The Christian Music Blog Podcast: Christian Music | Songwriting | Worship | Creative Productivity | Music Business

Today on the podcast, I was privileged to speak with music industry executive, Steve Rice. Steve has served as music publisher for some of the most recognized Christian songwriters, producers and artists throughout the world. He is currently VP of publishing at Centricity Publishing, and founder of the newly launched CentricWorship label, with their new release All The Saints - Live From The Centric Worship Retreat. Songwriters: You should definitely get out that legal pad, or Evernote, and pay close attention to Steve's wisdom. We talked about Steve's story getting started in the music business, the launch of the new label CentricWorship, songwriting, an more. Here Are Just A Few Highlights Steve's story Steve's involvement in the early days of the "modern worship" movement The Centric Worship retreat The craft of songwriting What aspiring songwriters need to know if they're pursuing songwriting as a career New artists Corey Voss and Jonathan Lee The future of the music business, and worship Centric Worship Links Centric Worship (Official Site) All The Saints (EP at iTunes) Corey Voss Jonathan Lee Centric Worship on Twitter Centric Worship on Facebook Steve Rice on Twitter Other Links Mentioned Steve's songwriting blog Songsphere The Best Books on Songwriting (blog post)

Today on the Podcast, singer/songwriter Ginny Owens shares her very inspiring story. Born with poor eyesight that lead to blindness at the age of two, Ginny found a home at the piano, and a love for crafting songs. We talked about how she started her music career, her songwriting process, her upcoming album set to release later this year, and more. Ginny has released 13 projects, won three dove awards (one being new artist of the year in 2000), and even started a non-profit organization called The Fingerprint Initiative. Though she has quite an impressive resume for her career, it's her heart for God, and her story expressed through her songs, that shines the brightest. Here are just a few of the highlights from our conversation.... Ginny's story of faith, music and getting started How she got signed to Rocketown records Her thoughts on winning awards Co-writing relationships Her season in New York Her song "I Love The Way" and how it inspired the start of her non-profit organization The upcoming record Ginny's best advice for songwriters Her own songwriting process How simplicity is harder Ginny on being an indie artist Surrounding yourself with the right people to help you make decisions Next year's trip to Israel Ginny Online Official website Ginny Owens music on iTunes Twitter Facebook YouTube The Israel trip Other Items Mentioned Why Your First Song Is Just The Beginning The Evernote Songwriting Method

Today on the podcast I share with you my chat with singer, songwriter, and worship leader Zach Sprowls. Zach reached out through our CMB Spotlight submission form, and after I checked out his EP and heard his story, I strongly felt like it should be a podcast interview. If you're a subscriber and have great music to share with the readers, check out the CMB Spotlight page here. We talked about the story behind his debut EP Everlasting Arms, how it ties to adoption, and how he produced the entire project for nearly no money at all. It’s pretty inspiring. Here Are The Highlights Story of Everlasting Arms Psalm 63 and "All I Need" Songwriting in trials The heart of adoption Hymn rewrite of "For The Beauty of The Earth" How a snow storm helped the recording process Producing the EP for (almost) free Post-release tensions and struggles Release concert and making the money needed for the adoption home study Time management while balancing different tasks and roles Zach's Links Everlasting Arms (Bandcamp link) Zach on Twitter Zach on Facebook Other Things Mentioned Together For Adoption Good To Great What's Best Next No More Dreaded Mondays        

Today we get to hear from a few of the members of a band called Sow and Tether. We talked about their new EP entitled “Stripes Speak Out”, their heart for their local church, and more. If you're looking to do a band model for your local church worship ministry, I think you'll get a lot out of this episode. Before the interview, I share a little from my heart about a recent conference I attended called "Lift". It had a big impact on me. Moving forward with things here, you'll soon see some changes take place here at the site. More on this later. For now, I wrote a post about the conference in more detail here at my blog. Enough on that though; let's get into the highlights from my chat with Sow and Tether.... Here are some highlights from today's episode The meaning of the name "Sow and Tether" How the band got started The band's songwriting process About their debut EP Stripes Speak Out Working with their pastors The production process Financing the EP Getting the music heard The song Holy Exchange Discipleship in local church worship ministry The mission of the band Advice for local church musicians starting a band Links Official Website for Sow and Tether Stripes Speak Out EP on Bandcamp (I talked about why you should purchase this EP here) Sow and Tether merchandise Sow and Tether on Twitter Sow and Tether on Facebook Sow and Tether on YouTube Sow and Tether - Nothing But The Blood https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V-I9ChrhgAA    

Should local church worship bands release albums? Today on the podcast, I had worship pastor and songwriter, Tim Hooker, join me in the studio to talk about the upcoming release of his church’s new album Banner Over Me, releasing on May the 16th. We talked about the process he and his worship team went through to record and release this record. It’s an inspiring topic. So the answer to that first question is most definitely yes. Churches that are gifted with songwriters and musicians, should serve their churches with original content. God has something he wants to express and say through his musical heralds in specific contexts, for specific local churches. If you lead a worship ministry, especially one in a smaller church, what Tim and the people of Gate City Vineyard have done, will inspire you. Here's what we discussed Tim's story as a songwriter Tim at Gate City Vineyard The difference between recording a hired band and recording your worship team Raising the bar to serve the church Local songwriting potentially having more impact How much is an album worth? The writing and production process of Banner Over Me Selecting the songs The song "He Holds The Keys" Working through difficulty and conflict First one to the cross The song "All Our Fountains" Why it's free Encouraging the creative process in your local church Links Gate City Worship (Official Site) Gate City on Facebook Gate City on Twitter Tim on Twitter Other items mentioned Tim's EP "Second Place Angels" at CD Baby Tim's EP "Second Place Angels" at iTunes Urban Sophisticates (Tim played guitar in this band)

Today on the CMB Podcast, I'm glad to share with you my interview with singer/songwriter Andrew Greer. For Good Friday, we highlighted a beautiful video he did with Ginny Owens, covering the song Via Dolorosa. Check it out here if you haven't seen it. Andrew has an awesome story of how he got started as songwriter. You outdoor types will love it! We talked about that, along with why he loves hymns, and more. Here are the highlights Andrew's story about backpacking in Wyoming His love for Hymns and the Angel Band projects How Hymns For Hunger with Cindy Morgan got started Their current work with folks in Nicuragra An upcoming book with Ginny Owens Next year's tour of Israel Advice for artists who think it may be too late for them Andrew's Links on The Web Andrew's Official Site Andrew on iTunes Andrew on Facebook Andrew on Twitter Other Items Mentioned Hymns For Hunger Join Andrew and Ginny on their trip to Israel Ginny Owens Cindy Morgan Via Dolorsa Video    

As Christians we are told that we will go through suffering. A Christian life without tribulation doesn’t exist, and the way that Christian artists and songwriters respond to suffering, really matters. Today on the podcast we bring back some friends. Kristen Gilles’ new album just released on April 1st entitled Parker's Mercy Brigade. We originally had Bobby and Kristen Gilles on the CMB Podcast in episode 23. In that episode we touched more on their process for songwriting, so if you haven't heard that one, check it out here. In today's episode, we focus more on their powerful testimony of coming through an incredibly difficult time of suffering, when they lost their new born son Parker minutes after he was born. Here's what we touched on: Their story of working through suffering How to respond appropriately in times of mourning The creative process for the new album The story of "God of All Comfort" Producer Jonatan Barahona Group vocals and worshiping in the studio Great songs and albums that can't be manufactured Bobby on releasing singles Partnership with Nadus films The Spotify dilema Remembering that you're not alone The gifts God gave you are not just for you Grieving happens in isolation, but mourning happens in community Links The new album, Parker's Mercy Brigade Bobby and Kristen's blog Nadus Films Hungry for Hope conference Finding Balance Parker's Mercy Brigade

Wow. So this is a cool achievement. 50 episodes. I was thinking about how to make CMB 050 special, and, as I was thinking through things, I put myself in the shoes of the folks who have recently signed up. Perhaps some of you have missed some episodes. So today we’re going to look back at some highlights. These aren't just my personal favorites. These were intentionally selected to provide some valuable nuggets of wisdom for artists and songwriters looking into pursuing a music career. In 50 episodes we’ve had a ton of content, and so I really had to make some tough decisions…. Having said that, we’ve redesigned the podcast page to be easier for you to browse through all our episodes. You should think about the new podcast page as more of an al-a-carte model, and less of a TV series like LOST where you can't just jump in anywhere. You can browse through all the episodes and pick up wherever you'd like. However, the 7 episodes highlighted today were put together in order to make one primary point for songwriters and artists: Simply rest in Jesus, and work hard. 7 Important Highlights Here are the previous podcast sessions that we highlighted in today's episode.... Tim Timmons from session 036 Bob Kauflin from session 033 Robbie Seay from session 015 Latifah Philips from session 003 Rick Cua from session 002 John Mays from session 031 Caroline Cobb from session 037 Change Of Podcast Schedule I mentioned this in an email to the list last week, but we're modifying our podcast schedule to give me some time to focus on an upcoming training course that I'm offering for free just to subscribers. Here's a sneak peak of what it will include: A 4 part training series in music marketing on the 4 following things.... Finding Your Sound (foundations of artist development) Building Your Platform (creating a website that attracts visitors) Building Your List (starting and growing your e-mail list with MailChimp) Understanding Campaigns (how to plan and promote your upcoming release) Question.... Back to today's podcast. If you were to fall off the horse in one way or the other, what direction would it be? Everyone deals with one of these two issues: 1) Fatalism and not doing any work. (Praying for a ditch, when God has given you a shovel) or.... 2) No margin or Sabbath rest built into your schedule. (Self reliant and not trusting in God) Which one is it? Let us know in the comments below!  

Are you feeling like you do too much? Perhaps you’re feeling overwhelmed with all the different tasks that artists deal with.... From tech maintenance, to communicating with your band, to finding time to actually work on your set-list or let alone write a new song, there are a lot of hats that you have to wear. Today on the podcast we have author, blogger, and worship leader

We recently did a CMB-ite Spotlight with worship leader and songwriter Jordan Connell, and I knew we needed to hear more from this guy. The obvious way to do that was to invite him on the podcast. Jordan has a love for songwriting and music making, but when you sit down with him and hear his heart, you can see that he loves God more. Here were some of the things we talked about.... Jordan's story of faith Jordan's story of getting started as a worship leader The songwriting process The song story of "Everything Everlasting" Songwriting and playing with a band Band expectations, and process What really makes up a song? The "soul" of a song Everything Everlasting 2 Year anniversary New album next year The song The Anchor Glosolis Lightning Round Advice (see below) Thick skin and ministry Lightning Round Advice I’m trying out a new segment for the podcast called Lightning Round Advice. Basically, without the interviewee knowing, I will mention a word or category, usually tied to a huge or loaded subject, and the person being interviewed says, in a few words, the first words of advice that come to mind for budding indie artists. Though you should listen to the episode for the full affect, here’s what Jordan said: :-) Social Media - “Stay in contact!” Accounting and business administration - “Leave it to the professionals.” Nashville - “The coolest city on this side of the Mississippi.” Touring - “Have it nailed down before you leave.” Recording production - “Just lay it down man!” Music marketing and promotion - “A somewhat evil necessity for the greater good.” Church conflict - “Where there is unity, Grace abounds.” Vision and planning ahead - “There’s always room for spontaneity but it’s never a bad thing to have a plan.” Jordan’s Links Official website: http://thejordanconnell.com Jordan’s Twitter Jordan’s Instagram Jordan’s Facebook page Other Items Mentioned Hum

Warning: This was a totally unscripted episode. I get all vulnerable and open, with no notes, and no script to read from. All from my head. :-) So, in this very raw podcast episode, I remind us of the 3 Pillars of CMB (from episode 8), I share my heart and my thoughts on where we are currently, and then I look forward and talk about where I'd like to see this whole CMB thing go. Honestly, this particular podcast should have been published when we kicked off the new year. It's really more of a "State of the Blog" address for where we've been, where we currently are, and where we're going. Here's The Basic Flow A review of the "3 Pillars" Why CMB got started A quick (and possibly confusing) story of the last 6 months Future expecations Coming resources (and a request for your ideas) Other Podcast Episodes Mentioned CMB Session 08 (3 Pillars) CMB Session 07 (Clarity over creativity) CMB Session 40 (Upgrade your tools) CMB Session 39 (20 Mile March) CMB Session 41 (Connect with your listeners) Other Items Mentioned Resources Page Pat Flynn (The Smart Passive Income Blog) The Sparkline Michael Hyatt The Foundation How Can We Improve? Let us know in the comments below if you have any questions, concerns, comments, or any ideas to help improve the blog and podcast. Seriously. How can we improve?    

It's been a few weeks since we've done a podcast! Excited to be back in the swing of things. Today on the podcast, I go over our CMB Songwriting Checklist. 10 check points to send your song through. You may be feeling stuck and unable to finish a song. I have several fragments of songs that I've felt stuck on for months. Sometimes the song is waiting on you to sit down and really give it the attention it needs. Even if you're feeling good about your song, by going through this checklist, you'll only be making sure that your song gets all the attention it needs, from every angel of what makes for a strong song. Other Items Mentioned Recent CMB Spotlights What Am I Waiting On? (Post by Blake Easter) Steve Rice's blog SongSphere PDF for CMB Songwriting Checklist Question for you.... How do you know when your song is finished? Let us know in the comments below....

Today on the podcast I'm delighted to introduce you to Sean Carter. No. Not Shawn Carter. But singer/songwriter and worship leader, Sean Carter. If you're not already, you’ll be a fan of his after today’s episode. His heart for Jesus and serving others is contagious, and, not only does it come through in his music, but it also comes through in his everyday life. Here's an overview of what we discussed, along with some links you may enjoy.... Sean's story of faith Transitioning to becoming a full-time artist Co-writing and insecurity The unity of the Spirit in co-writing Disciplines for songwriters Writing consistently Thinking of the people in the church Becoming a student of other great songs Ask what are people currently listening to? The story behind "The Telling" The Great Divorce Loving the one that you tell, not the the telling of it The story of the song "Passion Song" GMA Immerse 2012 Songwriter of the Year The Emerging Sound - Jennie Lee Riddle Child like creativity that pleases God Heart check Links for Sean Official website "The Telling" on iTunes Facebook Twitter YouTube Instagram Sean with The Emerging Sound What Sean Is Currently Listening To Sleeping At Last David Ramirez Taylor Swift Aqualung Caroline Cobb Jennie Lee Riddle Other Items Mentioned The Emerging Sound Rick Cua interview Frances Havergal C.S. Lewis quote from The Great Divorce (Look in the song description at Soundcloud).

In session 44 of the CMB Podcast, I sat down with songwriter and guitar player Zach Janicello. I've been privileged to sit down with Zach on a handful of different occasions. It's been awesome getting to know him. His band Great Awakening, not only have a killer sound with some wonderful songwriting skills, but they have an awesome vision for Jesus and His Kingdom. We talked about the following things: Zach's upbringing Zach's songwriting process How Great Awakening was formed The Christian music industry Their first album "Cities" The album "Songs in Secret" Songwriting as a band Come and Live Links for Great Awakening Great Awakening on Facebook Great Awakening on Twitter Come and Live Links for Zach Zach's Blog Zach on Twitter Other Things Mentioned Ascend The Hill Strengths Finder Assessment

One of the things I love about CMB, is meeting new folks from within the CMB community. So when a CMB-ite reaches out to me on e-mail, introducing me to his music and life, I feel like we must be doing something right. Meeting new artists because of CMB is so rewarding. And today's podcast episode is an example of this very thing. Cole Mize is a family man, a rapper, a lyricist, a producer, a business owner, and much more. Meet Cole Mize We talked about a lot! Here are just a few of the highlights.... His testimony Getting a name change Laying down his own music for a season Cole Mize Studios and business ownership The importance of focus Digital tools (see below) Why e-mail beats social media Cole's new season of music making What he's currently listening to Cole's Links Cole Mize Studios Cole's Bio Cole on Facebook Cole on Twitter Cole on YouTube Cole on SoundCloud instagram Resources Mentioned Wordpress Dropbox Aweber Mailchimp Evernote Google Calendars YNAB Google Drive Dan The Man http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uL3QEqPJmhU And here's another YouTube video of an epic Dan The Man fall.... You Gotta Live To See http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GmzhPRjQ17U&list=UUYLIQda59SREWHukEgrZlUw