Joyful Noise 2018 Highlights from the Amazing Weekend
Well Joyful Noise 2018 is in the books. Another amazingly fun, worshipful, wonderful family time for the huge, diverse faith community.
What is Joyful Noise you ask? Joyful Noise is a Christian Music Festival in the Minneapolis St Paul Metro area. The festival is put on by 98.5 KTIS, a powerhouse Christian Radio Station started by The Reverend Billy Graham.
Joyful Noise is where 98.5 KTIS comes to life in the biggest party of the year! For two days your whole family can play together, worship together, and make lasting memories together.
It’s so much more than just two days of concerts (but we’ve booked the best artists just for you). There is an entire soccer field full of dozens of inflatable toys for your kids to play on for free! There’s room to run and make new friends.
This is the most family-friendly music festival in the Twin Cities.
The mission of Joyful Noise and 98.5 KTIS is to lead people to Christ and nurture believers in their spiritual growth through Christ-centered media.
I received a press pass to cover this, the tenth year of the festival, which gave me access to capture the event.
My purpose here is to give you some Joyful Noise 2018 highlights. This post will give me a place to publish some of my thoughts, images, and videos from the event. Over the next few days and weeks as I get the images edited I will do my best to get some great stuff published here.
For King and Country
Little Drummer Boy
One amazing highlight that I have to publish right away is the final song from the amazing band For King and Country. For King and Country is made up of two brothers from Austrailia and other great friends. You may not know they are actually the brothers of Christian artist Rebecca St. James. They have a song that I love that I most wanted them to play but least expected them to play, “Little Drummer Boy” because it is not Christmas time. But heck I sing Christmas songs all year long, ask my coworkers.
Here you go, For King and Country Little Drummer Boy
For King and Country Little Drummer Boy
The Band
For King & Country, stylized as for KING & COUNTRY and formerly known as Joel & Luke as well as Austoville, is a Christian pop duo composed of Australian brothers Joel (born 5 June 1984) and Luke Smallbone (born 22 October 1986). The Nashville-based brothers’ 2012 debut record Crave, has received praise, and the brothers were declared by Billboard as one of the “New Artists To Watch” for 2012. American Songwriter described them as “Australia’s answer to Coldplay.”
SUSIE Magazine raves, “It takes only one listen to the brothers’ rich, upbeat, alternative sounds and thoughtful lyrics to understand their sudden popularity.”
They describe their philosophy as such:
“The power of music can impact our mood, emotions, our day. But when you merge the strength of music with the heart, hope and passion of the Gospel… it has the ultimate power not only to change someone’s day, but to impact them for eternity. This is why we write music and sing songs – we hope that people will be moved, encouraged and stirred to live a life for Someone greater than themselves.”
They cite U2, Mutemath, OneRepublic, the Beatles, Goo Goo Dolls, and Switchfoot, as well as film scores such as those from Braveheart and Gladiator, as their musical influences.
History
During high school, the brothers supplied background vocals and other supporting roles for their sister, Rebecca St. James, and various bands in concerts across America. Shortly after Luke graduated from high school, the brothers decided to explore the possibility of forming a band, and in 2007, they began performing as their own band. They began their career with the band name “Joel & Luke”, which they later changed to “Austoville”.
In 2008, they released an EP, A Tale of Two Towns with six songs, three of which appeared on Crave with slightly different melodies and lyrics (“Missing”, “Sane”, and “Love’s to Blame”) and three others entitled “Broken Lullabies”, “Believe Me Now”, and “Something’s Gotta Give”. Love’s to Blame was co-written by St. James.[5] In 2009, they signed on with Warner Music Group with Ben Glover as their producer. They changed their name to “For King & Country”, after a British battle cry. Luke said,
“We wanted a band name that carried more meaning. We were in the studio recording our debut record that Joel had the idea of All The King’s Men, like the Humpty Dumpty nursery rhyme. Our producer overheard our conversation and swung around in his chair and said, ‘What about For King & Country?’ And we all felt a sense of providence in that moment. “For King and Country” was the battle cry of English soldiers willing to lay down their lives for their king and their country. And now it has become our mission, to lay down our lives for our King and our country.”
Joyful Noise 2018 For King and CountryIn 2011, they released For King & Country: The EP. Their song “Busted Heart (Hold On To Me)” was released as a single and peaked at No. 3 on Billboard’s Christian Songs chart. They described “Busted Heart” as “really a universal cry of humanity for something greater than ourselves…We think we’ve got it all sorted out, and life will deal you those blows.” “Busted Heart” was the fastest-rising single of 2011 in their genre, climbing the Top 10 for weeks.
Their debut album Crave was released on 28 February 2012. The album hit No. 2 on the iTunes top Christian & Gospel albums on its day of release and No. 42 on the overall chart. It peaked at No. 4 on Billboard’s Christian Albums chart, and remained on the chart for 41 weeks. It also reached No. 128 on the Billboard 200 chart.
The album has received rave reviews from critics. Shortly after Crave’s release, they released “The Proof of Your Love” as a single, remixed and titled “The Proof of Your Love: The Monologue Mix”.
The single differs from the album version with a monologue spoken by Joel from 1 Corinthians 13:1-7 (The Message) as the bridge instead of the guitar riff on the album version. The single reached No. 8 on Billboard’s Hot Christian Songs chart and spent 29 weeks on the chart. The band toured on the 2012 Winter Jam Tour Spectacular. In May 2012, they appeared on the Huckabee show on Fox News Channel.
Source Wiki
Mandisa
Mandisa Lynn Hundley (born October 2, 1976), known professionally as Mandisa, is an American gospel and contemporary Christian recording artist. Her career began as a contestant in the fifth season of American Idol, in which she finished in ninth place. She is the fifth American Idol alumna to win a Grammy Award for her album Overcomer in the Best Contemporary Christian Music Album.
Early Life
Mandisa was born and raised in Citrus Heights, California. After graduating from El Camino Fundamental High School, she attended American River College in Sacramento where she studied Vocal Jazz. Then she studied at Fisk University in Tennessee and graduated with a Bachelor of Music degree with a concentration in vocal performance.
American Idol
Mandisa auditioned for the United States talent competition show American Idol in Chicago. She referred to herself as “just Mandisa,” thus was billed simply as Mandisa on the show. She stated that her musical influences run the gamut from Whitney Houston to Def Leppard.
Idol judge Simon Cowell made several comments about Mandisa’s weight after her successful audition. He first quipped, “Do we have a bigger stage this year?” Then, when Paula Abdul commented that Mandisa had a “Frenchie” growl to her voice, Cowell responded that a more apt comparison would be to France itself. These were among comments that drew the ire of the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance, (NAAFA) and would be one of the reasons Mandisa would entitle her 2007 album True Beauty.
When Mandisa presented herself to the judges prior to the final cut-down to the season’s 24 semi-finalists, she told Cowell: “What I want to say to you is that, yes, you hurt me and I cried and it was painful, it really was. But I want you to know that I’ve forgiven you and that you don’t need someone to apologize in order to forgive somebody. I figure that if Jesus could die so that all of my wrongs could be forgiven, I can certainly extend that same grace to you.” Cowell told Mandisa that he was “humbled” and apologized to her immediately.
On the March 7, 2006, Idol show, she stated in her pre-performance video that she sucked her thumb until she was 24 years old. She performed a rendition of Chaka Khan’s “I’m Every Woman” which drew praise from all three judges. She was among the 12 contestants chosen on March 9, 2006, as a finalist in Idol’s fifth season.
Mandisa was eliminated from American Idol on April 5, 2006, in the top nine, having never previously been in the bottom three (she was there with Paris Bennett and Elliott Yamin, neither of whom had been in the bottom three either).
Mandisa revealed that, when the first group of Taylor Hicks, Kellie Pickler and Chris Daughtry was sent back to safety, and Mandisa, Elliott and Paris were on the stage on one side and the other group of Ace Young, Katharine McPhee and Bucky Covington on the other side, she told Paris and Elliott that it was most likely their own group in the bottom three, as she remembered how the same thing had happened in the third season, when the three divas landed in the bottom three, and was sure that it would probably be a “shocker” like that one as Ace, Katharine and Bucky had all been in the bottom three earlier. She, like most eliminated contestants, appeared on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno one day later.
Music Career
On July 27, 2007—after being eliminated from American Idol—Mandisa performed the song “I Don’t Hurt Anymore” on the TV talk show, Live with Regis and Kelly. She also joined Gladys Knight and others at the Apollo Theater for the benefit concert “Back to Harlem,” to raise money for various charities.
Mandisa collaborated with tobyMac and Kirk Franklin on tobyMac’s album, Portable Sounds.
Mandisa’s first full-length album True Beauty was released on July 31, 2007. The album debuted at No. 1 on the Top Christian Albums charts, making it the first time a new female artist has debuted at No. 1 in the chart’s 27-year history. It also debuted at No. 43 on the Billboard 200, an unusually high debut on that chart for a Christian artist. It also garnered a Best Pop/Contemporary Gospel Album nomination. Showcasing Mandisa’s stylistic range was the task set before the five sets of producers who lined up to work with her on the album: Shaun Shankel, Brown Bannister, Christopher Stevens, Drew Ramsey & Shannon Sanders, and Robert Marvin & Josiah Bell. Mandisa also spent personal time with the album’s writers before the songwriting process began, sharing her vision for the project and what she hoped to communicate through the songs.
Mandisa won the Best Contemporary Christian Music Album for Overcomer at the 56th Grammy Awards. The title song from the album also won Best Contemporary Christian Music Song for songwriters David Garcia, Ben Glover and Christopher Stevens. She declined to attend the Grammy Awards, however, saying, “I have fallen prey to the alluring pull of flesh, pride, and selfish desires quite a bit recently. I knew that submerging myself into an environment that celebrates those things was risky for me at this time.
Mandisa’s fifth full-length album, Out of the Dark, was released on May 19, 2017. The lead single, “Unfinished”, was then released on March 10, 2017. The song reached No. 8 on the Billboard Hot Christian Songs Chart.
Mandisa Preaching Joyful Noise 2018
More details at Mandisa Wiki
Jeremy Camp
Jeremy Thomas Camp is an American contemporary Christian music singer and songwriter from Lafayette, Indiana. Camp has released eleven albums, four of them RIAA-certified as Gold, and two live albums. His original music is a mixture of ballads and up-tempo songs with rock influence. Camp has won five GMA Dove Awards, has been nominated for three American Music Awards, and was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Pop/Contemporary Gospel Album in 2010 for his album, Speaking Louder Than Before.
Early Life
Jeremy Camp was born in Lafayette, Indiana. His father Tom, the pastor at Harvest Chapel (associated with Calvary Chapel, Costa Mesa, CA), taught him how to play guitar. After completing high school, Camp attended an Assemblies of God college in Southern California for two years and later earned an associate of theology degree from Calvary Chapel Bible College. After one of the worship leaders heard him play in the kitchen of the school he urged Camp to become a part of the worship team. Soon he led worship and played all over Southern California.
Musical Career
Camp has scored 32 No. 1 hits on Christian Radio across all formats (Contemporary Hit Radio, Hot AC, Rock, and Inspirational Charts). His album, Beyond Measure, contributed six back-to-back No. 1 hits, including the track “Let It Fade” which held the No 1. spot for 10 weeks on AC Radio. Camp has spent 175 weeks total at No. 1 across various formats in his career to date.[5] His first single was “Understand”. He has made ten music videos: “Understand”, “Walk By Faith”, “Take You Back”, “Tonight”, “Give You Glory”, “Let It Fade”, “I Am Willing” (a song that was not included on any of his albums), “Speaking Louder Than Before”, “The Way”, and “Reckless”. He also has video devotionals for several songs on YouTube and GodTube.
He has also released a DVD, In24, which chronicles a regular day on-tour, and often keeps his fans updated on his touring with Tour Blogs through his YouTube channel. Live Unplugged from Franklin, TN also includes a DVD of the concert, which was recorded for the live album. He also has scored a musical number, “This Man”, and his video can be seen on YouTube. This video was made with clips from the film The Passion of the Christ.
Source Wiki
Zach Williams
Zachary Stephen “Zach” Williams is an American Christian rock artist from Jonesboro, Arkansas. From 2007-2012 he was a member of Zach Williams & The Reformation (acoustic guitar, harmonica and vocals). He was also the lead singer of the Christian groups Brothers of Grace, and Zach Williams and the Brothers of Grace.
Early life and background
Zachary Stephen Williams was born in Pensacola, Florida in March 5, 1981 and grew up in Jonesboro, Arkansas.
Music history
He was the lead singer in Zach Williams & The Reformation.
In 2016 Williams signed to Provident Label Group – Essential Records as a solo artist, four years after Zach Williams & The Reformation disbanded. He was also lead singer for both Brothers of Grace, and Zach Williams and the Brothers of Grace. In June 2016 he released his first solo single, “Chain Breaker” which reached No. 1 on the Hot Christian Songs Chart and the Top 10 on Christian radio. Following the single, Williams released a five-song EP, Chain Breaker, with producers Jonathan Smith and Colby Wedgeworth.[citation needed] Williams also formerly led worship at the Refuge Campus of Central Baptist Church in Jonesboro, Arkansas, where he was on staff from 2014–2017.
On December 14, 2016, Williams digitally released his full-length album, Chain Breaker, and announced a release date of January 27, 2017 for the CD.
Source Wiki
David Crowder
David Wallace Crowder (born November 29, 1971), known by his mononymous stage name Crowder since 2012, is an American Contemporary Christian music singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and author.
He was the lead singer in the now defunct David Crowder Band. In 2012, Crowder began a solo career on sixstepsrecords and Sparrow Records labels, and released his first solo album Neon Steeple on May 27, 2014. Crowder released his first solo single off the album, “I Am”, on November 25, 2013, which rose to the No. 3 position on the Christian Songs chart. American Prodigal, Crowder’s second solo album, was released on September 23, 2016.
Background
He was born David Wallace Crowder, on November 29, 1971, in Texarkana, Texas, the son of an insurance agent Daniel Wallace Crowder and Marian Elizabeth Crowder (née, Mack), where he was raised with a younger brother, Stephen Edward Crowder. He went to college at Baylor University in Waco, Texas.
Crowder was the lead vocalist of the David Crowder Band that started in 1996 and disbanded in 2012 when Crowder started his solo career on sixstepsrecords which was an imprint of Sparrow Records. During the band’s time together they release 16 singles through 6 studio albums, 2 live albums, 4 EPs and a compilation album.
Crowder released his debut solo studio album on May 27, 2014, Neon Steeple. The lead single, “I Am”, released on November 25, 2013, charted at No, 3 on the Billboard Christian Songs chart. “Come As You Are” achieved a Grammy nomination in 2015 for Best Contemporary Christian Music Performance/Song.
David Crowder Devil Gonna Run
The album was originally slated for release February 18, 2014, but was pushed back due to “unavoidable circumstances”.[citation needed] Crowder began his nationwide Neon Steeple tour September 30, 2014.
His second solo album, American Prodigal, was released September 23, 2016. The first single, “Run Devil Run”, was released on June 18, 2016. The second single, “Forgiven”, was released on March 17, 2017
Source Wiki
Brandon Heath
Brandon Heath Knell (born July 21, 1978) better known by the stage name Brandon Heath, is a contemporary Christian musician from Nashville, Tennessee. He has released six studio albums: Don’t Get Comfortable (2006), What If We (2008), Leaving Eden (2011), Blue Mountain (2012), No Turning Back (2015), and Faith Hope Love Repeat (2017).[2] He is best known for the No. 1 “I’m Not Who I Was” and “Give Me Your Eyes”. He was nominated four times at the Dove Awards of 2008 and won in the “New Artist of the Year” category. His second album was nominated for “Gospel Album of the Year” at the 51st Grammy Awards of 2009.
Heath began his career by writing songs as a teenager. His first independently released album, Early Stuff (2004), was a compilation of his earlier songwriting. Also after releasing Soldier in 2004, he signed with Reunion Records to release his first main studio album, Don’t Get Comfortable, in late 2006. The album’s first single, “Our God Reigns”, received a Dove Award nomination in 2007.
Heath’s song “I’m Not Who I Was” became No. 1 single, staying on top of Billboard’s Hot Christian Songs chart for several weeks. It received two Dove nominations, including “Song of the Year”. Heath returned in mid-2008 with a second project: What If We. The album’s first single “Give Me Your Eyes” was released in July 2008 and ended the year as the second most-played song on R&R magazine’s Christian CHR chart for 2008. The song received two GMA Dove Awards in 2009: “Song of the Year” and “Pop/Contemporary Song of the Year”.
He recently released his fourth album titled Blue Mountain October 9, 2012 which peaked at No. 9 in album chart of Billboard Christian Albums chart. Christmas Is Here was released on October 15, 2013.
Musical Career
Heath’s original demo CD from 2000 was later released in 2004 as an independent album titled Early Stuff. During that year he released a second independent album, Soldier, which was produced by Chris Davis.
Love Does Brandon Heath
Don’t Get Comfortable The EP was independently released in 2005, containing five tracks that were later included on Heath’s debut album.
Danny Gokey
Daniel Jay Gokey (born April 24, 1980) is an American singer and former church music director from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He was the third-place finalist on the eighth season of American Idol. After his placing on the show, Gokey signed to 19 Recordings and RCA Nashville at the beginning of a career in country music, releasing the single “My Best Days Are Ahead of Me”. His debut album, My Best Days, was released in March 2010.
After leaving RCA Nashville in November 2011, he moved his musical direction toward adult pop/contemporary Christian music genre and made a record/publishing deal with BMG in May 2013. His second full-length album, Hope in Front of Me, was released in June 2014.
Danny Gokey Fun Funk Joyful Noise 2018
Early life
Gokey attended Heritage Christian Schools in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He tried out for their elite ABLAZE singing group in 9th grade, but was cut during auditions and did not make the group. He played trumpet for a few years instead.
He started singing with his family in church, but stated he would rather record mainstream music than perform solely Christian/gospel music. He was the worship director at his church in Milwaukee, Faith Builders International Ministries, for several years.
He is the fifth of six children. He has a brother named Charles, and four sisters: Angela, Janell, Gina, and Tracey.
He has acknowledged the influence of Jeffrey and Robin Pruitt, who are the pastors of the church he worked at, and also Matthew Barnett the founder of the LA Dream Center. He has stated that his faith is the “key to who I am”. Gokey was a church music director while also driving a semi truck (18 wheeler) for a local logistics company for two years.
American Idol
Gokey rose to national fame with his participation in the eighth season of American Idol. On August 8, 2008, he auditioned in Kansas City, Missouri, along with his friend Jamar Rogers, whom he met in Milwaukee.[citation needed] Both made it through to Hollywood, but Rogers was eliminated from the competition prior to the semifinals. (Rogers later appeared on the second season of NBC’s The Voice.) Gokey’s American Idol audition occurred only four weeks after his wife’s death in July 2008.
During Rock Week (Top 4 week), Gokey’s take on Aerosmith’s “Dream On” was panned for the extended scream with which he finished the song. Gokey was the only contestant in that season who was never in the bottom two or three, but he was eliminated in third place on May 13, 2009, after his performance of Joe Cocker’s “You Are So Beautiful.”
During the season 8 finale on May 20, 2009, Gokey performed a duet with R&B superstar Lionel Richie. The performance opened with Gokey singing a true-to-the-original soulful ballad solo of Richie’s “Hello,” and then Richie joined Gokey for a duet of his hits “Just Go” and “All Night Long”.
Danny Gokey Takes Us To Church
More Info at Danny Gokey Wiki
Conclusion
I hope that gives you a bit of a taste for what Joyful Noise is all about. Or I hope it brings back some great memories for you. If you have any questions or inquiries please feel free to Contact Me.
Until next time, get out and capture the adventure!
Maybe there will be more images and edits coming later. 🙂
Written by Wayne Moran - Visit Website
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