Dennis Quaid is returning to his Christian roots with a new gospel album. The actor, known for many of his roles in Christian movies, including Soul Surfer and I Can Only Imagine, said the album will feature “spiritual songs I grew up with in Church.” 

Billy Ray Cyrus, Kris Kristofferson, Brandi Carlisle, and Tanya Tucker are also featured on the album. 

“I’ve always been spiritual. I grew up in a Southern Baptist church, became disillusioned with it as a teenager. I turned to Eastern religions and philosophies. I read the Bible twice, read the Koran, went to India nine times. Along the way, I came back to Christianity, and well, finding that it’s really the same all throughout the world.” Said Quaid during an interview with The Chicago Sun-Times.

Dennis started searching for God in his 20s when he was battling some pretty heavy demons.  

“I went around the world, actually, in my late 20s, and the question I had, as I went around the world, was, ‘Who is God?’ I became a seeker, really. So I came back, and I read the Bible cover-to-cover. For me, it’s Jesus; it’s the red words of Jesus. How simple it is. There really is redemption in that.” 

In his new song “On My Way to Heaven,” written for his mother, the actor-singer questions the afterlife. The song had to wait nearly 20 years for Quaid to finish it. It became the soundtrack for the movie I Can Only Imagine about the hit song from the band MercyMe. The lyrics from both songs paint a sorrowful picture of dark times in the singer’s past. 

Quaid tends to write about personal experiences, and he did not hold back on where the inspiration came from. After a stint in rehab for cocaine use, the actor celebrated his sobriety by pouring his previous painful battles into a beautiful story. 

Quaid began his journey with music when he was just 12 years old. He credits his singing and songwriting abilities for getting him through difficult periods during his teenage years. 

The new single “On My Way to Heaven” credits God for saving Quaids life. You can feel the pain in his lyrics. 

“My life may not be roses, but still I’m gonna be alright, long as I got my savior by my side. He freed me from the heavy chains that had bound my broken heart. Picked me up; gave me a brand new start.”

Dennis wants people to feel joy when listening to the song and hopes others can relate to his experience. It doesn’t matter how dark your past is and how painful your struggles are. You can turn things around for the better. 

The actor bravely embraces his Christianity in Hollywood without fear of backlash. He is the type of guy who wears his heart on his sleeve, and he has shouted many times from the rooftops how he has accepted Jesus Christ as his savior. It was during his darkest moments with addiction when he cried out to God for help. He strongly believes God saved him from potentially dying over a cocaine overdose. 

During a candid interview, the actor opened up about his heavy cocaine use in the 80s. 

“I was basically doing cocaine pretty much on a daily basis during the 80s. I spent many, many a night screaming at God to please take this away from me, I’ll never do it again because I’ve only got an hour before I have to be at work. “Then about 4 o’clock in the afternoon, I would be “oh that’s not so bad. I had a white light experience where I saw myself either dead or losing everything that meant anything to me.” 

Following that turning point, Quaid had a premonition while performing with his band in L.A. He saw a bright white light and knew it was time to change his lifestyle altogether and walk away from his deadly addiction for good. 

Other actors praise Quaid for being so open about his Christianity in Hollywood when it gets seen as a risky move. The actor is thriving with leading roles in blockbuster movies, so he isn’t going anywhere just yet. The gospel album is likely just the start of a very successful music career that will launch Quaid to all-new stardom.