Collington, the musical project of artist James Collington, wasn’t something he ever planned. After giving his life to Jesus at 16, James realized music had become an unhealthy part of his identity. Determined to refocus on his faith, he gave away his CD collection and let go of his former image, believing music was no longer in his future. But God had other plans. James felt the Lord's clear nudge to pursue music again years later.
Now, Collington is the result of that calling—an unexpected journey that has allowed him to work alongside his heroes and continue releasing songs. Outside of music, James enjoys life on California’s central coast with his wife and son and has a passion for learning French, thanks to an impressive two-year streak on Duolingo.
His new track, "Talk About It," is available now–his first on NRT Music, a new label services division of NewReleaseToday. A second single, "Do You Really Love Me," is scheduled for Friday, November 8 and you can pre-save that here.
Why did you choose Christian rock instead of other genres?
It’s probably a blend of who I am and what I consume musically. It all comes back out in the Collington songs. For better or worse, I’ve covered the different ground with my music catalog. I like it this way, to be honest. I focused on songs that focused on worship for a while, but I realized that it's essential to keep writing and sharing as I live. I'm excited to be releasing some life songs. Could you tell us about your latest singles? What's the story and inspiration behind them?
Both songs are ones I’ve had in my back pocket for a little bit and are about me processing relationships. The first song, “Talk About It,” caught my friend Jake Rye’s ear. Jake helped encourage me to chase the song down. Talk About It came from a quote I heard someone making that Jesus might be in our hearts, but our family is in our bones. It's about breaking generational patterns.
The other single, “Do You Really Love Me,” was a song that I had a demo of. My friends have asked me when it’s coming out since I wrote it.
For a season, I focused on releasing songs I had written during my quiet time with the Lord. Recently, I’ve felt a push to release “life songs,” which is a challenge for me, to be honest. I’m usually really introverted with sharing my heart and thoughts. We’ll see how it goes, but I hope the Lord will use it.
You recently signed on to our music label, NRT Music. Please talk about your journey of partnering with us.
I’ve always respected NRT’s integrity and work ethic. There are no games or facades. I don’t know if I would have signed with anyone else. I've been working with their team in different capacities for some time now. It's great to be taking our relationship to the next level.
What other projects are you currently working on?
I've been producing and mixing for a few friends' projects. One is a worship friend who wants to get some personal songs out there; the other is my buddy's country band. Both are so fun and great creative outlets. Whenever I circle back to work on my own music after working on someone else's music, I feel like I can start from a more creative place with my personal music.
Who would you like to collaborate with in the future?
I’ve been chatting with Gable Price about writing sometime this fall. That should be fun. This is always tricky because they say not to meet your heroes. But man, I love working with my friends on music. I've been working with friends for a minute now, and we're in a good rhythm.
How can we be praying for you?
I could and would trust in the Lord with all my heart and lean not on my own understanding. It's been a pretty turbulent season for me and my family. I pray that God would use the turbulence to equip us to love and serve others well.
Paul E. Phillips is a Canadian journalist with over 20 years of experience writing and editing digital and print content. He specializes in health, fitness, nutrition, and travel. He loves music, movies, and, of course, living for Jesus.
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