Chris Tomlin Becomes First Christian Artist to Reach Billion Streams Threshold on Pandora

During an exclusive album preview event in Nashville this week for loyal Pandora listeners, Chris Tomlin was recognized as the first Christian artist to reach the Billion streams threshold on Pandora and was presented with their Billionaire award. Chris is one of only a handful of artists in any genre to reach this benchmark. To date, Chris has 1.8 Billion lifetime spins and averages 4.5 million streams per week. Chris spoke with the Associated Press about the recognition, view it here.

"I'm so honored to represent this amazing genre of music that features so many incredible artists," said Chris. "What this 'billion' honor reminds me of is that every week there are billions of people who gather together in worship. Anywhere there is dirt on this earth people are worshipping God. I'm so thankful to be a part of that."

"The level of Chris Tomlin's performance on Pandora is extremely rare and exceptional in the Christian/Gospel genre, with 1.8 BILLION lifetime streams, 2.6M unique listeners and 20M+ streams each month," says Melissa Chalos, Programming Curator, Christian/Gospel Music | Pandora. "Fifteen of the Top 100 worship songs sung in churches around the globe have his name on them, and 8 of his 11 album releases have reached No. 1. We are excited to welcome worship artist Chris Tomlin to the Pandora Billionaire's Club and to acknowledge the millions of fans engaging with his music here on Pandora. It's our loyal Pandora listeners who determine which artists become Billionaires, and we honor them and their pick in Chris."

Rascal Flatts' Jay DeMarcus Launches Christian Music Label

Rascal Flatts member Jay DeMarcus has launched his own Christian music label, Red Street Records. The first two signees to the label were also announced today: new artist Lauren James, a worship leader at Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas, and iconic CCM group Avalon. 

Marking "the next chapter" for the band, who recently welcomed new member Dani Rocca alongside Jody McBrayer's return after a 12-year absence from the group, Avalon is back in the studio and working on new music. The monumental press conference was live-streamed on Avalon's Facebook page, which you can check out below for a powerful acoustic performance from the group.

While Jay DeMarcus is largely known for his involvement with country superstars Rascal Flatts, his roots are deeply planted in Christian music. DeMarcus was part of Dove-nominated band East to West in the late 1980s before the group disbanded in the early 90's. Even during his time in Rascal Flatts, Jay has continued to stay connected to the Christian music industry, producing records for artists like Jason Crabb and The Martins, in addition to country legend Reba McEntire's recent gospel album. 

"I kind of feel like everything I've done up to this point in my life has led to this one moment," Jay shared today. "Christian music was such a huge foundation for me, even as a kid growing up. Before there was ever a Rascal Flatts, I started out in Christian music with East to West, and I've always felt like every time I would come back into the Christian music genre and produce records, I always felt like I was coming back home to a degree. It's always been in my heart, when the timing was right, to do something on my own."

As owner and CEO of Red Street Records, DeMarcus, alongside general manager and producer Don Koch, will produce albums for both Avalon and Lauren James. 

TobyMac Celebrates Sixth Consecutive RIAA Gold Certification

Two weeks before TobyMac's The Elements hits, the 7X GRAMMY® winner is unveiling the newest single "Scars," a track that is admittedly close to the artist. Processing life as a believer, husband, father and artist fueled the cultivation of his upcoming album, available Oct. 12. 

TobyMac was honored with the RIAA certification for his sixth solo gold record - the Grammy winning THIS IS NOT A TEST - in his hometown of Nashville. The honor comes two weeks before the multi-platinum selling artist drops The Elements, his first new album in three years. 

The Elements boasts TobyMac's biggest song in six years, "I just need U." along with the current radio favorite "Everything" which is currently No. 3 at Hot AC, No. 9 at AC Indicator, No. 8 at Christian Airplay and No. 12 at AC Monitored. 

Avril Lavigne Ends Hiatus with Worship Song

Pop star Avril Lavigne has made her musical comeback after taking several years off to focus on healing from her battle with Lyme Disease. Last week, she released the first single from her upcoming sixth studio album, L6-- a powerful worship ballad titled "Head Above Water." At the time of release, the song has stayed at #2 on the US iTunes chart for 6 days.

After starting to feel the effects while on the road in support of her self titled album and seeing many doctors during that time, Avril was diagnosed with Lyme Disease in December of 2014. Although Lavigne has released two singles in the time since her diagnosis, her music career has largely been paused in order to fight the disease. 

In a statement on her website, Avril shares the inspiration from the song: "I'm in a battle," she sighs. "One night, I thought I was dying, and I had accepted that I was going to die. My mom laid with me in bed and held me. I felt like I was drowning. Under my breath, I prayed 'God, please help to keep my head above the water.' In that moment, the song writing of this album began. It was like I tapped into something. It was a very spiritual experience. Lyrics flooded through me from that point on." The music video for "Head Above Water" released today, in celebration of Avril's birthday, and can be viewed below.
  


Throughout the rest of her coming album, Avril says we can expect songs detailing her trials from a perspective of triumph: "This is me and my fight," she affirms. "This album tells my story." 

Lavigne concludes her statements: "I went through a lot to get here. The positive side is I didn't stop living my life. Having music while I was healing and in recovery definitely pulled me out of my darkness. I had a goal to work towards and a purpose. I hope the album touches people. We all go through challenges in life. Some unfortunately are more serious than others. Having gone through the battle of my lifetime, I'm stronger than ever and looking forward to sharing my renewed voice and energy for my life with my fans through this new music."

Michael Ketterer Places Fifth on America's Got Talent

Influence Music's Michael Ketterer began his journey on the 13th season of America's Got Talent with a shower of confetti unleashed by Simon Cowell's push of the golden buzzer. This week, in the season's live finale, Ketterer finished the competition with fifth place.

​Earlier in the finale show, Ketterer was revealed as the fifth act in the top five, edging out Courtney Hadwin. In the next set of results, it was revealed that Ketterer had finished in fifth place. Cowell spoke to Ketterer over a backdrop of surprised murmurs from the crowd, reassuring him, "You and I are going to continue this relationship, you have been an absolute star." Ketterer walked off the stage with a smile on his face and his arms raised in celebration.

In the package before his final performance in the competition, Ketterer walked into a room where a video was waiting for him. When the video started, he was met with a montage of family, friends, patients, and the family of former patients describing how he has impacted their lives, ending with a heartfelt message from his son. An emotional Ketterer finished the competition with a soulful performance of "Ain't No Mountain High Enough."

In the semifinal round, Cowell urged Garth Brooks to write a song for Ketterer. The result was the song "The Courage to Love," which Ketterer performed on the season finale. After he was eliminated, Ketterer announced that he would perform the song with Brooks during a sold-out show at Notre Dame on October 20.