Today's pop bands–mainstream and Christian–are giving more to music enthusiasts, both lyrically and musically. White Ribbon Day, or WRD, is one band that fits the bill. Based out of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and Biarritz, France, White Ribbon Day is unique in that they do a lot of performing internationally.
The band's goal is to set foot on every nation and share the transformational love and message of Jesus. Zach Blickens, the band's vocalist and guitarist, says, "We're trying hard to make music that's not afraid to be honest with heartache and challenge, but always points to the solution. Stylistically, we might be categorized as vocal-driven, soul-influenced modern pop."
I had a chance to talk with Zach about WRD: about their music, about their background, about songs from their 2019 album, Throught It, and so much more.
You blend a lot of styles together into a really unique sound. Where do your inspirations come from?
Honestly, we travel so much internationally: we performed in 12 different nations in 2019. There's so much great music out there. And, it's hard not to be influenced by a lot of different styles. We all love music, and we're also usually thinking of how to make music that might resonate in performances in different parts of the world. For example, "Worth It" has a strong African influence, while "Mamacita" has a South American vibe, and "Lifeline" has a very Los Angeles trap sound.
One of the big reasons we went with pop music as a stylistic umbrella is that we've noticed as we travel that many different cultures seem to engage particularly well with the strong melodies and beats we often hear in the pop genre. And, working in this genre gives us a lot of room to be creative and to express ourselves in a musical language that people can hopefully relate to.
There are a lot of generations in your group. Talk about that dynamic together.
Okay, so this is one of the things that we usually don't share immediately. But, the core members of White Ribbon Day are actually a family. We don't share it upfront, because people often expect something cheesy with a "family band:" they show up expecting the Von Trap family singers from the Sound of Music or something like that. But, truthfully, we're all gifted very differently. We love working together. And, we actually feel like the family aspect makes the show richer.
We feel like there's something powerful that comes from the wisdom of the older generation coupled with the passion and modern influences of the younger generation. Kailah [Blickens] and Sierra [Zürcher], the two youngest band members, are key leaders in the writing, musical direction, and branding of White Ribbon Day. We sometimes have to wrestle through issues and personal sensitivities together. But, we've found that the struggle has always been worth it. And, we almost always come out of it with something precious on the other side.
What's one of your favorite songs from Through It?
"Lifeline" is definitely our most popular song. It has a very catchy pop vibe. But, we're actually really happy with the way all ten songs turned out. I kind of wish I could share the stories for each song because they're all so unique. For people wanting to dig a little deeper into the music, though, I'd recommend trying the song, "Fog." It was our third single. And, it's a collaboration written by three of us, but spearheaded by our vocalist Sierra. She had just walked through a very difficult, confusing time. The song essentially documents her emotional struggle, culminating with her ultimate redemption. When we were editing the lyric video, we were really caught off guard by how powerful of an emotional effect it had on us. Also, oddly enough, it was very well received in Denmark.
You have some beautiful artwork on your album and singles. Can you share a bit about the artists and inspirations?
The artwork on our album and the first three singles from this project was created by our nephew, Seth Lunsford. He's a gifted graphic designer based in Seattle who has also done artwork for Kings Kaleidoscope and Kutless. In our initial conversation with him, we had talked about our vision for this project being a journey; we pictured a weathered sea-captain enduring stormy seas and hardships on his way to a destination. Seth pretty much took the design from there.
When he came up with the design and the overall weathered vibe of the artwork, we all just fell in love with it. There's a sketch of an old sailor inside the Designer Jacketsand on the front page of our website that our vocalist and in-house graphic designer Sierra had drawn. It just seemed to capture the heart of it, so we decided to feature it.
Where would you like to see your music ministry go in the future?
We absolutely have a mission to reach as many people as possible around the world. We want to make great music that will resonate with everyone, and to use this platform to share the freedom that we've found in a relationship with Jesus. We also work with a lot of Christian speakers and evangelistic festivals around the world.
We want to help draw as many people to the events as possible to hear the message of Jesus. So, we really do want to expand our influence to reach very large numbers of people. It can be a tricky thing to want to increase your influence because there's always the temptation to do it for your own benefit and your own ego. So, we want to be careful to keep our focus on the goal of introducing people to Jesus. He is most definitely the answer that people need, and we definitely are not.
How can we be praying for you?
So many ways. If you'd like to pray for us, please first and foremost pray that we continue to run after Jesus. He really is the most important. Then, maybe pray for God to defend our relationships with each other, and to help us reach as many people as possible with the love of Jesus. And, for the provision and wisdom, we need to reach this crazy goal. Thanks so much, friends.
Kevin McNeese started NRT in 2002 and has worked in the industry since 1999 in one form or another. He has been a fan of Christian music since 1991.
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