Keith Lionel Brown
Keith Lionel Brown, a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is a budding songwriter. In April 2019, at the age of 60, he introduced his song writing talents to the world when he released his first original song called "Song of My Heart."
The song has been admired by people from different walks of life. It has not only touched the hearts of people of the Latter-day Saint faith, but people of other faiths and beliefs, as well as some non-Christians, have also been inspired by the song. Even a Buddhist monk commented on how much he enjoyed and appreciated the message of the song.
Keith Lionel Brown does not consider himself to be a singer. He sees himself as a words and music man – he writes the words and comes up with the melody and commissions other people to be the voice. He does not write songs intended solely for a Latter-day Saint audience. He writes songs that he hopes will speak to the hearts of people worldwide regardless of their beliefs or station in life.
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Born of Goodly Parents
Keith Lionel Brown was born on Friday, 17 October 1958, in what was then the small town of Salisbury, Maryland, in what was then known as the Salisbury Hospital. He is the second of four children born to the late John Wallace Brown and Frances Mae Brown (nee Harmon). His three siblings are Kenneth (Ken), Sharon, and Patricia (Pat). Sharon, the older of the two sisters, passed away from complications from COVID-19 on 21 April 2020.
Keith’s father was a short-order cook, a school bus driver, and he also had his own lawn care business. His father loved being outdoors either planting things, gardening, or building things like his own work sheds. During Keith’s youth, it was not uncommon for his father to work two or three jobs to keep a roof over the family’s head, clothes on their back, bills paid, and food on the table. His father passed away at the age of 71 on 20 November 2006.
Keith’s mother worked at the local McDonalds for many years and later worked as a molding specialist for a local manufacturing company. She loved sewing and making her own clothes, putting together jigsaw puzzles, doing crossword puzzles, and reading the scriptures. It is because of her example of reading and studying the scriptures that Keith developed his own love for the scriptures.
His mother also loved attending church services regularly and did her best to raise her four progenies on sound gospel principles. The family attended a little Baptist church where Keith sang in the youth choir for a time. There was nothing that his mother loved more than her family and considered nothing to be too great of a sacrifice to ensure their well-being, often putting her own needs aside. She passed away on 12 June 1997, at the young age of 59, after losing her battle with breast cancer.
Seeking Wisdom and Knowledge Through Education
Keith started school at the age of five in September 1964. He attended the Salisbury Elementary School (now known as the Charles H. Chipman Elementary School), which at the time was the only elementary school that Black elementary school students living in his area could attend. He would not interact with White students until he was bussed across town in his first year of high school to Wicomico Junior High School (now known as Wicomico Middle School). After graduating from Wicomico Junior High School in June 1973, he attended Wicomico Senior High School (now known as Wicomico High School) for his final three years of school. He graduated from high school in June 1976.
During his high school years, Keith’s favorite subjects were mathematics and foreign languages. He studied Latin for one year and Spanish for five years. He tied for fifth place in a National Spanish Exam. He also aspired to one day become a teacher and was a member of several clubs, including the Future Teachers of America club. He was also a member of the school band for a time and played the clarinet.
After graduating high school, Keith attended a semester at Salisbury State College (now known as Salisbury University). He later attended Delaware Technical and Community College in Georgetown, Delaware, where he graduated with an A.A.S. Degree in Data Processing Technology in June 1979. While attending college, Keith worked at a local family restaurant as a dishwasher and a busboy.
Service to His Country
In March 1981, at the young age of 22, Keith decided to leave home and joined the United States Navy. He attended boot camp in San Diego, California.
At first, he had only planned to serve one term of enlistment, but he eventually ended up spending 20 years on active duty. During those 20 years of service, he traveled the world and was honored to serve in countries like Greece, Bahrain U.A.E., and Iceland, and visited many wonderful places like Hawaii, Singapore, Japan, Thailand, Mexico, the Bahamas, Hong Kong, Oman Jordan, Italy, and the Philippines. He had numerous exciting military assignments and was afforded the opportunity to see parts of the world that he never imagined that he would see in his lifetime.
Keith was also the recipient of numerous awards and medals. He even earned his Distinguished Instructor Award while teaching Navy electronic calibration techniques in Norfolk, Virginia.
He retired from active-duty military service in March 2001, just six short months before the horrific events of 11 September 2001. He was a part of the inactive Fleet Reserve for 10 years, and his name was officially added to the United States Navy Retired list on 1 September 2010.
The Beginnings of Music in His Life
Keith Lionel Brown comes from a rich musical background. His mother, maternal grandmother, maternal great grandmother, and several aunts and cousins were all members of the Sacred Doves gospel choir at the Baptist church that he attended as a young boy.
There were also uncles and cousins that played musical instruments and sang in the men’s group known as the Baptist Jubilees. Keith was even a member of the church’s youth choir during his teenage years, and his youngest sister, Patricia, plays guitar, piano, organ, and drums, all by ear.
Songs of My Heart Music
In early 2019, Keith founded Songs of My Heart Music. He even created an official website where he shares his original music creations, as well as some of his personal thoughts and feelings about how music influences our lives.
On 12 April 2019, Keith introduced his song writing talents to the world with the release of his first original song, which is called "Song of My Heart." Having never written a song before, and unsure as to how it would be received, he was overjoyed at the welcoming response that the song garnered.
Wayne S. Forrey, a Latter-day Saint musician, commented:
- As I listened to your, “Song of My Heart,” several times, I really felt the beautiful message of your music. The music and lyrics are so very meaningful. I hope that you will issue a new edition of this song with your voice…so we can hear this song with a male voice…from a male perspective. So many beautiful songs seem to have a female voice. We need songs like your “Song of My Heart” sung by a man so we can feel a masculine connection with God.
Sherri Whitehead, the manager of the music group Spark Singers commented:
- The initial thing that I noticed was the hauntingly beautiful and familiar-feeling melody. It took no time to attach to it—and it created the perfect backdrop for the lyrics. . .. The lyrics are truly a beautiful outpouring of prayer from the soul of an earthly traveler. It is a song that begs to be sung because it represents what we have all felt. I loved how the tempo slowed near the end and created moments of even greater thoughtfulness.
As of early February 2021, the song has received more than 2,000 hits on YouTube and Facebook combined. The owner of a Christian radio station discovered the song on social media and began playing the song over the airwaves in her country, the Philippines. You can read the story behind the song online.
"Song of My Heart" was followed in February 2020 by an original song that Keith wrote and dedicated to the loving memory of his mother who passed away at the young age of 59 from breast cancer. The song is called "The Memories Live On." It was released on Valentine’s Day, 14 February 2020. The story behind the song is available to read online.
Wayne S. Forrey commented:
- I really love your song, “The Memories Live On.” The photos of you and your beautiful mother with the music in the background brought tears to my eyes. You are so blessed to have a loving relationship with your mother. You have weathered some tremendous setbacks and heartbreaks in your life. Your parents have both passed away and your sister is hospitalized. But look at the tenderness and compassion that has come into your life because of overcoming those challenges.
In late 2020, Keith was inspired to write yet another original song. This time he was inspired to write about his love of the scriptures. From his youth, he has always had a sincere love for the Word of God and was impressed to write a song about it as both his personal testimony and to encourage other people, especially in the troubled times in which we now live.
The song is called "Thy Word in My Heart." Wanting to have a male voice for this song, Keith reached out to his friend Teeroy Tyobee from Nigeria to sing the vocals. Teeroy agreed and plans are in the works to record and release the song in early March 2020.
