Search

Driving Notes

The Official Blog of WNZR's Afternoon Drive

Tag

Artist News Day

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 29th, 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

Is it time to talk Christmas?

It’s Artist Newsday and both Sidewalk Prophets and for King and Country made huge announcements over the weekend.

Yesterday, Sidewalk Prophets announced their “Great Big Family Christmas” tour. It is a tour about making Christmas memories. The tour will feature some of Sidewalk Prophets’ hit songs as well as some of their own personal Christmas favorites. The tour will also have different goodies for the guests.  

One of their stops along the way will be in Ashland on December 4th.

Tickets are on sale now! For more information, go to www.sidewalkprophets.com

For King and Country released their new single “For God Is With Us” this past Friday. Along with the release of the song, the duo also put out the song’s music video on YouTube. The video places Joel and Luke Smallbone in an array of locations, from valleys to cityscapes, driving home that God is with us no matter the time or place.

The two brothers shared in a statement: “This song speaks to all circumstances. No matter hardship or great delight, we can all take great comfort in God being with us.”

The song’s release follows the news that For King and Country are among the leaders of the 2021 Dove Award nominations as the duo has been nominated seven times (Artist of the Year, Contemporary Christian Artist of the Year, Song of the Year, Pop/Contemporary Recorded Song of the Year, Christmas/Special Event Album, Recorded Music Packaging, and Long Form Video). The 52nd Annual GMA Dove Awards will air exclusively on Trinity Broadcasting Network Friday, October 22.

These articles along with more news in the Christian industry can be found at jesusfreakhideout.com.

My rock my shield my firm foundation
I know I will not be shaken
You remind me
Where my help comes from

Congratulations to Bonnie of Mount Vernon for correctly guessing the artist and title for this week’s song – Truth I’m Standing On from Leanna Crawford! She wins the $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 10th. 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 22nd 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 6th for all streaming services.

This comes about a month before the start of “The Lauren Daigle World Tour” on September 24th in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Daigle will travel the US in cities like Kansas City and Atlanta before concluding her tour in Nashville on November 19th. 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 4th 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 21st 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 diedJesus 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

New Music is Here!

Today for Artist news day we talked about Riley Clemmons and Casting Crowns! Riley Clemmons just released her second album called “Godsend” which we are super excited to give it a listen. To read more about this new album click HERE. Going with the new music trend Casting Crowns just released a new single called “Scars In Heaven” from their upcoming album. Learn more about this song and their upcoming album HERE. We love when artists release new music!

The weight of the world is getting heavier now

Feels like its far too much to carry around

And each and every little time that you fall starts

Looking like the end of it all

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

Thanks for listening

-Kelsi and Alyssa

Hey June!

Today for Artist News Day and the first day of June we shared two stories about Jeremy Camp and Crowder, two very busy and successful WNZR artists. They have been pumping out great new music for Summer 2021.

Jeremy Camp has released a new single entitled ‘When You Speak’, read the full article about this new release by clicking here and listen to the song below:

Crowder has also been very busy with releasing new singles for his upcoming album, he released ‘The Anchor’, you can learn more by clicking here and listen to the song below:

You put the “X” on my faded map

Draw me a line back to where you’re at

Patient when I try to move too fast

Congratulations to Paul of Mount Vernon for correctly answering that those lyrics were from Jordan Feliz with his song ‘Next to Me’, he won a $5 gift card to Everlasting Cup!

Thanks for listening!
– Alyssa

Blog at WordPress.com.

Up ↑