Showing posts with label Big Daddy Weave. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Big Daddy Weave. Show all posts

Saturday, August 26, 2017

LoveMusic! - Big Daddy Weave - The Only Name (Yours Will Be)


The Only Name (Yours Will Be)
Big Daddy Weave


Aug. 26, 2017

Greetings LoveMusic! listeners!

The Only Name - when all is said and done - when there will be no other gods that the nations will follow, is the One and only Messiah. His Name is Jesus, Yeshua. Yeshua HaMachiach, Jesus Christ.

When I first heard this song by Big Daddy Weave, I liked it right away. Some songs you have to listen to them over and over before they really become a favorite. Not this one for me, and maybe you too.

Thank you, Big Daddy for expressing my heart through yours!

Ahava and shalom,


Steve Martin
Founder
Love For His People
Charlotte, North Carolina
USA






Two fish. Five loaves. One little boy. When a small lunch was offered to Jesus, He took it and multiplied the simple offering, feeding five thousand. Like that little boy, the members of award-winning band Big Daddy Weave continue to submit their music, their ministry and their lives to Him with their seventh studio album, Beautiful Offerings (Fervent Records/Word Entertainment).

Beautiful Offerings follows the biggest album of the band’s career, Love Come To Life, which yielded the rare feat of four back-to-back #1 singles – “Love Come To Life,” “Redeemed,” “The Only Name (Yours Will Be)” and “Overwhelmed.” “Redeemed” became an anthem of unprecedented impact. Big Daddy Weave members Mike Weaver (lead vocals, guitar), Jay Weaver (bass, vocals), Jeremy Redmon (guitar, vocals), Joe Shirk (saxophone, keys, vocals) and Brian Beihl (drums) never would have predicted that a vulnerable song written for the lead singer himself, initially deemed by Mike too personal to even turn in for Love Come To Life, would become the group’s best-selling track in their 16-plus year history.

“I thought if I could somehow achieve something for God, that’s what He was going to use,” Mike admits, “but when we shared about brokenness, God used that more than He ever used any of the little successes that we had been given along the way.”

“Redeemed” spent 11 weeks at No. 1, was dubbed “Song of the Year” at the first annual K-LOVE Fan Awards, garnered Dove Award and Billboard Music Award nominations and certified a gold single by the RIAA for sales of over 500,000 records. However, more than all the accolades Big Daddy Weave has achieved, it’s the stories about how the songs have impacted lives that fuel the band’s passion for recording and touring. In fact, they used “Redeemed” as the starting point for the fresh batch of songs hand-picked for Beautiful Offerings.

“This record continues where “Redeemed” left off, celebrating what God has done over the last season,” Mike affirms. “Even as we saw and heard hundreds of amazing things happening in people’s lives, we also saw people who were barely approaching what God is offering. Many people were saying, "Thank God, I am redeemed," but then going right back into their same old thing,” adds Mike. “We wanted to bring light on that with Beautiful Offerings. Being redeemed is more than the forgiveness and the fact that our past is taken care of. It’s a message of hope that calls us out of where we used to be into a new place. It’s as much about what we are redeemed to as what we are redeemed from.”

“Every day is an opportunity to bless the heart of God through how we live, how we encounter our families, people we see in the grocery store, and everybody we meet,” adds Mike. “This isn’t us buckling down and trying to earn God's love by pleasing Him. It’s a realization that because we are children of God, we can bless the heart of God by being subject to and directed by Him in every moment of our lives. Our lives then become something that is pleasing to Him. We become a beautiful offering.”

The theme of Beautiful Offerings was the premise for a tour long before it became the title of the band’s next project. It was a concept the five men were already beginning to live out, so it proved a natural compass for the record.

“We worked to find songs that echo where we are now, not just anything that was a song for a song’s sake,” adds Jeremy, who has produced all of the band’s music since their second album. “I went into this really trusting that the Lord is working out the details of it. Even in the sounds and the parts that were chosen, He really made it happen.”

Through Beautiful Offerings, Big Daddy Weave wants to share the message, “Every one of us is beautiful because of what God has deposited in us. Our lives are an opportunity to literally be used for the Kingdom,” Mike explains. “Now we have an opportunity to live in response to who He is. Jesus is the beauty in the offering.”

Taking that approach into worship, Joe observes, “A lot of times we don’t worship the way we should—in our all. We should be offering that. I believe that’s one of the biggest parts of what makes the offering beautiful. It’s not just leftovers; it’s from our gut. It’s from the very core of who we are.”

Joe adds that the songs on the new album are “more chiseled and more focused and directed” as a result of the conversations the band members have nightly following the ministry time at the end of each performance, an intentional time of dedicated dialogue and one-on-one prayer with the people who attend their concerts. It’s been a transformational experience for the band as they’ve seen God work in powerful ways in the lives of people across the country and a theme that emerges in the lead single from the album, “My Story.”

“My Story,” written with GRAMMY®-nominated songwriter Jason Ingram, chronicles not only the story of the band members, but also a larger, overarching narrative. “If I told you my story, you’d see hope, you’d see love, you’d see victory, all these things, but it’s not mine. My story is really the story of what God has done in our lives, and the goodness of that is that it awakens things in other people. Our story is really just part of His story,” Mike offers.

“The idea for the song, “Already Done,” written with Josh Wilson, showed up on the road in the moment of us seeing people receive ‘Redeemed,’” Mike explains. “What we were seeing on the road is people really experience relief from dealing with things in their past, and God challenging us to realize, ‘It’s more than being forgiven. You have a purpose; there is more to this life. There is a greater reason for getting up in the morning. You matter to the Kingdom.’”

Meanwhile, keystone “I Belong To God,” co-written with Matt Redman and Allison Mellon, was inspired by the band’s recent trip to Cambodia. The group heard a story about a young man who had been abandoned by his earthly father and connected so strongly with the Gospel that he would strum a guitar and shout at the top of his lungs: “I belong to God! I belong to God!” The centerpiece of the new song was forged, with the rest of the cut centering around human trafficking, one of the most critical issues facing Cambodia today.

“I don’t know that I’m going to recover from that trip. We saw and heard things that were so terrible that when I got back, I tried to forget about it all,” Mike admits of the trip. “I feel ashamed when I say that. I really felt that I connected with God’s pain in that place, but I was trying to keep the pain at arm’s length. I didn’t realize it was Him at the time showing me what He sees.”

“Letting the truth of that song get a hold of you will really change the way you view God and the way you view others,” Brian adds.

In truth, the transformation they’ve experienced in their own lives and the miracles they’ve witnessed in the lives of others post-“Redeemed” have dramatically challenged the way the five men in Big Daddy Weave approach everything, from the songs they sing to the way they tailor their concerts each night.

“Our focus is definitely not just on coming out with touching songs. Ministry is on the top of the list in terms of what God wants to do night to night,” Joe maintains.

While they’re humbled by No. 1 singles that ensure a large number of people hear their songs, the awards, the fame, the attention, those aren’t the things the band views as significant. Obedience is their standard.

“The things I used to hold as important, or the things I wanted to have control over the past few years, the Lord has allowed me to truly let go of that stuff and not care about it anymore,” Jeremy admits.

Mike echoes Jeremy’s thoughts, adding, “When we hear the Lord, we want to do what He says, whether it looks like success to the world or not.”

After all, the story they’re telling with their music and their lives is not their own. “We just pray these songs touch people’s lives,” Brian offers. “I think that’s what we hope for with this record; that He just takes it further, it reaches more people and that His story comes through in all of this.”

In story and song, the members of Big Daddy Weave simply want their legacy to be one characterized by loving people and telling of the Love that’s changed their lives—their own beautiful offering. “When you see the goodness of the Lord, and it’s evident, not just in life, but in the lives of those around you like we’ve been able to see, all we care about now is just pursuing that and finding more of that,” Jay says. “I think you see that in the songwriting of this record, and I think you see that in the eyes of each member of this band.”

Every song, every concert, every prayer they pray with the people they meet, they are giving it all to Jesus. “It’s about who we give it to,” Mike concludes, “and God can feed everybody with it.” 


Published on Jan 23, 2014



Wednesday, October 30, 2013

"The Only Name" - music video - Big Daddy Weave - w/lyrics



YouTube Song: 
"The Only Name" 






Official Website: Big Daddy Weave
Truly compelling music makes the personal universal. Few artists have done that more consistently or more movingly than Big Daddy Weave. Through more than a decade of hits like "In Christ,” “Audience of One,” "You're Worthy Of My Praise," “Every Time I Breathe,” What Life Would Be Like,” and “You Found Me,” they have shared the journey in a way that has won the ongoing respect of fans, press and industry alike. Their musical journey began with a Dove Awards nomination as New Artist of the Year in 2002 and includes a 2010 Dove Award for the album Christ Has Come. They have been honored at ASCAP's Christian Music Awards, were chosen for the WOW Hits compilations in five of the last six years and are one of the 10 most played artists at Christian radio over the past decade.
Most recently, they hit the top of the Christian AC chart - the fourth time they've done so - with "Love Come To Life," a song about the desire to have the love that Christ put in our hearts be more than words that we say, but a love that comes to life in actions. A song filled with passion and intimacy, and with the musical hooks and majestic sound that have marked so much of their work, it is the perfect introduction to Love Come To Life, their first studio album in more than three years.
Love Come To Life demonstrates once again the passion and energy that have made Big Daddy Weave one of Christian music's most compelling acts for nearly a dozen years. True to form, the project teems with real life and emotion, from longing and struggle to breakthrough and gratitude, with front man Mike Weaver's forthright songwriting and intimate and unmistakable vocals backed by powerful arrangements and stellar musicianship. It derives its power from the fact that life and music intertwine so fully.
"We've faced a lot of personal challenges and adversity during the past couple of years," says Mike, "Coming to the other side of that leaves us with fresh things to share, and in a place where we can share even more deeply than ever before." Those challenges, from the fatigue faced at times by musicians who spend much of their time on the road, to a devastating fire that swept through guitarist/producer Jeremy Redmon's house and studio, and health issues faced by some band members, produced a record that reflects two sides of the Christian life.
"You've got the ones I term the belly-achers," says Mike with a laugh. "Those are the hurting songs, which are way outnumbered by what came after that, the songs that say, 'We can't wait to worship God because we see even in tragedy, God, You are triumphant.'"
The bridge between the two was a spiritual breakthrough Mike felt about a year into the process of writing for the project.
"I was really at a low point," he says, "struggling with my imperfections. I was in my garage; my man cave where I work out. I felt like God said to my spirit, 'Why don't you let me tell you what I think about you and what I like about you?' He started with, 'I love your heart for people,' and went from there. I was like a broken heap on the floor of my garage. The things he was talking about are not future tense things like a lot of people, the I think 'If I could get to this point and look like this and achieve that I would be all right.' He has this 'I love who you are right now' mentality. 'I accept you right now. You need to accept you right now.' At that point, I couldn't write from that hurting place anymore. I thought, 'I've got to worship now.'"
The result is that songs like the title track and "Save My Life," a song Mike describes as "gut-level honesty," give way to others like "Magnificent God," whose spirit of worship is set amid a sound both intimate and majestic; "Jesus Move," a passionate call for Jesus' power to flow into believers written with Phil Wickham; "Different Light," a rocker that celebrates the way faith rewrites even the most troubled past; and "If You Died Tonight," a tenderly insistent request to a friend to consider ultimate truths.
"This is a record that's a lot more transparent," says drummer Jeff Jones. "It's one that all of us are super excited about. We can give it to people and say, 'This is what God has been doing in our lives."
In fact, the band's own breakthrough, born of a renewed emphasis on personal ministry at their concerts, is part in the record's feel.
"God has a plan with all of this stuff," says Jeremy, "and maybe it took that extra time and our journey as a band to really bring these songs to life. There have been big changes over the last couple of tours as we've allowed more time for ministry. It's been a season of growth and change for all of us, and the fact that Mike was able to write with worship leaders like Phil, Carl Cartee and Paul Baloche really helped bring all of that into focus for the record."
As always, Jeremy's production is key in bringing the songs to life.
"We approached each song with a question," he says. "'Where can we take this that will make this sonically a new experience, something we haven't done before.' And I hope the way we did that will open up new ears to our music.”
That meeting of life and music has been part and parcel of Big Daddy Weave's appeal since their days. Formed at the University of Mobile, the quintet - Mike, his brother Jay, who plays bass, Jeremy, Jeff, and keyboardist/saxophonist Joe Shirk - released an independent album in 2001 and then landed a deal with Fervent Records, their label home ever since. "One and Only," the title track from their first Fervent album, debuted in SoundScan's Christian Top 5 and remained in the Top 20 for six weeks. "In Christ" peaked at #2, stayed for 24 weeks on R&R's AC chart, earned a spot on the Dove Hits album, and became one of ASCAP's most-performed songs of 2002 - a milestone also achieved by "Audience of One" in 2003. Then, Hurricane Ivan in 2004 damaged several band members' Florida homes and led to Mike's relocation to Nashville. The fact that the move led to Mike's marriage to a Fervent staffer still leaves him shaking his head.
"Even in the bad times, he's working it out," he says with a laugh.
The band has always kept a busy touring schedule and in fact often recorded parts of their early albums in hotel rooms, "literally using the turned-up mattress and box springs as sound baffles to record vocals," Mike says. The fact that those records touched lives and earned chart success is evident in their recent hits package, The Ultimate Collection.
"That was some closure in a way," says Mike. "We are thankful for those years, but in as much as we're seeing the things God has done, we are very full of vision for the future and in so many ways it just feels brand new to us right now."
Which is something reflected as the band hits the road with songs from Love Come To Life.
"We can go forward united as a band," says Jay. "We had been struggling to find balance as family men, touring musicians, and people following the Lord. But the Lord has given us healing and blessed us with being able to find the balance in him. It's been amazing to see God do that in us."
"We are excited about the album," adds Joe, "and I think fans are going to love it. It's an opportunity to point to something way bigger than the band, to the body of believers working together, bringing glory to the Lord. I tell pastors that Big Daddy Weave is the best church I've ever been a part of. When they raise their eyebrows, I say, 'Yeah, I spend more time in fellowship with these guys than any church members spend together. This is the church of the 45-foot bus going down whatever road it is today. It's the fellowship of my Christian brothers."
"This is as much a real family as anything else," says Mike. "The work that God has done in our band makes it all new again because of our sense of purpose, not just to make music but to be used of God. And that's the bottom line--what God wants us to do with this."
Big Daddy Weave is:
Mike - Songwriter/Lead Vocals/Guitar
Jeff - Drums
Jay - Bass/Vocals
Joe - Saxophone/Keyboards
Jeremy - Guitars/Vocals