EVENT // Spiritual
Paul Campbell & Teddy Campbell presents
The Musician’s Bible Study Shed
by Dianna Donahue - 08.03.2023
Our hometown drumming sensation Paul Campbell partnered with multi-genre and international drummer, Teddy Campbell, to bring Little Rock the Musician’s Bible Study Shed. The evening was held at ACTS Church in North Little Rock, Arkansas, at the end of July.
When I asked, “Who is Teddy Campbell,” he humbly replied:
When I asked, “Who is Teddy Campbell,” he humbly replied:
“Teddy Campbell is a son of God, filled with the spirit of God, sweetly saved by Christ Jesus…which I really understand now. I have a blessed assurance that Jesus is mine – I didn’t have that before.
I am a husband. I am a father. I am a son – I’m the only child of my momma! I am a drummer. I am a musician. I am a singer. I am a creative. I am a producer. I am a songwriter. I am a part of the body of Christ, and however that looks, I want to be connected to other members of the body. I want to be a brother. I want to be a friend. I want to be a good Christian.
I want the Lord to be pleased with my life. I want to be obedient, and I want to do what he tells me. I want my family to be proud of me – everyone that knows me – for real – to be proud of me and be able to say, ‘He really loved the Lord. He may not have gotten everything right, but he really loved the Lord, and he submitted to Him.’”
What Campbell did not mention is that his God-given musical gifts have taken him across the globe and across several genres of music since he was a little boy. He has received an array of credits, including album credit on “A Time to Love” by Stevie Wonder, “Thankful” by Kelly Clarkson, “Return of the Dragon” by Sisqó, “Unconditional” by Kirk Whalum, and several albums by the gospel duo sensation, Mary Mary. His resume is packed with musical experiences such as touring with Maze and Frankie Beverly, Bette Midler, Britney Spears, Queen Latifah, Howard Hewitt, and The Backstreet Boys. He was a part of the live house band on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and is now a drummer for American Idol, and is currently on tour with singer, songwriter, and guitarist Boz Scaggs but holds his bible study sheds on his off days. This leg of his shed tour includes seven stops, with the previous tour including eight.
Campbell's lengthy resume has afforded him firsthand experience of how a musician’s talents can hinder a true perception of themselves and their relationship with God. This led to him developing the Teddy Campbell Musician’s Bible Study Shed. His vision started in 2016 during a NAMM Music Conference in Los Angeles, California, with about 150 musicians in attendance. After he and a few of his colleagues spoke, before the jam session of the evening started, there was an altar call for musicians wanting to humble themselves before God. Surprisingly, there was an overflow of musicians that walked to the altar requesting prayer, with many suffering from contemplation of suicide. At that moment, Campbell realized, “This is deeper than I thought!?”
Following the conference, Campbell began connecting the dots between the occurrences of that experience and his understanding of how important mentorship is and how much it was needed in the musicians’ sector of the industry. However, he did not fully take on the task of continuing to create these safe places for musical creatives, as he believed God was instructing him to. He began to experience life-altering occurrences, including the pandemic halting his gigs and having a mild stroke. In those times, Campbell finally saw and understood God as his only sustainer and saw himself separate from his musical gifts. His Musician’s Bible Study Shed was officially established as a result.
He developed the bible study sheds to help musical creatives understand their identity in Christ if they are born again, and their identity is not in what they do but in the One that gave them the ability. He connects biblical principles to his personal experiences to help make the connection of God’s presence in the musicians’ lives and circumstances, encouraging them to see the difference between what is God and what is flesh. Campbell believes it is his responsibility to aid in this process to alleviate the potential for musical creatives to develop false identities.
Campbell's lengthy resume has afforded him firsthand experience of how a musician’s talents can hinder a true perception of themselves and their relationship with God. This led to him developing the Teddy Campbell Musician’s Bible Study Shed. His vision started in 2016 during a NAMM Music Conference in Los Angeles, California, with about 150 musicians in attendance. After he and a few of his colleagues spoke, before the jam session of the evening started, there was an altar call for musicians wanting to humble themselves before God. Surprisingly, there was an overflow of musicians that walked to the altar requesting prayer, with many suffering from contemplation of suicide. At that moment, Campbell realized, “This is deeper than I thought!?”
Following the conference, Campbell began connecting the dots between the occurrences of that experience and his understanding of how important mentorship is and how much it was needed in the musicians’ sector of the industry. However, he did not fully take on the task of continuing to create these safe places for musical creatives, as he believed God was instructing him to. He began to experience life-altering occurrences, including the pandemic halting his gigs and having a mild stroke. In those times, Campbell finally saw and understood God as his only sustainer and saw himself separate from his musical gifts. His Musician’s Bible Study Shed was officially established as a result.
He developed the bible study sheds to help musical creatives understand their identity in Christ if they are born again, and their identity is not in what they do but in the One that gave them the ability. He connects biblical principles to his personal experiences to help make the connection of God’s presence in the musicians’ lives and circumstances, encouraging them to see the difference between what is God and what is flesh. Campbell believes it is his responsibility to aid in this process to alleviate the potential for musical creatives to develop false identities.
“It [talents and gifts] is in who gave them the gift and ability to do what they do – that is where their identity is. I want everybody to know that so they don’t carry the weight of false identity…trying to serve a gift or talent, instead of the one that gave them the gift or the talent.”
Shortly after the world opened up during the pandemic, Campbell began working on his vision and started to tour. Some stops included Washington, D.C., Raleigh, North Carolina, Indianapolis, Indiana, and now, Little Rock, Arkansas. He feels these sheds are important for musical creatives to experience because he feels musicians often identify themselves by what they have the ability to do. He states that he is called in this season to help other musical creatives understand this by candidly sharing his experiences that made him realize this for himself.
“My identity was in playing drums…until I was no longer able to play drums! And I don’t want other musicians to have to go through something like me before they realize the difference. For me, it took the pandemic, almost losing my wife, and a mini-stroke to see that my gift would not sustain me. I want every musician to know that their gift will not sustain them.”
Little Rock's Musician's Bible Study Shed included Campbell sharing his profound testimony with the other musicians and his process to enlightment with scriptures from the bible. He included his many experiences as a professional musician, as well as how his false sense of identity almost costed him his talents, his family, his wife, and his life. For those that are believers of Christ, the connection resonated and was impactful. Bible study concluded with an altar call for those seeking prayer and a jam session with some of the state's best in the room.
Campbell's next shed will be in Chicago, Illinois. If you want to experience Teddy Campbell’s Musician’s Bible Study Shed, follow him on Facebook and IG at @TeddyCampbell and @TeddyCampbellBand to get in on the next one!
Campbell's next shed will be in Chicago, Illinois. If you want to experience Teddy Campbell’s Musician’s Bible Study Shed, follow him on Facebook and IG at @TeddyCampbell and @TeddyCampbellBand to get in on the next one!
