Cody Carnes joined us to share some stories and encounters that inspired the songs on his latest album, Firm Foundation, the day before is was released into the world. He and Kristian also dove into the idea of worship being a weapon, and how we can lean into its power as we’re met with difficult seasons.

Cody Carnes and Kari Jobe were our second ever guests on the podcast. We were honored to have him back! We hope you enjoy this conversation.

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The Lead Worship Well podcast is back! To kick off Season 5, we revisit a roundtable conversation we hosted in February on the past, present and future of Gospel Music.

This roundtable features one of our podcast hosts Chris Baker (Grammy Award-winning producer and our Gospel Brand Manager), EJ Gaines (Sr. VP of Marketing & Co-Executive Director at Motown Gospel), DOE (Grammy Award-nominee and multi-layered singer/songwriter) and Aaron Lindsey (6x Grammy Award-winning producer and songwriter). They speak on when and how they first fell in love with gospel music, why it is uniquely integral to their spiritual experiences, and how stewarding relationships with the up and coming generations is Kingdom-building.

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Since his major-label debut in 2008, Matt Maher has become a staple in the artistic and songwriting community. A 9x-GRAMMY® nominee and 3x-GMA Dove Award® winner, he has written such impactful songs for the church including “Lord, I Need You,” “Because He Lives (Amen)” “Your Grace Is Enough,” and more. Matt came by our office during the Texas leg of his The Stories I Tell Myself tour to talk about his Catholic background (and how that has informed his songwriting and the role its played in bridging traditional and modern worship music).

Matt and Kristian also discuss worship being the reconciliation of believers, how his latest album is inspired by letting the stories of Abraham, Jacob, and more speak truth to the false stories he was telling himself, and how the Church must continue to destigmatize the transparency around mental health struggles as it plays a vital role in the holistic wellness of a Christian.

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Jeff Sandstrom started his career as an independent music producer and engineer, and produced several Dove Award-winning projects in the studio. From 2007 to 2016, he was the Front of House engineer for Chris Tomlin and Passion Conferences. He’s also toured with Matt Redman, Lauren Daigle, Steven Curtis Chapman and others, and has been a sought-after teacher and presenter at conferences and training events. His heart for teaching production teams to excel led to the co-founding of MxU, a platform designed to provide church production teams tools for technical training, creative communication, volunteer team building, and healthy leadership. 

Jeff and Kristian share practical and spiritual tips for fostering relationships well between technicians and musicians. Jeff also advises worship engineers, producers, technicians, etc. to be wary of your identity being tied up in your skill rather than who you are as a son or daughter of Christ. 

Learn more about the intentional tools and resources MxU provides @mxurocks / here

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Kristian Stanfill is a part of Sixstep Records/CCMG as an artist and songwriter and has been an anchor worship leader with the Passion movement since 2005. He’s written and led songs such as “Glorious Day,” “God, You’re So Good,” and the RIAA Gold®-certified track “One Thing Remains.”

Kristian and our Kristian discuss the inspiration behind Make It Out Alive (his first solo record in 11 years), his journey with Passion, how to spark vulnerability within your community and how to find and pour into the people that will see you, comfort you, challenge you and refine you. 

The Power of Vulnerability with Kristian + Kerri Stanfill and Louie + Shelley Giglio

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“Strength is for service not status.”

Israel Houghton is a Grammy award-winning recording artist, songwriter, producer and worship leader, as well as a composer and multi-instrumentalist. He formed Israel & New Breed in 1995, which was started to be more of a movement than a music group.

Chris Baker has a unique interview perspective as he’s been a part of Camp New Breed for years. They discuss the origins of New Breed and how stewarding the longevity of a cross-cultural movement comes from practicing the presence of God and always having the posture of a disciple.

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“We don’t just worship the God of today (the God who is) - we worship the God of yesterday, today and forever.”

Matt Redman is a GRAMMY®-Award winning worship leader and songwriter who has been a leading contributor to the global Church’s songbook over the last 20 years. He joins us to speak on the evolution of songwriting in the worship space (the growth of co-writing and how it’s being taken more seriously) and how the theme of the cross has been a common thread throughout his career. He shares his excitement though for having the theme of the resurrection (and the joy and freedom it brings) be more a part of songs today.

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Faith City Music is a collection of worship leaders whose united gifts are marked by a diverse sound, passionate creativity, high energy, and authenticity. This eclectic group was formed by Grammy Award-nominated artist and vocal powerhouse Tim Bowman Jr., and includes a range of dynamic artists like Kierra Sheard-Kelly, Maranda Curtis, Bri Babineaux, Kim Burrell, and a host of others. During the pandemic, Faith City Music’s influence grew by providing innovative, creative, exciting, and impactful worship encounters every Sunday at the ministry they call home: Spirit Of Faith Christian Center pastored by Mike & DeeDee Freeman.

We are joined by several members of Faith City Music to talk about the inception of the collection and how they hope every listener can identify themselves with one of their members. They also speak on their debut record, Welcome to Faith City Music, self-awareness in leadership, and how they honor gospel’s legacy with their unique song arrangements.

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