Recording music is definitely an extension of our ministry within our local faith family. I have been in a full-time role at my church, Stonegate Fellowship, for over eight years and before that, I was a full time touring artist. When I was traveling full time I felt drawn to a local faith family and now that I have been with our church consistently, I feel drawn to encourage and write songs of honesty not only for the global church but to the unbelieving. It’s a both/and for us. Being a part of our church where we see, experience, and understand what God is doing among us is really the well-spring from which we create and we trust God for how it flows outward. It’s wondrous that we, the sons and daughters of God, are connected by His spirit and that as we shepherd our faith family through song, someone across the world can be stirred by it as well.

 

 

Immensely! It’s incredible that we can create and record a song and within a few days it is available for purchase or streaming on so many platforms. For us, in particular, we have a small studio in our backyard at home that we have been able to invest in over the years and technology continues to allow us to keep costs down. It’s an incredible time to be able to make great sounding music with inexpensive equipment compared to the last few decades. This helps make the both/and possible for such a time as this.
 

 

 

The centerpiece of our studio is a Mac running Logic Pro X. I started using Logic years ago and even though I have tried other software, and there are some good ones out there, I still come back to it. It’s inspiring and it feels like home. I have a Presonus Quantum thunderbolt audio interface which has been my favorite so far. It's incredibly fast, so playing instruments in the computer or recording in real time has no noticeable latency which is really important for me and the way I work. We recently started recording vocals and other things on a mic called the Warbler IV from 3U Audio. They are a mic company from Australia that makes incredible microphones in the lower price category. As far as software, some of my favorites are Xfer Records Serum, East West Orchestral Libraries, Valhalla DSP Reverbs, PluginAlliance and Native Instruments.

 

 

We were a part of our church serving for seven years before I became a part of the full time paid staff eight years ago. Along with that journey both off and on full-time staff we have been writing and releasing music and the church has always supported us through encouraging, purchasing and sharing our music. The church has helped us get the word out about new songs or albums through various avenues within the church. One practical way is that our music (as well as other artists in our church) is sold in our resource area on our campus next to our church’s music and other resources like curriculum and books. Our church has always had a deep appreciation for music and we’re grateful that we can be encouraged by them in so many ways. 

 

 

Yes! We just released a new song that Bailey primarily wrote called "Holy / Worthy" that we taught to our students this summer at a camp in the mountains of Glorieta, NM. We also have several things in the works that we plan on releasing through the end of the year. After that, I will be working on a solo album for the spring of 2019. To see what’s coming next check our website or follow us on Spotify, Instagram, Facebook or Twitter.