Mike Curb has spent decades defining the sound and architecture of contemporary Christian music. A former lieutenant governor and Acting Governor of California, he is also a philanthropist and GRAMMY-winning producer and record executive whose contributions to Contemporary Christian music date back to the genre’s earliest years.
As the founder of Curb Records and chairman of Word Entertainment, Mike laid the foundation for faith-based music’s acceptance into the mainstream. His efforts paved the way for generations of artists who express themselves in contemporary music while remaining true to their spiritual roots.
Faith in the Studio
Mike’s musical career began in the 1960s when popular culture was rife with experimentation and social commentary. Realizing that Christian artists needed an outlet for genuine musical expression, he signed Larry Norman, DeGarmo & Key, and 2nd Chapter of Acts. These groundbreaking musicians fused rock, pop, and gospel to create what would later be known as Contemporary Christian music.
Remember that this was a time when few record executives were willing to gamble on faith-based material. But with Mike’s groundbreaking efforts, Christian artists broke through radio and concert circuits nationwide, ultimately transforming the industry’s view of religious music.
Establishing a Robust Foundation
Curb Records, founded in 1964, became a force across several genres while still championing spiritually motivated material. As president of MGM and Verve Records, Mike Curb further extended his reach with acts such as The Boone Family, The Osmond Family, and The Mike Curb Congregation. With their inspirational messages set to mainstream pop arrangements, these artists soon became household names. Many people consider Curb’s recording of Debby Boone’s “You Light Up My Life” to be the first major hit recording in the contemporary Christian genre. The recording became the #1 record of the entire decade of the 1970s according to Billboard magazine. Almost 20 years later, in 1996, Curb received the Billboard award for co-producing “You Light Up My Life” by LeAnn Rimes, which became the first and only album to ever debut #1 on the Billboard Christian, Country, and Pop charts.
Curb Records has continued to play a major role in the contemporary Christian genre with multi-Dove award winners such as Selah, Michael English, Fernando Ortega, Whiteheart, Plumb, Jonathan Pierce, and Natalie Grant, who has received five Gospel Music Association Dove Awards as Female Vocalist of the Year. Curb also partnered with MercyMe, whose recording of “I Can Only Imagine” became one of the biggest Christian crossover hits of all time.
From the beginning of this century, Curb has served as Chairman of Curb and Word Records and later completed the full purchase of Word, which is the oldest gospel music company. In recent years Curb | Word has had success with Francesca Battistelli, Nicole C. Mullen, Point of Grace, Big Daddy Weave, Sidewalk Prophets, Sixpence None The Richer, Carly Ann Taylor, Hannah Kerr, Stephen Malcolm, We Are Messengers, Stars Go Dim, Blanca, and for KING + COUNTRY, who won four GRAMMYs including the “God Only Knows” duet with Dolly Parton. The Curb-published recording of “Three Wooden Crosses” by Randy Travis became a major crossover Christian hit. Also, in 2025, the Curb-published Lloyd Nicks’ composition “That’s My King” performed by CeCe Winans won the GRAMMY for Contemporary Christian Music Performance/Song.
Under Mike’s stewardship, Curb | Word Entertainment eventually became a premier Christian music label, nurturing artists who prioritized both faith and creative innovation. This transformation helped cement the genre’s legitimacy in the music community.
A Continuing Legacy of Excellence
Well into the 21st century, Mike continued to champion gospel and roots-oriented music. In 2021, Curb Records’ artist, the Fisk Jubilee Singers, won a GRAMMY Award for “Celebrating Fisk! (The 150th Anniversary Album)”. Mike Curb and Paul Kwami won GRAMMYs for producing the album. The GRAMMY-winning album involved the reworking of African American spirituals in the contemporary gospel style.
Nurturing Future Voices
In addition to his recording and production success, Mike has contributed to the advancement of Christian music education through his philanthropic efforts. Through the Mike Curb Foundation, he has launched life-changing initiatives that continue to shape future generations of artists and producers.
At Belmont University in Nashville, Mike’s $58 million grant made possible the two-phase expansion of the Mike Curb College of Entertainment and Music Business. The songwriting and live-sound rooms subsequently built have been put to good use by students pursuing careers in faith-based and mainstream music.
In addition, the Curb Learning Lab at Baylor University allows music business students to learn in an environment where many of the contemporary Christian music industry leaders received their education.
The Foundation was responsible for building a computer music lab at UCLA’s Herb Alpert School of Music. It also funded the complete overhaul of the Mike Curb Student Recording Facility at the Evelyn and Mo Ostin Music Center in 2025.
Other donations to Rhodes College and Daytona State College have further driven Mike’s vision. Due to his efforts to foster industry partnerships and practical training, Billboard cited the Mike Curb Institute for Music at Rhodes College as one of the country’s premier music business schools. Other Curb colleges and programs include the Curb Center at Vanderbilt University, and programs at Occidental College in Los Angeles, Fisk University in Nashville, Arizona State University, University of Hawaii, Claremont-McKenna, Bethune-Cookman University, and the Mike Curb College at Cal State University, including The Soraya Center for Performing Arts and the Channel Island Studios. Over 10,000 students annually attend Curb colleges throughout the country.
Faith, Innovation, and Influence
Mike Curb’s imprint on Contemporary Christian music goes beyond his initial signings and later entrepreneurial pursuits. With his blend of conviction and creativity, he successfully transformed a fringe market into a globally successful genre.
In 2025, Curb partnered in the establishment of the Gospel Music Association’s Hall of Fame Gallery.
Today, 60 years after signing his first artists to Curb Records, Mike continues to support established artists and foster up-and-coming talent. Still one of the most active and vocal proponents of faith-based art, Mike Curb remains a pillar of Contemporary Christian music and a testament to the genre’s ability to inspire, unite, and uplift.