The Struggle

Album: The Struggle (2012)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • When we spoke with Tenth Avenue North lead singer/songwriter Mike Donehey in 2012, they hadn't yet settled on a title for their third album, which ended up being named after this song, as much of it deals with the problems Christians face that are not always talked about. When we brought up how social problems are thought of differently in the church, Mike said: "Maybe that's something that I hope to communicate in our songs. I actually wrote a song for our next record called 'The Struggle,' which basically says, 'Hallelujah, we are struggle, we're not struggling to be free.' And a lot of times it's almost like the church doesn't give people permission to struggle with things. Even though in the Scriptures we're called Israel. We've been grafted in Israel. Israel means 'Struggles with God' or 'Wrestles with God.' And a lot of my songwriting comes out of the struggle between what I believe is God's truth and then where my heart's at and how there's always a collision process that takes place of the truth trying to win out over my emotions. And my emotions having to meld to what truth says. And so it's usually a big inspiration where the songs come from."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Scott Gorham of Thin Lizzy and Black Star Riders

Scott Gorham of Thin Lizzy and Black Star RidersSongwriter Interviews

Writing with Phil Lynott, Scott saw their ill-fated frontman move to a darker place in his life and lyrics.

Marc Campbell - "88 Lines About 44 Women"

Marc Campbell - "88 Lines About 44 Women"They're Playing My Song

The Nails lead singer Marc Campbell talks about those 44 women he sings about over a stock Casio keyboard track. He's married to one of them now - you might be surprised which.

Andrew Farriss of INXS

Andrew Farriss of INXSSongwriter Interviews

Andrew Farriss on writing with Michael Hutchence, the stories behind "Mystify" and other INXS hits, and his country-flavored debut solo album.

Chris Fehn of Slipknot

Chris Fehn of SlipknotSongwriter Interviews

A drummer for one of the most successful metal bands of the last decade, Chris talks about what it's like writing and performing with Slipknot. Metal-neck is a factor.

Thomas Dolby

Thomas DolbySongwriter Interviews

He wrote "She Blinded Me With Science" so he could direct a video about a home for deranged scientists.

Superman in Song

Superman in SongSong Writing

Not everyone can be a superhero, but that hasn't stopped generations of musicians from trying to be Superman.