Say the name Margaret Becker in a room full of lifelong Christian music fans and you’ll get an enthusiastic reaction. As a pioneer voice in the genre, Becker carved out her own spot amongst the CCM greats with radically truthful songs and edgy performances that shook the industry. At the time, audiences had never seen a female rocker who wrote songs packed with veracity. A trailblazer among her peers, Becker earned 4 Grammy nominations, 4 Dove awards, 7 SESAC Artist of the Year awards, more than 20 No. 1 radio singles and sold millions of records. It’s a worthy list of accomplishments marking a storied career. But for Becker, it was only the beginning.
Now producing, songwriting, and speaking, Becker is taking her legacy and putting it to work. “I had to live a while and get comfortable in this new space I’m in, so I’d have some commentary to offer,” Becker shares. “Now I have something to say.” Her heart-deep honest writing style has afforded her a platform to mentor developing artists to write from their core without fear of upsetting the status quo, a Margaret Becker specialty.
It’s this wise commentary from an experienced artist and performer that young and upcoming artists are looking for when developing their own careers. Her skillset has grown beyond the CCM world, branching out into Pop, Singer/Songwriter, Electronica, Country and World Music. Becker has found that investing in the talent of others through coaching, mentoring and producing has only grown her love for music and being a part of the entertainment community. “I love watching a germ of talent grow into its full capacity. I love helping people find the tools they need to get in touch with their artistry and express it.”
To launch this revised vision, Becker had to make the choice to parlay her career as a full-time CCM artist and turn it to something even more meaningful. For her, it was an easy decision, but also a bittersweet one. “I found myself saying, do I want to do this one thing for the rest of my life? Or do I want to make a broader impact? I wanted to have different experiences and more experiences.” The decision to leave the comfort of the known and forge a path into the unknown was anything but a bridge-burning emotional walkout. “I had the best experience you can have as a performing CCM artist. I was fulfilled. I loved it.”
Exiting gracefully allowed her to charge fresh into cultivating career paths for the next generation. Becker can offer what few others can, a personal perspective untarnished by regret.
Another element Becker’s been able to carry over into her new profession is her commitment to charitable giving. Becker is one of an elite group of artists to have ever been bestowed the Lumiere du Monde Award for Humanitarian Excellence, recognizing her years of volunteer work for worthwhile causes including World Vision, Habitat for Humanity and Compassion International. “More than anything I’ve wanted to be an advocate and help feed hungry people, it’s always been high on my priority list. That’s what’s lasting.”
For Becker, a career in entertainment has always been about using the talents she has but using them in a way that’s authentic to who she is. As a full-time performing artist, she was able to share a message of hope to millions of people around the world. Now, she’s able to plant seeds of hope into others as they go out to perform, growing the scope of her influence exponentially. For Becker, that’s the greatest measure of success you can find.
