Those of you who followed me while I was doing community work for Portland’s Q Center between 2010-2014 are most likely already familiar with the story of my Inter-Community Dialogue Project between the LGBTQ Community and Mars Hill Church…or, at least, you might think you are familiar.

I have been sitting on a documentary I made over the course of those years, but with everything going on in the world right now, it feels important to finally let people know what REALLY happened.

One major note that’s not captured in the film, is that Mars Hill Church members from our group subsequently denounced the teachings of their former leader and disassembled all of their congregations after we shot the final scenes.

Here is our story…

Watch “Lead With Love”

ABOUT THE FILM

What happens when an out, gay musician befriends an anti-gay church leader?

Notoriously anti-gay conservative evangelical megachurch Mars Hill landed in Portland, Oregon in 2011.  The public reacted swiftly in protest of the arrival of these unwelcome ideals and the media picked up the story of their purchase of “the castle” immediately.

When local musician and LGBTQ activist Logan Lynn, who was working as the spokesperson and publicist for Portland’s Q Center at the time, was quoted in The Oregonian as saying he would “extend an olive branch“ and “be respectful of them and try to make friends“ – and then he proceeded to do just that — all hell broke loose in the media, as well as in the community.

From broken windows to broken hearts, through death threats and violence, this is the true story of what can happen when sworn enemies set aside their differences and get to know one another as people.

“People have been telling the story of what happened between me and Mars Hill Church completely wrong for years,” Lynn says about the controversial inter-community dialogue project, which he created. “I gave up correcting strangers and the media half a decade ago, but I also made this documentary as it was all happening so that the truth could someday be told. That someday is now.”

After the final scenes of Logan Lynn’s “Lead With Love” documentary were shot, the controversial founder and leader of the church, Mark Driscoll, resigned and all of the Mars Hill Church congregations were dissolved across the nation.

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My new record ADIEU is “Vinyl of the Week” over at Forestpunk this week! Check out their killer review HERE, or keep reading below.

From Forestpunk: (1/28/2017)

“Vinyl Of The Week: Logan Lynn – Adieu Review
A synthy Indie Pop “jazz hands mental crisis” from Portland‘s Logan Lynn on Adieu, Lynn’s eighth LP.

Both the record sleeve and the LP decals for Adieu feature a super cute crimson Pomeranian against a striking, cheery chartreuse backdrop. A closer examination reveals the pet being fed with blood from a slit wrist. It’s an apt entry point for Logan Lynn’s jaunty, musical theater-informed song cycle on breakups, mental health, suicidal thoughts, and recovery. Self help never sounded so fun!

Taken at the surface level, Adieu would simply be another peppy, upbeat synthpop record – albeit a very good one – with sharp, tight arrangements and eloquent lyrics. Diving into the lyric sheet (thoughtfully included with the 2xLP) cracks the shiny veneer, revealing an unexpected darkness, as Lynn peels off his skin, to share his shredded nerves and modern-day anxieties, delving into the seamy, sleazy side of life, while sounding like a Threepenny Opera.

Lynn and longtime collaborator Gino Mari broke the mold on Lynn’s traditional methodology, with Lynn writing all the vocals and lyrics acapella, then bringing them into the studio for further embellishment, both synthetic and organic. Classic piano pop – a la Ben Folds, Harry Nilsson, Randy Newman – meet lo-fi synths and canned beats, as heard on album opener double header “I Like It All The Time” followed by “Go There Where You Want To Be Loved” – the catchiest, most tuneful take on abandonment you’re likely to hear this month.

The melodicism and catchy arrangements – like the toppling piano chords and pots-and-pans percussion of “Go There” – are a perfect microcosm of what makes this album so exceptional, so unique, so palatable. Lynn laces the abyss with a wheelbarrow full of sugary Indie Pop. Read the rest of this entry »

Thanks, New York! xoxo

From BestofWNY.com: (1/17/2017)

“Logan Lynn – Adieu – Portland, Oregon based musician, artist, producer, activist and television personality Logan Lynn has released his 8th album tilted Adieu a fifteen song cycle that deals with Lynn’s struggles through addiction, mental health problems, depression, relationship upheavals and the sudden death of his constant companion his beloved Pomeranian. Producer Gino Mari helps craft Lynn’s snippets and jumbles of sounds, lyrics, melodies and more that had been collected on Lynn’s phone and other media devices for Adieu into a cohesive story. Lynn has always been open about his mental health struggles and the cathartic medium his music and songs have been to his road to recovery. Delivered over two slabs of delicious red vinyl the sound is a mash of synth pop and alternative singer songwriter delivered with an open nakedness demanded of the material. Check out the tracks “Go There When You Want To Be Loved”, “Can You Get Me Off?”, the dirge like “I Am Like A Dog Now”, the heavy riff of “The One”, the thumper “Break Me Down” and “We Will Overcome’. A couple of other standout tracks include the title cut “Adieu” and “Oh, Lucifer” Lynn’s middle finger kiss off to the fundamentalist cult he escaped from as a youth. Find out more about Logan Lynn and his latest release Adieu by going to www.loganlynnmusic.com”