Help Is On The Way (Maybe Midnight)

Album: Life After Death (2021)
Charted: 124
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • On October 23, 2019, Truett, TobyMac's 21-year-old son, was found dead at his home in Nashville of an accidental drug overdose of fentanyl and amphetamines.

    The inspiration for the song emerged during a challenging period marked not only by the loss of Truett but also by the immediate onset of quarantine, casting a shadow over life as we knew it. Amid this darkness, TobyMac turned to the Psalms and found solace in the words that declared, "God is rolling up His sleeves." (Psalm 98 v1) The vivid imagery struck a chord, transforming his sense of hopelessness into a proclamation.

    "Help Is On The Way (Maybe Midnight)" reflects the powerful promise that the God of all creation is actively intervening on our behalf, assuring us we aren't forgotten.
  • Psalm 98:1 (The Message translation) reads:

    Sing to God a brand-new song. He's made a world of wonders! He rolled up his sleeves, He set things right.

    "It's like the promise of God - the God of all Creation - rolling up His sleeves on my behalf, on our behalf," explained TobyMac in a video. "It felt like a promise to me. It felt like something a big God that I can count on cares about little me."
  • TobyMac co-wrote and co-produced "Help Is On The Way (Maybe Midnight)" with former Hawk Nelson guitarist Micah Kuiper. It finds him shifting gears from a string of grief-stricken songs, including "21 Years," "'Faithfully" and "I'm Sorry (A lament)."

    I've written some songs in quarantine and since my son passed but all of them were really sad," TobyMac told SiriusXM. "All of them really had a 'walk in that dark valley' [feeling]. This is the first song of hope I've written, and it's because I actually grabbed onto some real hope."
  • Eric Welch directed the song's music video, which features TobyMac's son, Judah McKeehan, as a special guest. It won the Short Form Video Of The Year award at The 52nd Annual GMA Dove Awards (2021) on October 19, 2021.
  • "Help Is On the Way (Maybe Midnight)" is the opening track of TobyMac's ninth studio album, Life After Death. The album confronts grief head-on, with songs like "21 Years" offering raw and emotional reflections on loss. Tracks like "Help Is On The Way (Maybe Midnight)" and "The Goodness" navigate the darkness with glimmers of hope and faith.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Gary Brooker of Procol Harum

Gary Brooker of Procol HarumSongwriter Interviews

The lead singer and pianist for Procol Harum, Gary talks about finding the musical ideas to match the words.

Andy McClusky of OMD

Andy McClusky of OMDSongwriter Interviews

Known in America for the hit "If You Leave," OMD is a huge influence on modern electronic music.

Waiting For The Break of Day: Three Classic Songs About All-Nighters

Waiting For The Break of Day: Three Classic Songs About All-NightersSong Writing

These Three famous songs actually describe how they were written - late into the evening.

Donald Fagen

Donald FagenSongwriter Interviews

Fagen talks about how the Steely Dan songwriting strategy has changed over the years, and explains why you don't hear many covers of their songs.

Graham Nash

Graham NashSongwriter Interviews

Graham Nash tells the stories behind some of his famous songs and photos, and is asked about "yacht rock" for the first time.

Michael Sweet of Stryper

Michael Sweet of StryperSongwriter Interviews

Find out how God and glam metal go together from the Stryper frontman.