States who are in need of a home with the Jason Truby and Friends Acoustic Christmas Concert at 6 p.m. at Parkway Place Baptist Church, 300 Parkway Place in Little Rock.
Admission is free, but organizers are asking concertgoers to donate new unwrapped gifts, which Project Zero will deliver to children in foster care in central Arkansas.
Project Zero, a fledgling Little Rock organization whose mission is to find an adoptive or foster home for every child who needs one, is a concert sponsor.
The Trubys adopted their first child 10 years ago. After years of infertility treatment acknowledging they couldn’t conceive, they entrusted the matter to God, Truby said.
“We were grieving. It really was extreme tension and grief. We considered adoption. Right around the same time, we were made aware of a child. A friend said to me, ‘I don’t know why I want to tell you this, but I have this friend ...
“Within a two-week period, we were already adopting a child. Valentine’s Day the next year, we finalized our adoption.
“It’s a real story, a real situation. And from that point on, we wanted to - we needed to be involved in a personal way.”
They adopted their first two children in the United States and their third from Thailand.
“We’re three kids deep now,” says Truby, 38, “and we don’t intend on stopping.”
Truby started his career in Little Rock. And after living the rock-and-roll life, he has returned to his hometown, where he has a studio at his home. Nashville, Tenn., is relatively nearby, and his success and California connections afford him the luxury of living where he wants to live.
“This is where my roots are,” he says. “Little Rock is always going to be home.”
Although he was raised in Christianity, his faith didn’t take for him until he was an adult.
“I’m not going to candy coat it. There’s a lot of brokenness in this story. But the breaks [are] where the light comes in,” he says. “ Brokenness is the gateway to really encountering the Creator through the understanding of Jesus.”
Music was a natural path to God for Truby, and a natural expression of his faith.
“I was haunted and romanced by God through music most of my life.”
Project Zero asked him to write a song for the organization, and the song has turned into Grafted, an album project that will include performances by country singer Tiffany Thornton and Little Rock musician Steve Dean, among many others. The album, which Truby hopes to release in the spring, will include a range of genres.
More concert information is available by calling (501) 224-3003.
Religion, Pages 14 on 12/10/2011