The RELEVANT Podcast

This week, Mark Burnett (Survivor, The Voice, Shark Tank) and wife Roma Downey (Touched by an Angel) join us to talk about their new film "Son of God" that opens everywhere this weekend. "Son of God" brings the life of Jesus to the big screen like never before, and is the first major motion picture about Jesus' life since Passion of the Christ, released ten years ago. And today officially marks the start of the Oskarz season. To vote, head over to oskarz.biz (yes, it's a real site) and select who you think is worthy to take home a coveted Oskarz trophy. Winners will be announced on next week's awards show.

This week we visit America's top hat (we kid, we kid) and talk to one of our favorite rappers, Shad. Shad has been featured in our magazine, on RTV and on a couple of our subscriber albums, and this week he joins the podcast to talk about his fantastic new album, "Flying Colours." We also bring you an excerpt from the second episode of our new video podcast, "The RELEVANT Q&A" with Donald Miller. Don's been causing some controversy with his recent blog post about not going to church anymore, so he spends some time unpacking his thoughts on the show. Plus, the Bible and Hollywood, jobs that attract psychopaths and a Bigfoot sighting in Detroit...

This week we talk to one of the world's most influential worship leaders, Matt Redman. As the author of classics like "Better Is One Day," "The Heart of Worship" and "You Never Let Go," Matt has had a profound impact on the church, and continues that with his latest album, "Your Grace Finds Me." Plus, some staggering numbers out of Sochi, illegal names for your child, and with it being Valentine's Day, we might just have a little "talk" about candy...

This week is a big one for us, for two reasons. First, we're featuring one of our favorite bands (comprised of some of the nicest people we've ever met), Kye Kye. The atmospheric, female-fronted, indie quartet has just released their sophomore album, "Fantasize," and it's quickly become a favorite within our office. And second, we make a HUGE announcement on the show! Perhaps you've noticed, but we've unveiled a brand new podcast section on our website, and now...finally...you can access the entire podcast archive. We’re also introducing a podcast wiki, so now it’s up to you to go back and listen to old episodes, import the funny and ridiculous moments, and bring the new podcast section to life. We’re really excited about this and hope you all love it too.

This week we spotlight one of our favorite bands, The Naked and Famous. The New Zealand indie-electronic ensemble recently released their second album, "In Rolling Waves." We also talk to Peter Greer, president and CEO of HOPE International and author of the new book, "The Spiritual Danger of Doing Good." And to round things out, we give you our recap of the Grammys, provide a sneak peek into the upcoming Oskarz.biz awards and highlight your expertly crafted Christian reality show ideas. Subscribe to the RELEVANT Podcast via iTunes, download the episode MP3 here, or add our RSS feed to any other podcast aggregator.

On this week's podcast, Jud Wilhite joins us to talk about his current work. Jud is the author of several books, including a New York Times bestseller, and pastor of Central Christian Church in Las Vegas where he is doing some incredible outreach in the "Sin City." We also discuss the new Jesse Carey twitter account, revisit some old school Christian "hip-hop" and get a Youtube child celebrity on the line for a web redemption... Subscribe to the RELEVANT Podcast via iTunes, download the episode MP3 here, or add our RSS feed to any other podcast aggregator.

This week we talk to author, speaker, pastor and founder of the Passion movement, Louie Giglio. Passion 2014 is happening this weekend in Atlanta, and Louie talks with us about the conferences, his thoughts on worship, and where Passion might go from here. We also introduce you to an up and coming soulful singer/songwriter named Willis Earl Beal. His latest album, "Nobody Knows" is one you should definitely have on your radar. And it wouldn't be a proper podcast without discussing presidential paintings, "The Muscles From Brussels," and real world applications for Olympic sports... A big thanks to our sponsor, Squarespace, the all-in-one platform that makes it fast and easy to create a professional website. For a free trial, click here, and get 10% off your first purchase on new accounts when you use offer code "RELEVANT1." Subscribe to the RELEVANT Podcast via iTunes, download the episode MP3 here, or add our RSS feed to any other podcast aggregator.

This week we feature an exclusive, in-studio performance by one of our favorite bands, Gungor. The band stopped by on their "I Am Mountain" tour to play 3 songs from their current album, and we feature 2 of them on this week's show. Bonus: you can see all 3 performances on RELEVANT.tv, our Youtube channel, or further down on this page. This week also features Jesse's comeback game (he's bounced back from the rare SkyMall dud), a gripping conversation about Lasik surgery, and in the biggest news yet...drumroll please...the introduction of a new featured cast member to the show! Oh the suspense! Who is it, you ask? Well you'd better start listening now... Subscribe to the RELEVANT Podcast via iTunes, download the episode MP3 here, or add our RSS feed to any other podcast aggregator. A big thanks to the sponsor of this week's show, Warby Parker. Warby offers an easy way to buy fashion-forward prescription glasses and sunglasses online for only $95—and as part of our partnership, they're giving all RELEVANT Podcast listeners free expedited 2-day shipping on your purchase! To get your free home try-on and the shipping discount, visit WarbyParker.com and enter the promo code "RELEVANT" during your final check-out. Listen for more info on the show. We love Warby.

This week we talk to one of the world's leading Bible scholars, N.T. Wright. The former Bishop of Durham in the Church of England has 2 new books out, one about the Apostle Paul and one about the book of Psalms. We also take a look inside the new issue of RELEVANT, featuring Malcolm Gladwell on his return to faith, Jennifer Lawrence, Forest Whitaker, Louie Giglio and much more. And it wouldn't be a proper podcast without recapping New Years Eve, learning what Pat Boone's been up to, creating edible fireworks and discussing the dangers of plagiarism. A big thanks to our sponsor, Squarespace, the all-in-one platform that makes it fast and easy to create a professional website. For a free trial, click here, and get 10% off your first purchase on new accounts when you use offer code "RELEVANT1." Subscribe to the RELEVANT Podcast via iTunes, download the episode MP3 here, or add our RSS feed to any other podcast aggregator.

This week we bring you some of our favorite podcast moments from 2013. It's a special episode showcasing the year's best interviews and live performances, featuring Donald Miller, Hillsong United, Phil Wickham, Audrey Assad, Judah Smith and many others. And of course, it wouldn't be a best-of podcast without 46 nuggets of wisdom from our very own Jesse Carey to close out the show! From all of us here, thanks for listening and making 2013 such a great year. We hope you all have a wonderful holiday and we'll see you back in 2014. Subscribe to the RELEVANT Podcast via iTunes, download the episode MP3 here, or add our RSS feed to any other podcast aggregator. A big thanks to the sponsor of this week's show, Warby Parker. Warby offers an easy way to buy fashion-forward prescription glasses and sunglasses online for only $95—and as part of our partnership, they're giving all RELEVANT Podcast listeners free expedited 2-day shipping on your purchase! To get your free home try-on and the shipping discount, visit WarbyParker.com and enter the promo code "RELEVANT" during your final check-out. Listen for more info on the show. We love Warby. In this episode, you'll hear performances and interviews including: Donald Miller The Digital Age Tim Siedell Phil Wickham Jonathan Martin Audrey Assad Judah Smith Sugar & The Hi Lows Alan Chambers Jars of Clay Jeremy Courtney Hillsong United And a year's worth of Jesse Carey outtakes at the end...

With this being the last official podcast of 2013 (we'll do a best-of next week), we decided to pull out all the stops and bring you a live, exclusive performance from Hillsong United! We met up with the band in Tampa before a show last month, and we're thrilled to play the performance on this week's episode. And as an extra bonus, you can go over to RELEVANT.tv and watch the performance there. We also bring Jesse and Tyler into the studio to discuss the dangers of Chinese smog, unpack what really happened with the Mandela sign language interpreter, and recap our favorite stories from 2013... A big thanks to our sponsor, Audible.com, the leading provider of premium digital spoken audio information and entertainment on the Internet. They're giving all RELEVANT Podcast listeners a free audiobook! To get yours, click here. Subscribe to the RELEVANT Podcast via iTunes, download the episode MP3 here, or add our RSS feed to any other podcast aggregator.

On this week's podcast, the guys from The Digital Age stop by to perform two songs from their latest album, "Evening:Morning." Bonus: if you'd like to SEE the band perform in our office, head over to RELEVANT.tv. We also talk to author, speaker and leadership expert, Tim Elmore, uncover the real reason dcTalk won't reunite, and learn some very interesting/creepy details about one of our cast members... A big thanks to our sponsor, Squarespace, the all-in-one platform that makes it fast and easy to create a professional website. For a free trial, click here, and get 10% off your first purchase on new accounts when you use offer code "RELEVANT12." Subscribe to the RELEVANT Podcast via iTunes, download the episode MP3 here, or add our RSS feed to any other podcast aggregator.

This week we talk to the founder and Chief Shoe Giver of TOMS, Blake Mycoskie. TOMS has just launched "The Marketplace," a new retail destination created to make a difference, so we talk to Blake about our culture's excessive consumerism (especially on Black Friday) and how TOMS is using its name to bolster social entrepreneurship. Also this week, the crew plays a special Black Friday game ("Skymall Friday"), we discuss the safety of watching TV while driving, and desperately try to figure out how to get dcTalk back together... A big thanks to our sponsor, Fracture, the company that makes it easy to preserve your memories on your wall. You can upload your own picture at FractureMe.com, and if you use coupon code "RELEVANT" at checkout, you'll get 15% off your first purchase. Subscribe to the RELEVANT Podcast via iTunes, download the episode MP3 here, or add our RSS feed to any other podcast aggregator.

This week we talk to indie/electronic artist (and podcast favorite) Washed Out. We also go inside the new issue of RELEVANT, featuring Mindy Kaling on the cover. And on top of that, we tell you some of our current media recommendations and try to wrap our minds around the dark magic of David Blaine... A big thanks to our sponsor, Audible.com, the leading provider of premium digital spoken audio information and entertainment on the Internet. They're giving all RELEVANT Podcast listeners a free audiobook! To get yours, click here. Subscribe to the RELEVANT Podcast via iTunes, download the episode MP3 here, or add our RSS feed to any other podcast aggregator.

This week, the lovely Audrey Assad stops by to perform a couple of songs from her latest album, "Fortunate Fall." As you would expect, we filmed the performances for your viewing pleasure, and they can be seen on RELEVANT.tv, our YouTube page, and we even posted one below for you (note: she's amazing and you'll definitely want to watch these). Also this week, Eddie and Jon square off in the made-for-podcast-classic, "How To Avoid Huge Ships - The Game." Much like Audrey - but in a VERY different way - you won't want to miss this! A big thanks to our sponsor, Squarespace, the all-in-one platform that makes it fast and easy to create a professional website. For a free trial, click here, and get 10% off your first purchase on new accounts when you use offer code "RELEVANT11." Subscribe to the RELEVANT Podcast via iTunes, download the episode MP3 here, or add our RSS feed to any other podcast aggregator.