Returning from the success of Made A Way Remix from Bella Dawn Music’s Billboard award-winning gospel artist and songwriter, Keyondra Lockett releases her much-anticipated new single, Liar, now available across all digital outlets.
Liar produced by hitmaker Jeshua “Tedy P” Williams and written by BMI Award winning songwriter Keyondra Lockett delivers an infectious smooth groove with powerful lyrics and a ‘must-have’ in your playlist.
When asked to share about the back story of Liar, Keyondra says, the devil is tricky and schematic. You’ve got to have the Holy Ghost to carry you in all situations.” “When Peter tried to stop Christ from going to the cross, he told Peter, “Satan get thee behind me,” (Matthew 16:23), she adds. “He knew that was the devil talking through Peter and that’s exactly what we’ve got to do when we’re tested by the devil.”
The multiple chart-topping independent recording artist is a native of Shreveport, Louisiana and one of the great voices of our time.
Keyondra is a soulful inspirational artist with a fervor for Kingdom building. She is one of the original members of gospel group Zie’l and shares the accomplishment of two-time Stellar Award Nominee.
She has shared the stage with artists such as Yolanda Adams, Karen Clark-Sheard, Kierra Sheard, The Clark Sisters, Livre, Tye Tribbett, Kirk Franklin, Mary Mary, The Walls Group, Alexis Spight and many more.
Rising Christian artist Erin Corrado is set to release her newest inspirational single, “Hiding Place,” to encourage listeners who are going through hard times to look to God.
Inspired by Psalm 61, “Hiding Place” describes how listeners can find refuge, protection and safety in God despite difficult situations that may surround them.
“I have always loved the imagery of a hand-made fort in the woods, a place a child would run to after school, or after having a bad day,” Corrado said. “Much like a fairytale, God’s presence and His ways are often beyond our understanding and explanation. God is able to transcend our own life experiences and what we may be facing in our day-to-day lives into comfort, peace, and solace.”
Co-written by Corrado, Audrie Mouzakis and Matt Mouzakis and produced by John Strandell, the single is a culmination of many talented people coming together to use their talents to worship the Lord.
You are my hiding place
A refuge from this storm
You are the peace and rest
My soul is longing for
Here in Your presence
There is healing there is joy
I’m safe in Your hands
This heart is Yours
Corrado hopes “Hiding Place” will help listeners see that God is a high tower, a special place where they are accepted and loved and a steady, constant joy. The new single will be available on Reverb Nation, Spotify, TIDAL and all other streaming platforms.
“My Everything,” a new single from Contemporary Christian artist Zach Taylor, is going for adds today to Christian AC-formatted radio outlets. A video for “My Everything” is available below.
Taylor, who is from Bluffton, Indiana, currently is a worship leader at Forgiven Church where his parents are pastors.
As Jeremiah 29:11 says, I believe God has big plans for me and my music,” Taylor shares. “People may not like what they hear me saying in my music at first,” he says, “but if they listen with open hearts and open ears, I believe they may understand.”
“My Everything” is the first single being released by the musician under the new artist name after being known by his fans as Zachary Ochsner for several years. He wrote the song with Ezra Jozef Fredette, who co-produced the single with Noah Hirschy.
Taylor already is garnering media attention with a recent article in CCMagazine.com and being featured on New Release Today’s Indie Artist Watch page.
Kutless has released Twenty, an EP featuring reimagined, re-recorded versions of three hit songs from the band’s self-titled debut album Kutless. Kutless is celebrating the album’s 20th anniversary with a musical expression of gratitude for 20 years of ministry. Twenty is available now.
The Twenty EP features fresh takes on “Your Touch,” “Run” and “Tonight,” all songs that put Kutless on the map two decades ago as a rock band to watch.
“We’ve been through a lot over the last 20 years,” Kutless lead singer and songwriter Jon Micah Sumrall shares. “We’ve grown, we’ve learned, there have been hard times, there have been fun times. Every step of the way as we revisited these songs, it brought back a lot of memories.”
“Our fans want two things from us,” guitarist and songwriter James Mead adds. “One, they want us to treat their beloved songs with respect. And two, they want to be surprised in a pleasant way. It was exciting to face that challenge, to give these songs a long enough leash that we could change parts, add new parts and really focus on the fact that we’ve grown over the past 20 years.”
The new renditions were recorded with Josiah Prince (Disciple, Fireflight) and mixed by Nick “Rad” Radovanovic (Skillet, TobyMac). With that outstanding studio team behind them, Kutless was equipped to reinvent some of their most career-defining songs. “I was 21 years old when that first record came out, and James was 19,” Jon Micah explains. “Now we have all this experience. We’re much better musicians, much more seasoned. We wanted to bring that experience and skill to these new renditions.”
Although cast in new explosive, polished musical housing, these three songs still do what Kutless has always done best: speak to the timeless goodness of God. “Your Touch” offers up a cry of a heart in the dark, moving in faith to invite God in. “Run” is sung from God’s perspective, tenderly inviting us back to His love when we’re blindly running towards the things that will never satisfy.
“Tonight” has been something of a creed for Kutless, a mission statement birthed in the days when few could believe that rock and worship could coexist. “When Kutless first came out in 2002, rock music was still treated like it was bad,” James recalls. “This song was for any person who may not understand what we’re doing and why we’re doing it. ‘Tonight’ shows them what’s happening. We’re giving glory to God, using our gifts and our passion to bring people to Him and to tell them about Jesus Christ.”
Looking back at the path songs like “Tonight” paved is proof of Kutless’s impact not only on their listeners, but on the genre as a whole. Kutless was one of the earliest bands to offer accessible rock with faith-first lyrics— a format that would incite an entire cohort of bands to follow.
With these freshly recorded versions of their songs, a whole new generation has the chance to be inspired by Kutless’s music. In fact, that inspiration has already begun through a very special guest feature in the gang vocals on “Your Touch:” Jon Micah’s 17-year-old aspiring musician son, Caleb.
“On ‘Your Touch’ there was a part where I knew we would need to be stacking vocals,” Jon Micah explains. “So I was like ‘hey, you want to sing on this song?’ He was just so stoked that he got to be a part of it. It’s his first professional release.”
The Twenty EP is truly poised as the perfect bridge between where Kutless has been and where they’re headed, as they continue to work on fresh new music in the studio. They’ll also be launching a podcast, featuring stories from their many years on the road. Some of those stories are already teased on the 20 album artwork, which is a collage of photos from notable moments in the band’s past.
“It’s been a privilege to be a part of this, to let God lead us. To look back on all these memories is really special to me,” James concludes.
Contemporary Christian artist and worship leader Andrew Kurtz releases “Baptized,” a new radio single today. The song, from Kurtz’s album titled “Living the Adventure,” goes for adds to Christian AC formatted radio outlets.
“My greatest hope,” Kurtz says, “is that my life and my music will be an example of a life lived in surrender and obedience to God.”
“Baptized,” which was written by Kurtz and produced by Ahmod Goins and Rob Costelow, is available at all digital retailers. A video for the song can be viewed below.
Kurtz has been a worship pastor for more than 10 years at some of the most prominent churches in Raleigh, North Carolina, fusing his passion for ministry with music. Kurtz’ weaves his influences of pop, blues, gospel and R&B styles into his energetic and inviting musical messages.
On July 1, Kurtz signed with McLaughlin Music Group for management representation.
GRAMMY award-winning collective Maverick City Music and 16-time GRAMMY winner Kirk Franklin officially announced Kingdom Book One Deluxe Album, out July 22 via Tribl Records and Fo Yo Soul Entertainment / RCA Inspiration.
The deluxe LP features nine new songs that were recorded on tour, inspired by its predecessor that was recorded in a Florida prison yard in efforts to raise awareness for mass incarceration. The artists were deeply impacted by their experience at the facility and felt such a new sense of being, empowering them to explore new creative sounds and worship. To help usher the new musical evolution, they share the following mellifluous offerings: “Exodus” and “The Name.”
“These songs are a reflection of our work in the prison” says co-founder & CEO of Maverick City Tony Brown. “Being on tour and seeing the response of 10,000+ people each night has truly been such an inspirational experience.”
The genre-transcending project features Maverick City Music and Kirk Franklin recording alongside more than ninety-percent of a Florida prison, taking the idea of “prison performance” to another level. Joined by men from every walk-of-life – different gangs, races and backgrounds – this whole project evolved from an unfiltered message of love and universal acceptance and became a passionate, powerful movement that embodies the collective’s core beliefs of inspiring and helping others.
2022 is the year of Maverick City Music. Following the group’s recent Grammy win and historic mainstage performance, the record-breaking collective has been on a magnificent rise. Since then, they’ve gone on to perform mainstage at the BET Awards, and also alongside Diddy and Faith Evans, performed for NPR Tiny Desk, and on The View. Last week, they appeared on the TODAY Show for a performance and interview.
Kingdom Book One (Deluxe Album) – Maverick City Music x Kirk Franklin
Last week, Maverick City Music x Kirk Franklin performed for the All-American Summer Concert Series on ‘Fox and Friends.’ Watch HERE.
Maverick City Music x Kirk Franklin are currently embarked on a massive coast-to-coast arena tour, breaking records in ticket sales per night and consistently landing in the Top 10 of all tours on Pollstar. Upcoming shows include Los Angeles, Vegas, Chicago and more.
Singer/songwriter and veteran worship leader Aaron Williams is set to bow his highly anticipated full-length debut, The Hope of Christ, August 5. The Worship Initiative release was produced by Williams and Alan Thomas (joan) and features 10 pop-driven live worship selections extolling the boundless grace, love and rest offered by the Savior.
Williams co-penned each track, with additional songwriting contributions from Shane Barnard, Jason Ingram, Jon Egan and Benji Cowart, among others. Highlights of The Hope of Christ include lead single “Walk By Faith,” an anthem of devotion to Jesus; album opener “Enter In,” celebrating our unfettered access to the Father; the Shane & Shane-featured title-cut, a confident proclamation of the heart of the Gospel; and “Abide” (feat. Aaron Keyes), a melodic ballad already resonating with worshipers around the world.
“The overarching theme that inspired this project is summed up in ‘Abide,’” Williams shares. “We live in a world that often leaves us feeling like the only way forward is to hustle, achieve, and prove our value. Jesus offers a different way of life—a way that still leads to fruitfulness but does so out of a place of acceptance and life-giving relationship. To abide is to learn to live in dependance on God for all things. It’s to stand on the truth that we are loved no matter what we achieve, and no matter how we fail.”
“I want The Hope of Christ to help people move deeper into that kind of abiding relationship with God, one that lingers in His presence and worships Him extravagantly in the everyday moments of life,” Williams adds.
The album’s next single, “No Height No Depth,” available later this week, is a deeply personal track for Williams. “I wrote it this Spring after nearly losing a close friend to mental health struggles,” he reveals. “With rates of anxiety, depression, and suicide at an all-time high in our society, I wanted to offer a song that would help people give voice to worship during such seasons of life. If we’re going to worship Him with sincerity during times of hardship and struggle, we need songs with fitting language for those moments. ‘No Height No Depth’ aims to honestly express where we are, while anchoring ourselves in the unchanging love of God.”
‘Home’ is inspired by the parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-32). It is the first offering from Yates’ Between the Joy and the Sorrow Part 2 album. Last month (June 24), Yates released Between the Joy and the Sorrow Part 1.
In someway we’ve all been the prodigal son. The song is about coming to the end of yourself, making mistakes, getting lost and deciding to return home empty handed with the intent to beg the father to accept you back. Yet the reality is the Father was always there, waiting for the son, he welcomes his son and throws the biggest party.
Benjamin Hastings release new music titled “Feels Like A Blessing” with JUDAH. The official lyric video can be viewed below. “Feels Like A Blessing” is available now.
Friday (July 22), Nashville-based singer/songwriter and worship leader Shaylee Simeone releases new music with “If It Comes From You.” The track was produced by Chad Carouthers and written by Simeone, Luke Brown, and Jillian Edwards.
Simeone is on a journey to say “yes” to God’s calling on her life. With pop-inspired music that is inherently congregational, she took her first step with a single debut of “Dearly Loved” on July 26th, 2019, which currently has over 5 million streams on Apple Music. For years now, Shaylee has enjoyed being a part of several music projects focused on sync/licensing (including the band HRDLY and Sugar Sad Eyes) while consistently leading worship at her local church; it’s no wonder that writing worship music that feels universally accessible has been such a natural transition. She recently signed her first record deal with Lula Street Records, and “If It Comes From You” will be a part of the first EP released through this new partnership.
“This song means a lot to me because it was written during a sort of crossroads in my career and ministry. I felt God calling me towards writing worship music, but I kept doubting myself and questioning. Still to this day I find it to be a difficult balance of being confident in what I feel I was created to do while also making sure that I’m following God’s voice and not my own. This song was a way of grounding myself, a reminder that every good and perfect gift comes from Him. He knows where I’ve been, He knows my hopes and dreams. And I only want this if it comes from Him.”
