1. When bands offer so much time and energy into ministering to fans, it's a powerful thing when it goes the other way. 15 Remedy Drive fans banded together to give David Zach a beautiful new guitar. As part of his thank you, David said "Be prepared to see and hear a lot from this beautiful instrument in the coming years."
2. Jesus Culture worship leader Derek Johnson is preparing to release his first solo album, and you can hear the lead single now when you pre-order the album. The first song, titled "The One We Love," also has a video out to introduce you to Derek's music, and you can find that on YouTube.
3. Lately it seems like Jonathan Thulin is everywhere, especially when it comes to videos. The "Dead Come to Life" singer most recently worked with Group 1 Crew on a video for their song "Heaven." Group 1 Crew shared a behind the scenes glimpse of the video shoot on their facebook page.
4. Pop foursome Anthem Lights hit a special milestone this week as their YouTube channel past 50 million views. The group routinely posts fun cover videos and music videos, most recently featuring a version of the classic "Don't Stop Believing" by Journey.
5. The producer of 2015's box office surprise hit God's Not Dead is asking viewers for their prayers and their help. Russell Wolfe, one of the founding partners of Pure Flix Entertainment, was diagnosed with ALS in December 2013, and is currently fighting for his life. In addition to prayers, you can visit the God's Not Dead facebook page to contribute financially and help offset the mounting costs of his treatment.
6. Rock and roll fans have the promise of a good year coming as We As Human works hard on their next project. Lead singer Justin Cordle has been sharing updates to the band's facebook page, saying "this album is for people like me, the curious and inquisitive." We're looking forward to hearing the results!
7. To coincide with the release of her remix album this week, Britt Nicole is launching a contest for fans to show how they're enjoying the project. The challenge is for fans to film themselves listening to their favorite track and upload the video with the title "This is how I listen to Britt Nicole's THE REMIXES." Britt started the contest off with a video of her daughter Ella enjoying the track "Holiday."
8. Jon Foreman of Switchfoot is gearing up for the release of his solo project The Wonderlands later this year, but he tweeted that until then he'll be in India. Always world travellers, Switchfoot is set to play three shows in India through the end of this month. Some fantastic pictures are sure to result.
Quotes (3)
1. "Whether you're 5 years old or 55 or 105 years old, God wants to use you today. Stop putting it off. God wants to use you today!" - John Cooper, Skillet
2. "Unless we learn to appreciate the extravagance of the "simple" gifts we will never have eyes to even look for anything greater." - Lacey Sturm, formerly Flyleaf
3. "It's Thy Kingdom Come IN ME not to me, it's Thy Kingdom Come THROUGH ME not because of me." - Taya Smith, Hillsong