Let there be Basketball!

Our show was cut short today as we prepare for our first MVNU basketball game of the season for the women’s program!

This didn’t stop us, however, from sharing about last week’s GMA Dove Awards for Artist Newsday!

This past Friday, the 52nd GMA Dove Awards aired on TBN. One of our songs that we play here on WNZR, won “Song of the Year”. The song was “The Blessing” by Kari Jobe, Cody Carnes, and Elevation Worship. Now, this song also won the 2020 GMA Dove Award for “Worship Song of the Year” and has been awarded RIAA Gold Digital Single certification. “The Blessing” became a viral hit song around the world just days after recording and releasing it during the pandemic comforting listeners with a strong message.

Here is what the artists had to say on receiving this award. “It’s such an honor to receive this award for a song we got to be a part of – a song filled with the hope of God’s promises in such an uncertain time,” shares Kari Jobe and Cody Carnes on this recognition. “It reminds us of the power of a song filled with the hope of Jesus – how it can change someone’s life. We want to honor everyone in our industry who works to bring the hope of Jesus to people’s hearts through music. It’s an honor to join with you in advancing the kingdom of God together.”

Kari Jobe and Cody Carnes are currently on “The Blessing” tour that runs through November 14th. Check karijobe.com for more information on where the tour will be headed next.

Congratulations to the many artists who were honored with Dove Awards:

• Songwriter of the Year (Artist): Brandon Lake
• Contemporary Christian Artist of the Year: We The Kingdom
• Gospel Artist of the Year: CeCe Winans
• Artist of the Year: for KING & COUNTRY
• New Artist of the Year: Maverick City Music
• Worship Recorded Song of the Year: Elevation Worship ft. Brandon Lake: “Graves Into Gardens“
• Pop/Contemporary Recorded Song of the Year: Tauren Wells: Famous For (I Believe)

For the full list of winners, go here.

I have tasted
All that this world has to offer
The here and gone that leaves you wanting more
But can’t satisfy

The song? With Lifted Hands from Ryan Stevenson!!

Congratulations to Bonnie of Mount Vernon for winning (2) $5 gift cards to Everlasting Cup!

Thanks for listening!

— Jonathon & Dylan

Tours and Talk Shows!

This week, we explored one of the most highly anticipated tours in Christian music coming up next year and we also checked in on the crazy year that Amy Grant has had!

This past Friday, Chris Tomlin and Hillsong UNITED announced their upcoming joint tour for 2022! The “Tomlin UNITED” Tour will kick off in Greensboro, North Carolina on February 9th. The tour in all will reach 33 venues all across America before ending in Duluth, GA on April 13th.

Tickets for the tour go on sale October 22nd and will be available at tomlinunited.com. A date to remember for this tour is when the group will be in Columbus on Friday, February 18th at Nationwide Arena.

Even four decades since beginning her career, Amy Grant has continued her very successful year by performing live for The Kelly Clarkson Show on NBC. The six time Grammy Winner sang her 90s track “Good For Me” on the show, a show which has been extremely popular lately as the highest rated talk show to debut in 7 years. 

This, however, was just a glimpse at the kind of year Amy has had after being inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame for the Class of 2021. She is also wrapping up her 42 city fall tour and preparing for the Christmas season where she will appear in several shows with Michael W. Smith. For more information, make sure to visit AmyGrant.com.

I have tasted
All that this world has to offer
The here and gone that leaves you wanting more
But can’t satisfy

This song was a stumper! So come back next week for a chance at TWO $5 gift cards to Everlasting Cup!

Thanks for listening!

— Jonathon

New albums and chart breakers!

Today we shared artist news from FOR KING AND COUNTRY and the announcement of their album release date! Read more from JesusFreakHideout.com by clicking here!

We also shared news about ANNE WILSON and her #1 song, “My Jesus.” It got Billboard magazine’s attention. Find out more at this link!

You called me out of the grave
You called me into the light
You called my name
and then my heart came alive

The song? Phil Wickham “Your Love Awakens Me” – congratulations to Maude from Mount Vernon, who guessed correctly and wins the $5 gift card to Everlasting Cup.

Thanks for listening!
– Joe and Dylan

Newcomers to Number 1!

It’s Artist Newsday and today we focused on NEEDTOBREATHE’s tour along with the rising duo Apollo LTD!

NEEDTOBREATHE has announced the Nashville, TN tour titled Into The Mystery Tour will be livestreamed on October 29^th, 2021 at 10:00PM EDT. This marks the band’s first-ever headline performance at Bridgestone Arena. 

The tour kicked off in early September where artist Switchfoot joined the band. The Into The Mystery tour will travel across the U.S. before wrapping up at the end of October. You can go to NEEDTOBREATHE’S website for more information. 

Apollo LTD have earned their first number 1 hit with their summer song “Sunday Morning Feeling” with Ryan Stevenson. The song was showcased on their second album together “Nothing is Ordinary, Everything is Beautiful”.

The song from the duo of Jordan Phillips and Adam Stark also gained national attention, appearing in an ESPN commercial from Baylor University during their college football game against Texas State on September 4th.

Following the song’s recent success, Apollo LTD sat down with Hoganson Media to share their reactions.

“We are excited to see ‘Sunday Morning Feeling’ connect with radio and its audiences like it has. It’s been quite a journey for us,” shares Stark. “We are very grateful for the hard work of our label, radio team and management, and are especially thankful for the all the listeners that have supported us.”

“And working with Ryan on this song was an honor,” Phillips added. “His voice, talent and contribution made it such a special song. We’ve also loved getting to know him and his band on the road and sharing the stage with him this summer!”

Despite many artists traveling in the coming months, Apollo LTD has yet to announce a tour, but you can go to weareapolloltd.com to keep up to date.

For more articles on some of your favorite Christian artists, visit jesusfreakhideout.com!

I’ve had good days, I’ve had bad days, tasted victory in defeat
I’ve had problems, biggest planets turn to pebbles when You speak

Congratulations to Sandie of Mount Vernon for correctly guessing this week’s song poetry, “You’ve Always Been” from Unspoken. Sandie wins a $5 gift card to Everlasting Cup!

Thanks for listening!

Jonathon & Dylan

Music’s on the Way (and already here!)

Today, we gave updates on some of your favorite Christian artists. This week? TobyMac and Bethel Music are in the news!

TobyMac released his brand new single, “Promised Land” this past Friday. This song from the seven time Grammy Award Winner serves as a follow up to his previous single “Help is on the Way”, that sat #1 on the charts for multiple weeks at launch.

Also on Friday, TobyMac simultaneously premiered the music video on Facebook in honor of his grandfather, a miner in West Virginia, where TobyMac’s own father grew up in a mining camp. “It was a hard life,” he says. “A life where I imagine they must have really wondered where in the world is my promised land?” 

Ultimately, he says of the song, “The lyrics land where I want my life to land: that the promised land is no land at all, but a relationship with the King that loves us deeply. It turns from where’s my promised land, to you’re my promised land. Maybe the promised land we’re looking for is no place at all, but a person named Jesus.”

TobyMac takes the road once again this fall for his “Hits Deep” tour in Moline, IL on October 2nd. Tickets go on sale this Thursday, September 23rd and can be found at https://tobymac.com/tour. 

Bethel Music will release their new album Homecoming this Friday! This album marks the first time all members of the collective are on one album. Also joining them will be Gable Price, Matt Redman, and Naomi Raine, among others.  

Reflecting on recording Homecoming, Jonathan David Helser shares “during the live recording of “Homecoming” my heart was stirred with the image of building an altar. Each song was like a stone stacked upon each other and as we poured out our offering of worship, God’s presence came like fire on the altar. My dream for this album is that many more hearts would come to this altar of songs and encounter the Presence of God and be changed forever.” 

These two stories along with much more can be found at jesusfreakhideout.com!

I don’t know what it’s like to be you
You don’t know what it’s like to be me
What if we’re all the same in different kinds of ways?
Can you, can you _______?

A: Relate from For King & Country!!

Congratulations to Linda of Utica for winning TWO $5 gift cards to Everlasting Cup by giving us the title and artist of this week’s song poetry.

Thanks for listening!

Jonathon and Dylan

New Music Everywhere!!

It’s Artist Newsday!! And this past Friday was a big day for new Christian music. Dylan and I shared about two artists who found big success over the weekend.

Cade Thompson has released his highly anticipated debut album Bigger Story, available now across all streaming platforms. The album includes 10 songs in collaboration with many songwriters, with the most prominent name being Matthew West!

When asked about his newest release, here is what Cade had to say. “This album was written out of my life experiences which led to this one question: How would I explain the Gospel to someone who might not have ever heard of Jesus? Each song on this album has a truth that reminds us we are all a part of a bigger story, one that is bigger than ourselves. My hope for this album is that it inspires each listener to truly walk in a relationship with Jesus and join the story.”

Despite this being his first album, Thompson has several hits already on our playlist including “Every Step of the Way”, “Provider” and “Source of Life.”

Thompson will be performing his new songs live this fall on the Step Into The Light Tour alongside Newsboys, Mandisa and We Are Messengers. For a full list of tour dates, visit www.cadethompsonmusic.com.

Francesca Battistelli unveiled her brand new single, “God is Good,” on September 10^th. The track will be included in the upcoming film, God’s Not Dead: We the People, in which she has a starring role. The movie will be in theaters for three days only Oct. 4-6. 

She delivers her storytelling on “God is Good,” which is her first new album since her Christmas album titled, This Christmas, released in the final months of 2020. She says, “A few years ago, a good friend of ours went through a devastating loss. I really wanted to write a song that would honor what he went through and really speak to that idea of how tragedy affects our lives, because at one point or another, it does affect all of us. If the last year-and-a-half has taught us anything, it’s that we’re not immune to difficult times,” She also shares. “It’s been a hard season, and this song has brought me a lot of comfort, because through it all, there is one constant, and that is that God is good. So no matter what you’re facing today, I pray that this song would bless you and bring you hope and peace, because He is good and He is for you and He loves you so much.” That is in her words. 

An interesting fact is that she homeschools her kids at her home in Nashville, TN. She also recently announced she is expecting her sixth child, due in February 2022. For more information on Francesca, visit www.francescamusic.com. 

You can find the original stories and even more at Jesus Freak Hideout!

‘Cause I’ve been real, I’ve been fake
Been a sinner, been a saint
I’ve been right, I’ve been so, so wrong
Yeah, I’ve made my mistakes

Answer: Relate from For King & Country

This week’s trivia was a stumper, so we’ll bring it back next week for a chance at TWO $5 gift cards to Everlasting Cup!

TODAY’S SONFEST SONG POETRY

Congratulations to Jan of Howard for correctly guessing Witness by Jordan Feliz!

Thanks for listening!

Jonathon and Dylan

My Jesus Makes History!

Christian music’s newest artist, Anne Wilson, has become the first female solo artist to hit No. 1 with a debut song on the National Christian Airplay chart since the chart’s inception in 2003. This comes as her unprecedented success continues with her debut single, “My Jesus,” topping the radio charts in just 14 weeks after it received an impressive 49 adds out of the box at radio, continuing this week as a multi-week No. 1 song reaching 10M in audience. As Capitol CMG’s most successful debut single from a new artist in more than a decade, the 19-year-old’s “My Jesus” has held the top position for multiple consecutive weeks on the Hot Christian Songs chart, which combines airplay, sales, and streaming data.  

Anne Wilson also released a new live version of the hit song along with four additional titles in early August, and she is currently with Big Daddy Weave for their “All Things New Tour”. The tandem will be in Wooster on Wednesday, September 22^nd at the Church of the Savior. More information on that can be found at our website on WNZR.fm.

Three-time GRAMMY award winner Danny Gokey is celebrating his newest album, Jesus People, which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Top Christian Albums Chart. The album also charted at No. 6 on the Billboard Top Current Album Sales Chart and No. 9 on the Billboard Current Digital Album Sales chart. This is the fourth time he has had an album debut at No. 1. 

In addition to the number one debuting album, Gokey continues to grow with the album’s single debut, “Stand In Faith”, coming in at No. 23 on the Billboard National Christian Airplay Chart. Gokey commemorated his album’s release across the country starting in California for a release show with a live stream event followed by returning to the Midwest for shows in St. Paul, MN, and a hometown show in Wisconsin.  

You can hear the new songs along with Gokey’s hit tracks for his “Stand In Faith Tour” featuring special guest Colton Dixon. Go to DannyGokey.com for more information regarding his upcoming tour. 4

Here are links to both articles —-> Anne Wilson & Danny Gokey

A cloud by day
Is a sign that You are with me
The fire by night
Is the guiding light to my feet

Congratulations to Jeff of Mount Vernon for guessing our Song Poetry for this week – Egypt by Cory Asbury! He wins a $5 gift card to Everlasting Cup.

TODAYS SONFEST TRIVIA

Q: Where does Cory Asbury currently reside and and serve as a worship pastor?

A: Kalamazoo, Michigan

Congrats to Beth of Mount Vernon for winning (2) tickets to Sonfest 2021! Stay tuned for the next two weeks at 5:25 for you chance to answer trivia to win a pair of your own!

Thanks for listening!

Jonathon and Dylan

Lights, Camera, Action!

Today on the show we welcomed Dylan Elliott to the crew for the fall semester! He will be “live on the drive” Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday each week.

Lauren Daigle was in the news this past Friday after she released the studio version of her new song “Tremble”. Not to be confused with MOSAIC’s worship song with the same title, Daigle first released a live recording of “Tremble” on August 6^th for all streaming services.

This comes about a month before the start of “The Lauren Daigle World Tour” on September 24^th in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Daigle will travel the US in cities like Kansas City and Atlanta before concluding her tour in Nashville on November 19^th. She will play some of her latest hits including “Tremble”, “Hold On To Me”, the platinum selling “Rescue”, and the 4x platinum “You Say”.

This Saturday, September 4^th Riley Clemmons will make her TV debut on Fox & Friends. Riley has quickly become a national sensation and has had a fantastic summer. Riley was recognized as one of People Magazine’s “Artists to watch” and Rolling Stones has featured one of her songs as the pick of the week. Riley will be performing “Godsend”, and this marks the first in-person performance for Fox & Friends since the start of the pandemic. Fox & Friends airs at 6:00 a.m. local time on FOX with Clemmons’ performance slated for 9:50 a.m. 

This fall Riley will make a 23-date tour throughout the U.S. with Grammy nominee Tauren Wells. The Tour kicks off on October 21^st and runs through late November. She will start in Grand Rapids, while also making stops in Charlotte, Orlando, Houston, Denver, and Sacramento before wrapping up in Redding, CA. Tickets are available now online at http://www.rileyclemmons.com/tour. 

Both articles can be found here.

If I could talk to myself eight years ago
Seeing what I’ve seen knowing what I know
I would tell that quiet kid
There’ll be days ahead
When it doesn’t make sense

Congratulations to Sherrisa of Mount Vernon for correctly guessing this week’s lyrical poetry – Every Step of the Way by Cade Thompson.

Thanks for listening

— Jonathon and Dylan

Never Going Without New Music

We have new music coming from Cade Thompson on September 10th! Thompson explains, “This album was written out of my life experiences which led to this one question: How would I explain the Gospel to someone who might not have ever heard of Jesus? Each song on this album has a truth that reminds us we are all a part of a bigger story, one that is bigger than ourselves. My hope for this album is that it inspires each listener to truly walk in a relationship with Jesus and join the story.” His new album is called “Bigger Story.” To read more click HERE.

On August 20th we were blessed with new music from Hillsong Worship. They released a new single called, “Hope of The Ages.” This track features Hillsong’s Reuben Morgan and two-time GRAMMY nominated Cody Carnes as co-primary artists. “Christ and His Gospel is the ‘hope of the ages,’ and because of Jesus, we too have hope. Jesus died—Jesus is risen —Jesus is coming back again. I pray that this truth will always be, for you, a strength to your soul and a fire in your bones.” says Morgan. To read more click HERE.

Hope of The Ages – Hillsong Worship

If I could talk to myself eight years ago
Seeing what I’ve seen knowing what I know
I would tell that quiet kid
There’ll be days ahead
When it doesn’t make sense

This weeks lyrics were a stumper so we will bring it back next week!

Thanks for listening

– Kelsi and Alyssa