We music fans often get caught up in an artist’s professional accomplishments. They released so many albums, were part of these bands, and had x number of hits. While I enjoy talking about music history, listeners of this podcast will know that some of the best encouragement comes from the off-stage life of our musician friends. Today I’m talking w…

Many conversations on the podcast are with the people on stage, band members, vocalists, and recording artists. But for these musicians to do their craft, there is an army of folks behind the scenes, producers, managers, engineers, and songwriters. Today I'm talking with one of those songwriters. John Chisum is a songwriter with a long list of cred…

Like most of our conversations, today’s guest got started in music as a child, singing with his family. From these humble beginnings, he went on to sell 2.5 million records and garnered 11 number-one songs. Two Grammy Awards and 7 Dove Awards point to the fact that Bruce Carroll is a talented musician. But what draws me most to Bruce is his heart a…

Some of my favorite kinds of stories are the way God directs his kids' lives, sometimes even without us realizing it. My guest today has a fantastic story about God's plans for his life. Paul Wilbur was set to become an Opera singer and traveled to Italy to learn from the best teachers he could find. That was the groundwork for a different kind of …

One of the things I've enjoyed about working on the Christian Music Archive is discovering artists that I was not previously familiar with. Our world is a big place, and many people are making music celebrating the Savior that we may have never heard of. For example, a while back, I stumbled across the music of Noel Robinson. Noel is from Essex, Lo…

The world was introduced to my guest when she released her first album, Child of the Father, in 1994. She followed that album up with My Faith Will Stay, What Matters Most, and There's Joy in the Lord to round out the 1990s. You might figure that everything has gone great for Cheri Keaggy with album titles like these. But like so many of us, life h…

Ever since I was in Junior High School, I've been discovering more and more people who make music glorifying God, and one of my more recent discoveries is a man named Calvin Bridges. Calvin is currently a pastor in Chicago, but he has been making music since the 1980s. His album Renew My Spirit was a breakthrough release on the Billboard Gospel Alb…

The name Scotty Inman is no stranger to fans of Southern Gospel music. As a founding member of the Triumphant Quartet, he has toured the world for over 20 years and has been part of 22 album projects. He is also the recipient of 4 BMI Songwriter awards, having penned songs for numerous gospel groups. This year, Scotty has released a solo project ca…

Music has been a part of worship since before King David wrote the Psalms. Throughout history, artists have been using their voices and instruments to interact with God in a variety of ways. Today we are talking with one of those artists. Charlie Hall is the worship pastor at Frontline Church in Oklahoma City. And before that, he was involved in Pa…

Music is in Tony Elenburg’s veins. As a recording artist, he’s had ten songs in the top 20 charts. As a songwriter, he’s penned songs for Christian and mainstream artists alike. In addition, he has served as a music pastor and now works as a mentor to worship leaders and songwriters. And just this year, he released a new book, A Worship Shepherd, A…

Today’s conversation is especially fun for me because I’m chatting with my friend David Nevue. David and I met in college when we lived down the hall from each other in campus housing. I was a video production major, and he, being the creative actor type, was often involved in acting and theater. And we would often be working on the same projects. …

Kendall Payne is my guest today. Kendall splashed onto the music scene in 1999 with her debut album, which earned her a Dove award. Everything seemed to be going great! And then her label dropped her! But God had other plans for her music. She got married, had two kids, and then the rug got pulled out from under her again—another twist in the story…

Stephen Stanley has been working on his music career since age nine. He grew up listening to '70s and '80s rock bands, but a water ski accident focused his energy on music. He knew he wanted to be in Christian music from a very early age and even attended college specifically to “help his writing because he didn’t want his songs to say anything tha…

I first learned about Angelo & Veronica back in 1992 when they released Higher Place on Benson records. Since that time, they have released more than a dozen albums, both as a duo and a few solo projects for Veronica. Veronica has also written a book called How I Made it Out Alive, documenting her journey through and victory over depression. In add…

To get things started today, I’m going to throw out a few names and see if you can figure out how these musicians are related: Little Walter, Toots Thielemans, Charlie McCoy, Stevie Wonder, Bob Dylan, Darrell Mansfield, Buddy Greene. If you are a student of music, you’ll probably recognize that these are all harmonica players. Astute listeners will…

When the Jesus Movement was getting started in the US, British musicians were also looking to use music to express their faith through their own Gospel Beat movement. One of these early music pioneers Is Adrian Snell. Adrian released his first album in 1975 and has released more than 20 albums. Then, in 1990, he retired from being a professional to…

David Baroni may best be known as a Grammy award-winning songwriter, penning songs for a whos’ who list of Christian musicians. And in addition to writing songs, he has eleven worship albums, several instrumental projects and is the author of numerous books. But more important than his career accomplishments, he talks about his marriage of 41 years…

Today we are headed to England to learn about a relatively new band, Lion of Judah. This group is working to bring Christian music into the mainstream music scene in the UK. Lion of Judah has recently signed with Gospel Song Records, an imprint of Tooth & Nail Records here in the states, and their brand new album Closer was released in October 2021…

Greg Martin of the Kentucky Headhunters is my guest today. He and the guys in the Headhunters have been making music since the 1960’s when they started a band together for an elementary school talent show. I first heard about Greg due to his work with Darrell Mansfield, but I have discovered that he released a gospel blues project called the Mighty…

Buck Storm is an author who has penned numerous fiction and non-fiction books. His current book, The Sound the Sun Makes, follows the adventures of Detective Early Pines into the world of Hollywood. He has also written Finding Jesus in Israel; an off-the-bus peek into the people and places that make Israel such a fantastic destination. But I can al…

In 1997, I was promoting concerts in Portland, Oregon, and was approached by a booking agent to do a show with this new band called Skillet. I distinctly remember that the CD had a white cover with a picture of a cast-iron skillet. And the music was much harder than anything I had promoted up to that point. Well, I promoted that show at a nearby co…

Every week I open our podcast conversation by saying that we are talking with people listed on the pages of the Christian Music Archive. Most of the time that means I’m talking to a singer or performer. But today, we will jump into the control booth and chat with Keith Thomas. Keith has production and songwriting credits on albums from artists like…

Today I welcome the founders of The Worship Initiative to the podcast. Shane Barnard & Shane Everett met in college and have been making music together ever since. According to my count, they have 28 albums and a dozen or more projects for the Worship Initiative. These guys have devoted their lives to equipping worship leaders, and I’m eager to hea…

Today, my guest is Matt Brouwer, who just recently celebrated the 20th anniversary of his debut record Imagerical. That started a music journey resulting in seven albums and multiple music awards. But like so many artists, music is not necessarily the most important part of Matt’s life. After recently relocating back to Canada, Matt is celebrating …

Sara Groves is my guest today, and if you’ve been following Christian music for any length of time, you’ll recognize Sara from albums like Conversations, Invisible Empires, and Fireflies and Songs. Sara has just released her 14th album called What Makes it Through. In addition to her work as a musician, Sara and her husband Troy founded the ArtHous…