Country Gospel

By J. L. Malone

Chloe James was living every teenage girls fantasy as the next big thing in country music. Taking a look back on her life, she reflects on the loves that she found, only to be ripped away. Never did she imagine that she would have to live through such horrific events such as rape, stalking and abduction. With only God to be the light in the dark times of her life, she chooses to use her platform in the music world to worship and lead others to know the one true living God.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Oct 31, 2016
• ISBN: 9781512760705

J. L. Malone

J. L. Malone is the wife of a fire fighter and has two beautiful grown daughters. She has lived all over the world but currently residing in Texas. While God has always been part of her life, she hadn’t accepted Jesus as her Saviour until she was a young adult.

Book preview

Chapter One

BROOKS, GEORGIA, WAS YOUR TYPICAL Southern small town with a population of about five hundred people. It was a beautiful town filled with huge pecan trees and Brooks Park, where the teenagers spent their summers. The small farming community that surrounded the area didn’t allow much for a teenage girl to do outside of school and church activities, unless she wanted to get into illegal activities. This left me a lot of time to spend daydreaming about running away to Nashville, to become a famous country music artist. I couldn’t imagine myself doing anything but becoming a singer. I truly love music, and I love to sing. Back then, I sang in the shower, in the car; anywhere music was playing, I was singing.

Singing and music weren’t just a way for me to get out of that small town to become rich and famous like most kids dreamed about. Music was a passion; some may even say it was an obsession. Music moved me. When I listened to a truly gifted artist, I was transported to another place and felt things I hadn’t just a few moments before. To this day, it amazes me how incredibly beautiful one person’s voice can be, not to mention when other voices come together to create angelic harmonies. I still love to find a nice, quiet spot, close my eyes, and get lost in amazing harmonies.

My parents weren’t crazy about the idea of me becoming a singer; they thought I would grow out of it once I got a few years of college under my belt. They figured I would start to focus on my studies, meet other people with other interests, and the whole idea of becoming a singer would just fade into the background. Needless to say, they were not happy when I refused to go to college so I could pursue my dream.

Chloe, Mama said, looking pretty desperate. Going to college is not going to hurt your singing. If anything, you will be able to start a college band and keep singing while you’re getting an education.

That’s right, interjected Daddy. It’s a win-win situation. What could be better than that?

It’s not what I want to do with my life, I replied, frustrated with having to repeat the same conversation for the billionth time.

What about a music school? Mama desperately asked.

Hey! Daddy said. "That’s a great idea! That way it will definitely be win-win. You can study music and sing while you get an education in something that you really love."

All I could do was stare at them. This was a twist in the conversation I hadn’t seen coming. What schools for music were there? Would they teach anything I was interested in, or would they be stuffy and pretentious, making me feel awkward and uneasy? Suddenly I had many questions buzzing through my head. I thought, why can’t my parents just let me be to pursue my dreams without throwing all these monkey wrenches into things?

I’ll think about it was all I could say as I escaped to my room.

The next day after school, I stopped by the choir teacher’s room to ask her if she had any information on colleges where I could study music. Wouldn’t you know it, she did. That evening, I sat down with my parents and started looking over the brochures the teacher had given me. Over the next few days, we made phone calls and setting up times to meet with the various schools. If nothing else, this process had satisfied my parents that I would be getting some kind of higher education. But to tell you the truth, I still wasn’t so sure going to a traditional college is what I wanted to do.

In the next few months, we visited five schools relatively close to where we lived in Georgia. Three other schools we received information from were too far for us to travel to, especially since Camille, my twin sister, and Evan, our younger brother, were still at home.

I finally narrowed down my choices to Colburn School in Los Angeles and the Manhattan School of Music in New York City. You can imagine that my parents were not too keen on either of those choices. They had another in mind, Georgia State University, in hopes of keeping me close to home.

I could see a whole new battle coming on the horizon, but I was ready. I was going to prepare myself with all the pros of the schools I wanted to go to and all the cons of going to a state school. I would make my argument so compelling they wouldn’t have a leg to stand on. After all, I had gotten an A in debate.

The next couple of days, I spent hours doing research to support my argument. When I was ready, I sat down with my parents to convince them that my choices were better for my career than their choice. Mama, Daddy, I said confidently, we need to talk about which school I am going to attend.

Yes, we do, Daddy replied. Your mother and I have been doing a lot of talking about this. We decided to pray about it and see where God wants you to go.

What did He say? I asked.

He said that you need to apply to all of them, Daddy said matter-of-factly. It’s not exactly what I thought He would say, but your mom received the same word.

That’s right, said Mama. You need to apply to all of them, and let God sort it out for you.

Are you serious? I asked.

Yes, they said in unison.

Daddy continued, We trust that God knows what He’s doing and won’t send you to a school that isn’t where you’re supposed to be at that exact time. Let me ask you this: do you trust that God knows what He’s doing, and He will pick the right college for you?

Well—, I said softly. I guess so.

What do you mean, you guess so? asked Mama. Either you do or you don’t.

I do, I replied. This just isn’t the conversation I was prepared to have. I was going to totally show you why the school I picked was the right one for me. Now everything has been turned upside down. God’s good at doing that, huh?

Later, when I was getting ready for bed, I began to say my prayers like I usually did. As I was praying about applying to all of the schools, I kept hearing, Trust Me, in my spirit. Those words wouldn’t go away, and I continued to hear them throughout school the next day.

When I got home that afternoon, I went straight to my room to fill out the applications. Then I took them straight to the post office. I didn’t want to take any chances of putting them into the mailbox at home just to turn around and pull them right back out again. What’s that old saying? The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak. It’s funny, though; once I put those envelopes in the mail carrier’s hands and walked out the door, my mood suddenly lifted. There was no more anxiety about which school I was going to attend. I knew God would send me to the best one.

Months went by, and I hadn’t heard back from any of the schools I applied to. Weak in my flesh and having a hard time waiting any longer for God to move, I decided to take matters into my own hands. I convinced myself that my parents were wrong when they thought they had heard from God; maybe He didn’t want me to go to college to study music at all. Maybe, just maybe, He wanted me to pursue my singing career on my own.

So I took all the money I had saved, had a demo tape made, and sent it to every Christian recording studio I could find. I thought maybe I could switch over to country music once I had a career established. Unfortunately, I got nothing but a bunch of no-thank-yous.

But the day after I received a rejection letter from the last studio, I received a letter from Belmont University in Nashville. It would be the only response I received. I guess God did give me an answer after all: I was going to Belmont. At least it was in Nashville, so I could still work on my country music career while going to school.

As we drove onto the Belmont campus, we were engulfed by treelined streets and historic buildings. It was very beautiful. We found the dormitory where I would be living, a dark-red brick building called Maddox Hall. My room was on the second floor at the end of the hall. It was simple—with just two single beds, two dressers, and two desks. It would be up to my new roommate, Alex, and me to make the space our own.

This is a nice room, Mama stated. With a little work, it will be a wonderful place to study.

Yeah, I replied. I think it will be really nice. I sure hope that my roommate is just as nice.

I’m sure that whoever you are partnered with will be perfectly nice, interjected Daddy. Just as he said it, in walked my new roommate and her parents. Hello, Daddy said, stretching out his hand. I’m Mike James, this is my daughter, Chloe, and my wife, Maggie.

Returning the gesture, my roommate’s dad stretched out his hand to my father. Stephen Hollingsworth, he replied. It’s nice to meet you. This is my wife, Angela, and our daughter, Alexandria.

Alex, his daughter said sharply.

I apologize for my daughter’s behavior, Mr. Hollingsworth said. She’s a little rebellious these days.

I can certainly understand, Daddy said. Chloe has a twin sister and younger brother at home, and they are a handful.

After moving our belongings into the room, our parents left us to get settled. The good-bye was hard—and not just for my parents, but for me as well. My emotions were changing quickly from excitement to worry and fear. I’m just glad that I had God to help me through it and to remind me that He didn’t give me a spirit of fear but of a sound mind.

Alexandria Hollingsworth was a somewhat heavy girl with long, curly red hair. She was from a prominent family in Kentucky that bred and raced thoroughbred horses. She told me she’d never felt like she belonged in the upscale Southern world that her family came from. She loved the horses but was uncomfortable with the fancy clothes and well-mannered society. So she tried to escape to the quiet of the trees near the creek that ran through her family’s farm. Being alone to read or to ride her horse, Snowflake, was all that she ever wanted to do. Alex and I had a lot of the same interest, likes, and dislikes. It’s no wonder we hit it off right away and have been the best of friends ever since.

We immediately got our room organized and set off to explore the campus. We ended up at the student union, Belmont Tower, where we talked for hours about our lives: where we came from, our families, and what we wanted to do. I told her all about my passion for music and wanting to become a famous singer, and she told me how she wanted to become a doctor and help those less fortunate in the Third World. All she had seen her whole life was a focus on money, prestige, and the family horse farm.

Classes started, and I had a few of my core classes with Alex. We spent hours studying and doing research. I would spend as much time as I could off campus, trying to sing at the local venues. Alex didn’t care for it much, but she always tagged along just to make sure that I wasn’t out there all by myself. She would bring a book and find a quiet corner of the room to settle into.

At one of these venues, I met my first college boyfriend. His name was Rick O’Boyle, and he was in the crowd the night I was singing at the Black Horse. Rick was tall with blond hair and dark-brown eyes. He had a five o’clock shadow, which made him look liked the bad-boy type—just what my parents would want to keep me away from. He was a bouncer at another club down the street but made the rounds of the rest of the bars when he wasn’t working. We talked for hours after I had finished my set—that is, until Alex reminded me that curfew was closing in on us and we had to get back to campus.

Rick called me the next day, and we were a couple from then on. The only person I talked to more was Alex. As the year continued, I kept studying and playing at the local venues. I even played on campus from time to time. When winter break was about to begin, I was getting a little bummed that I wouldn’t get to see Rick or Alex for three weeks. But I was looking forward to seeing my parents again. I was having a good time living on my own, but I missed my family, even Camille and Evan.

It was my last set, and I was flying back to Georgia the next day. The Black Horse was doing a night of Christmas carols to set the mood for the season, and I asked if I could sing Silent Night. I had always sung it in church for our candlelight service, so I was sure I could do it justice. As I got up on stage, the lights went down, and the music began. I began to sing, and somewhere along the way, the music stopped. Just my voice was heard throughout the room, and I didn’t even realized it. I always felt a special connection with God when I sang that song, and that night was not any different.

When I finished, I looked around and saw Rick and Alex standing in the corner, smiling. My heart began to race, and I was unable to move. Imagine getting stage fright after you perform. With the help of the guitarist, I made my way off the stage and headed toward my friends.

Excuse me. The deep voice stopped me. My name is Phillip Stone, and I just heard you sing. It was quite good.

Thank you, I said politely, thinking he was some weird older man trying to pick me up. But I need to get to my friends.

I’m sorry, he said as he stepped into my path. I’m afraid that I didn’t finish introducing myself properly. He smiled and continued, I am the vice president of marketing for Performance Records.

Now he had my undivided attention. Oh, I remarked with what I’m sure was a stunned look.

As I was saying, I think that was quite good, and I was wondering if I could set up a time for my boss to see you at one of your performances.

Well—. I wasn’t able to get any more out for a few moments. Actually, I’m leaving for home for the holidays tomorrow. I’m sorry, but I won’t be able to do anything until I get back.

Great, he said with a smile. Everyone at the studio is going to be gone with their families for the holidays as well, so what about after the New Year?

I guess so, I said, somewhat unsure of what was happening.

Here is my card, he said, handing it to me. Call me when you get back. He walked away, leaving me once again stunned and unable to move.

Who was that? Rick asked with a frown.

He’s a vice president at Performance Records, I said.

Oh my goodness! Alex screamed. I can’t believe it! You’ve finally been discovered.

Rick snatched the card and said, No, she hasn’t. Then he tore it up.

What are you doing? I asked, surprised and angry. That’s my shot at becoming famous, and you just threw it on the floor like it was trash.

Rick turned and looked me straight in the eyes with a look of pure jealousy. You’ll never be famous. You belong to me. Then he stormed out of the door.

Alex and I turned to one another and were terrified.

What was that? Alex asked.

I don’t know, I said. But now I’m glad I’m leaving town tomorrow.

When I got back to Brooks, I called Rick and told him that I wanted to break up with him. He didn’t like it, but he had three weeks before I returned to Nashville, which I thought would be plenty of time for him to cool off.

It was a cold day in Nashville when I returned to Belmont University after the Christmas holiday. Alex practically tackled me with a hug. I missed you so much! she exclaimed.

I missed you too, I said with the little bit of breath I could muster, since I was being squeezed so tightly. You know, you can let go now.

Oh, yeah. Sorry, she said.

How did your vacation go? I asked.

She shrugged. Fine, I guess. I just hate to go there and be forced to be someone I’m not. There were so many parties, dances, and dinners that I didn’t have any time to catch my breath.

Even though I sympathized with her, all I could do was giggle, which got me a playful glare. I asked, So, how long have you been back?

I just got back yesterday. Hey, do you want to go out and do something tonight?

Sure, what did you have in mind?

Just dinner or something, she said. Nothing much. In fact, why don’t we just get take-out and eat in?

I smiled as I flopped down onto my bed. I think that’s a great idea.

Later that night, Alex and I headed out to the Red Dragon Chinese restaurant to get our take-out. I was really looking forward to it, since they had the best orange chicken ever. We got our food and headed out of the restaurant—and ran straight into Rick.

You’re back! he said excitedly as he gave me a big hug and kiss.

Yeah, I replied as I tried to push him off me. What are you doing? After all, we had broken up three weeks before.

What do you mean? he asked. I’m welcoming my girlfriend home.

Rick, I replied, I’m not your girlfriend anymore. I broke up with you weeks ago. Don’t you remember?

Stop kidding around, he said.

I’m not joking, I stated with a stern face. To be clear, I broke up with you after I left for home. But just so there is no more confusion, I’ll say it again: I don’t want to go out with you anymore.

Fine!