Just a few years ago 26-year-old native Tennessean Levi Kreis was on the fast track to success as he was being courted as “the next big thing” by a number of major record labels.

But it didn’t take him long before he realized that what the record companies wanted him to be was something other than what he was. In other words they wanted him to play straight.

Having already survived a stint in the Christian music industry of Nashville while attending Belmont University and trying hard to reconcile his life as a Christian with his growing realization that he was gay, Levi decided that what was being expected of him as a signed recording artist was too strongly paralleled by the negative experiences that had caused him to vacate the Christian music scene.

After this realization, Kreis decided to release an album independently, which truly showcases who he is and delves deep into the pool of this incredibly gifted young man’s talent. Kreis’ work is possessed of a depth and passion for his art that defies description or comparison and this no more evident than on his independently produced album “One of the Ones.” A coming out album of sorts for Kreis, each song is dedicated to one of the men in Kreis’ past with which he has shared love and is a sonic journey of beauty and sadness with incredible highs (“Just This Good,” “Love in Another Light”) and terrible lows (“Lonely Sunday Morning,” “I Should Go”) that are immediately relatable to anyone who has ever had the courage to love before.

The organic presentation of Kreis’ beautifully textured vocals accompanied only by the piano which Kreis strokes like a long-time lover is both engaging and powerful in its simplicity. It was no doubt this same depth of soul and talent that prompted acclaimed writer/producer Del Shores (of “Sordid Lives” fame) to ask Kreis to help pen a song for his stage play “Southern Baptists Sissies.” The song (“Stained Glass Window”) has also been chosen to be the theme music for Shores’ upcoming theatrical production of the same name and Kreis is taking part in the revival of the stage play in Hollywood with Shores as well.

Says Kreis of his music: “If there is one young boy who might grab hold of my album and his journey is similar to mine and my work resonates with his experience then perhaps he can be saved some of the heartache that was so hard for me to get through and maybe he will realize that God loves him exactly the way that he is. Then that makes it all worth it.”

Regardless if one is gay, straight or otherwise one simply has not heard a love song until one has heard it sung by this man. Levi Kreis’ “One of the Ones” is a must-have for fans of honest, engaging music that uplifts the heart and empowers the soul. Anyone interested in learning more about Levi Kreis or purchasing a copy of “One of the Ones” should visit www.levikreis.com.