Song Ideas/Blog

"Gooyeem Hallelujah (Barafrazim Name To Ra)" by Roozbeh Najarnedad

Rounding out Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month, we have a song in Farsi and English, written by Roozbeh Najarnedad and...

"Changa" by Sheldon Bangera (India)

While browsing Spotify, I came across the work of Sheldon Bangera, a worship leader and songwriter of Mumbai, India. He writes music in...

"Uukhai" by Nomadic Spirit (Mongolia)

While researching, I found the group Nomadic Spirit of Mongolia. They've been playing at Christian conferences, and "Uukhai" seems to be...

"I Believe" by OneWord (Solomon Islands)

A few years ago, I was commissioned to transcribe this song by a college friend serving as a missionary in Indonesia. Looking into their...

"Uta No Kisetsu" (trans. "Season of Song") by Takafumi Nagasawa (Japan)

I was informed about Takafumi Nagasawa by a Japanese graduate student at Trinity. Arguably Japan's most well-known worship leader, his...

"Church Arise!" by Kat Mills

April is Autism Acceptance Month. In cyberspace, I recently stumbled over a Christian songwriter who is openly autistic: Kat Mills of...

"Comfort, Comfort Ye My People" (Sacred Jazz) by Deanna Witkowski

April is Jazz Appreciation Month, and I found this gem (be sure to watch the score video after the introduction!) by musician and fellow...

"Abaana (The Lord's Prayer)" by Songs2Serve

Songs2Serve is an intercultural, music ministry think-tank in the Netherlands. I've helped them with their English translation work on...

"Yeshu Muktinath" by Aradhna (India)

Maybe the first non-Western musical Christian band I knew was Aradhna. As I learned more about them, I was happy to discover they have...

"You Are My Shepherd" by Gloria Fanchiang

"Gloria Fanchiang is a second-generation Taiwanese American songwriter, independent recording artist and worship leader based in Los...

"Oh God" by Chantel Varnado

Chantel Varnado is a singer and worship leader from the Englewood neighborhood of Chicago's South Side. I had the privilege of meeting...

Two Tune Settings for St. Patrick's Breastplate

I was researching Irish hymns for St. Patrick's Day when I came across a hymn text based on his famous breastplate prayer. Supposedly,...

"Heal Us" by Grace Funderburgh

When I was transcribing Proskuneo's first album, I worked a lot over email with Grace Funderburgh (the first thought upon meeting her was...

"Good Oh" by Sherwin Gardner (Reggae)

Sherwin Gardner is a Trinidadian gospel reggae singer who has been cranking out albums since 1998. My favorite from his most recent...

"Save a Seat for Me" by B.B. King

B.B. King is easily the most recognized and memorable name in Blues. But his earliest and undeniable musical influence was gospel music...