When Underoath’s second vocalist/drummer spends his down time making a solo pop/rock record, then forms another band to play live, he ends up with two extremely successful acts on his hands. “It’s such a cool feeling being on stage and playing ‘Amazing Because It Is,’ and there’s 600 to a 1,000 kids singing along to ‘Amazing Grace,’” says The Almost’s newest member, Dusty Redmon. Redmon joined up as second guitarist in Aaron Gillespie’s Underoath side-project, and moments like this one have signaled that he made the right choice. […read more]

While in sunny California, ccmBuzz caught up with rockers, Kutless. Currently on the road with the newsboys and Stellar Kart, the guys are finishing up with the GO tour while preparing for a trip to Europe. As summer approaches, the band readies summer festivals and has just signed on for the fall leg of the GO tour. Check out our interview below to find out more about what’s going on with Kutless. […read more]

ccmBuzz had the pleasure of speaking with Story Side B lead singer Lucio “Lu” Rubino! Read on to find out about their influences, how they’ve grown in such a short amount of time, and their future tour plans! And don’t forget to pick up their sophomore album, We Are Not Alone. […read more]

ccmBuzz had the pleasure of talking with Ruth lead singer, Dustin Ruth. Learn about the origin of the band’s name (it’s not what you think, I promise!), what he learned while living on his own, and what he hopes new fans will take away from their show. […read more]

Who says Christian music has to be somber? Rebecca St. James has been making danceable Christian pop/rock for more than 16 years in the belief that a biblical message and a rockin’ beat aren’t mutually exclusive. The Australia native recently won the “Best Female Artist of 2006″ Reader’s Choice Award from ChristianityToday.com, co-hosted the Gospel Music Awards last year with gospel great Kirk Franklin, and was a spokesperson to the White House’s National Day of Prayer. Currently, she’s preparing to launch SHE events (Safe, Healthy, Empowered) in Australia and New Zealand, based on her books, which aim to empower women to live Christian lives according to biblical principles.

St. James recently spoke with Beliefnet about poverty in Africa, sexuality in mainstream music, what she wants to change about Christian music, and the importance of abstinence.  […read more]

Long before Britney Spears shaved her head, there was Sinead O’Connor. Like Spears, the Irish-born O’Connor has generated her share of controversy. A Grammy Award-winning singer best known for her hugely popular 1990 hit “Nothing Compares 2 U,” O’Connor created a furor when she ripped up a photo of Pope John Paul II on “Saturday Night Live” in October 1992. Although she is herself a Catholic, O’Connor declared that John Paul, who died in 2005, was “the real enemy.” Since then, although O’Connor has put out a number of records since her breakthrough 1990 album “I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got,” she has not had enjoyed continued success in the United States. All that may change, however, with her new release, “Theology,” a two-CD set consisting of an acoustic and full-band version of 11 songs, most written by O’Connor herself, and based on passages from the Old Testament.

O’Connor recently spoke to Beliefnet about her fascination with the Rastafari movement, the other religions that appeal to her, and the problems she has with Catholicism. […read more]

Judy Collins’s crystal-clear soprano and songwriting gifts have made her a folk-singing legend, with more than 40 albums and several Grammy honors to her credit. Her riveting blue eyes were celebrated by Stephen Stills in the Crosby, Still, & Nash classic “Suite: Judy Blue Eyes.” But she has faced more illness, pain, and loss than many people realize. Her latest book, The 7 T’s, distills the lessons she learned about recovering from grief and loss since her son Clark’s suicide at age 33 in 1992. Videotaped in her sunlit New York City apartment, she spoke with Beliefnet about her journey to spiritual healing and her desire to help others. […read more]

Tennessee native Mandisa was a finalist on the fifth season of the blockbuster hit show “American Idol.” Now, she has two new releases: a gospel album (”True Beauty”) and an inspirational Christian memoir (”IdolEyes”). She talks to Beliefnet about being a Christian on reality TV, praying through “American Idol,” and why she’d be uncomfortable singing for a gay audience. […read more]

Pat Boone is a descendant of the legendary U.S. pioneer Daniel Boone. He has been a top-selling recording artist, the star of his own hit TV series, a movie star, a Broadway headliner and a best-selling author in a career that has spanned half a century. During the classic rock and roll era of the 1950s, he sold more records than any artist except Elvis Presley. Now 72, Boone continues to be a beacon for moral values in the entertainment industry. [ …read more]

Since the 2006 Summer release of the aptly titled We Can’t Stand Sitting Down, Phoenix-based punk quartet Stellar Kart have been a restless bunch, garnering their first No. 1 hit, hitting the road with newsboys, as well as earning 5 Dove Award Nominations including Song of the Year. Take some time out with lead singer Adam Agee to hear the thoughts behind the success. BC: Are you guys still on the road with the newsboys right now? SK: Oh yeah, definitely. We will be until the end of April. BC: How’s that been? SK: It’s been awesome man, it’s crazy. There’s just a bunch of people at the shows, everybody on tour’s been great - it’s the best. […read more]

No strangers to success, veteran rock group downhere have been catapulted back into the spotlight with the release of their third studio recording, Wide Eyed and Mystified, the band’s first album on Centricity Records. Read on to take a downhere look at the group through the eyes of bass player Glenn Lavender. BC: I was looking through your site, and you guys have really developed your web presence a lot more than other groups have. Can you share about why you guys have decided to take that route? […read more]

What you see is what you get with these passionate rockers from North Carolina, who’ve already hit the top of the radio charts twice since the release of their debut album, End of the Grey, last summer. Take an inside look at the group as BREATHEcast interviews frontman Caleb Oliver. Caleb: So where are you guys based out of? BREATHEcast: California, but I’m in New York right now. Yeah, we were up in Massachusetts when the snowstorm came through, we got all that stuff, so it was pretty crazy. Yeah I was reading about that, you guys got into an accident right? Yeah we did about a week or two ago, and we totaled our van (laughs). But it’s been a blessing just seeing people come together and donate, and so we’re in a rental now, and hoping to buy another soon. […read more]

Introduce yourself to one of the brightest rising stars on the music scene today, Christine Evans. At age 16, the singer/songwriter, performer, advocate for youth, and student from Canada has already had her first national tour, as well as released her second album – the passionate, rock inspired Push. Read on to take a look behind the scenes at this budding artist. […read more]

Bear Rinehart (lead vocals, guitar, piano) could’ve made it to the NFL. Bo Rinehart (guitar, background vocals) had his chance to be on the WB’s “One Tree Hill.” Seth Bolt (bass, background vocals) is a talented recording engineer, and all the guys say Joe Stillwell (drums) is a genius.

So, why are they in a band? Breakaway wanted to find out. We talked with them in Nashville, Tenn. Here what these guys from Seneca, S.C., had to say. […read more]

Geoff Moore’s legacy of 22 years of music ministry, and 16 albums, including the recent “Speak to Me,” gives his thoughts a certain legitimacy we were eager to hear. Suite: Geoff, your sense of calling comes across so prominently in your music. How essential is that to a Christian artist? Geoff: Being a Christian artist is my job. Everybody’s job can be a ministry, but not everybody’s job is in full-time ministry. Because I feel like mine is, my calling is central to all I do in my music life. […read more]

New to the scene, but not new to music is the young group Jackson Waters - a group of friends who met in college and are now signed to Word Records. Their debut release, Come Undone hit the shelves last week, but CMCentral caught up with front man, David Leonard, a few weeks ago. We chatted about the new album, the cover art, marriage and the ever-perilous world of Jack Bauer. […read more]

Relient K’s recent release Five Score and Seven Years Ago debuted at No. 6 on the Billboard charts and has spawned an infectious radio single. A few weeks back, we got the chance to talk to frontman Matt Thiessen about the album, songwriting and balancing a career as a crossover artist. Relevent: What has some of the older fans’ reaction been like to the new album? RK: It seems like people are into it—especially some people that have been with us for a while. You know it’s funny; I’ve heard some people say it’s a bit of a departure; I’ve heard other people say it feels kind of like a continuation, sort of picking up where we left off. […read more]

After making quite an impact with the single Sweetly Broken as part of a compilation CD, Jeremy Riddle has stepped out on his own and put together a full-length project of his own. Full Attention hit the shelves on 6 March of 2007 and is the debut release for Riddle and Varietal Records, an imprint of Vineyard USA. CMCentral conducted the following email with Jeremy Riddle via email discussing the album, Jeremy’s history in music and his “top friends” on MySpace. […read more]

Months after the successful launch of worship training school Worship Central and a move to Holy Trinity Brompton Church (HTB) in London, popular British worship leader Tim Hughes is now launching his third studio project Holding Nothing Back. In this interview, the smiley worship leader indeed holds nothing back, as he gives Christian Today a heads up on the new album and Worship Central. CT: How has the Worship Central been developing so far? TH: It’s been going great! We’re getting about 900 worship leaders and musicians to each of the days, and we’re getting great response from the podcast and website. There’s always a great need for training and resourcing, and it’s great to see a community of worship leaders developing. […read more]

Krispy Kreme doughnuts are “crack” for Christians, according to funnyman Mark Lowry. He jokes that the perfect church would have La-Z-Boys with Big Gulp holders and remote controls. “I figure if you’re going to sleep, you might as well enjoy it,” he says. He’ll share zany stories about churches, Christian culture and his life, like he has through concerts, CDs and DVDs, on March 17 at Decatur Baptist Church. Comedy may seem like Lowry’s drug of choice, but seriously — what happens when life doesn’t seem like humor material? Lowry was diagnosed as a child with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. He said he had a huge self-image problem. He wrote in Guideposts magazine that he would go home from school every day with teacher notes pinned on his lapel. […read more]