The Artist Spotlight: Recent Episodes
Rhema 99.7
Rhema 99.7's Aaron Brown chats to local and international artists to shine a light on their music and the heart behind it.
In today's episode of The Artist Spotlight, we dive deep into the captivating journey of Jeremy Rosado, a fresh face on the Christian music scene. From his early dreams of leading masses in worship, his appearances on powerhouse reality shows like The Voice and American Idol, to the inspiration behind his music - Jeremy’s story is one of faith, passion, and perseverance.
Born with a heart tuned to Jesus and a voice destined for the world stage, Jeremy navigates the challenges of the spotlight while remaining true to his divine calling. As we uncover stories of his Puerto Rican heritage, family, and personal faith journey, listeners get an exclusive insight into the man behind the music.
Plus, Jeremy reveals his bucket list destinations and shares his love for Australian culture. Join us for an uplifting episode filled with music, faith, and dreams that know no bounds.
Dive into a soulful conversation with the legendary Jeremy Camp in this episode of The Artist Spotlight.
Unravel Jeremy's journey from his early tours in Australia to the deeply therapeutic process of songwriting that's touched hearts in over 45 countries. Listen as he recounts his experience of reliving life's highs and lows in "I Still Believe" and the intriguing possibility of a Christian Music Cinematic Universe. Plus, get a sneak peek into his upcoming tour!
Whether you're a long-time fan or just discovering Jeremy's inspiring story, this episode is a melodic blend of faith, resilience, and the transformative power of music. Don't miss it!
Join Aaron Brown this week as he catches up with John Newsome live from the CMAA conference in Brisbane. They chat about John's new music, faith, session work and his songwriting process.
This week Aaron hands the mic over to Chloe, his breakfast show co-host to have a chat with Riley when she visted the Rhema studios during her Australian tour! Listen in as they chat more about faith the tour and Aussie culture.
Riley Clemmons is coming to Australia! We catch up with Riley to talk about her upcoming visit to Australia as well as her new music. We’ll hear how a tough season has led to spiritual and personal growth for Riley and she’ll try her best to blend in as an Aussie!
Ben Hastings has lived out his faith in the spotlight as a world renowned worship leader... so what happens when he has doubts he has to wrestle with? We catch up with Ben to talk about his new song Dragons, the season of wrestling and doubt that inspired it and the honesty of worship when things aren't going how you hope.
We're catching up with Jeremy Camp with an exciting announcement for his Aussie fans! Plus we'll hear how he was able to overcome his anxieties, travelling the world with kids, and whether there will be a sequel to his biopic "I Still Believe".
It's been a few years since we last caught up with Rend Collective... in fact they have the distinction of being the last Christian band to tour Australia before the pandemic hit. We'll catch up on what the last couple of years have looked like for the Irish group, how they have learned to worship even through huge difficulties and we'll hear about their new album 'Whosoever'
Ray Badham takes us behind the scenes of how songs get written for Hillsong and how he became a big part of their songwriting team in the late 90s and early 2000s. Now stepping out as a solo artist we will hear about his new Easter themed song and why he is writing songs in the language of Papua New Guinnea.
Last time we caught up with George Mhondera, the world had just started going a little bit crazy with this new virus that had hit. Plus, George had just released his debut single. It's been a couple of years, so we're going to catch up with George to find out what the last few years have looked like for him. Some new music that is in the works, and we'll find out if he's still rocking the cool shades he's been spotted wearing in Matt Redman's 10,000 Reasons film clip.
We catch up with Jordan Janzen from Canadian band 'The Color' to hear the story of the band and the heart behind their songs. We'll also hear how COVID shook things up for the band a lot and changed their priorities and outlook.
Join host Aaron as he sits down with Hannah Hobbs, the Hillsong Church worship leader who has now released a new album as a solo artist. From the making of her new album to her creative process and future plans, Hannah gives viewers a behind-the-scenes look at her life as an artist. Whether you're a fan of her music or simply interested in learning more about the music industry, this interview is not to be missed. Subscribe to our channel and hit the notification bell to stay up-to-date on our latest interviews and music-related content. Thanks for tuning in!
Mitch Wong got his musical start as a member of Planetshakers in Melbourne. Now he finds himself on the other side of the world in Nashville and stepping out as a solo artist. We'll get to know Mitch and his journey from Newcastle to Melbourne to Nashville. We'll also hear the incredible way he decided to marry his wife and how he wants his music to help people through the journey of hard times.
SOFYKA wants to inspire people to change the world! Her music has found it's way out of her homeland of Germany to spread around the world so we want to get to know this new artist better. We'll hear about her battles to overcome bullying and self esteem issues and find out what it means to stand strong in what you believe.
The Yellow and Black Attack are back! Legendary Christian rockers are heading Down-Under and we're catching up with frontman Michael Sweet to talk about their ongoing relationship with Australia, the opposition they faced from some parts of the church in their early days and Michaels incredible journey to faith.
This week on the Artist Spotlight, Aaron gets to catch up with SVRCINA. They talk about her song being used for the Womens Euro Cup and her collaborations with and Hulvey.
Aussie singer songwriter Greg Cooper, certainly knows what a lockdown is like. And whilst most people are learning to bake and may be taking up a new art or skill, Greg Cooper was meticulously working on an EP that he released at the end of last year. We're going to catch up to find out the heart behind the album, what he learned through the COVID experience and what his favorite coffee is.
Blessing Offor has just released his debut album 'My Tribe'. The title has both a literal and metaphorical meaning close to Blessing's heart. Aaron and Blessing chat about the new album, the positives of having a 'tribe' and the downside of 'tribalism'. We'll hear how Coca Cola gave him an all new audience and the heart behind some of the songs.
Aaron snagged the chance to have a conversation with 'The Voice' 2020 winner, Chris Sebastian at a local Carols event. They get to chat about what a Sebastian Christmas looks like, and about how Chris is releasing one song a month for 2023!
Colin catches up with Aaron about his upcoming Australian tour, collaboration with artists like City Alight, recently having another grandchild and about his current writing journey.
Aaron gets to catch up with Worship Leader, Singer/songwriter and new mother Elle Limebear in person this week. They chat about her cover of a Maverick City track and the heart behind some of her recent releases. Aaron also surprises her and the family with an Aussie favorite, make sure you stick till the end to find out what that is!
Aaron catches up with Grammy-nominated Christian artist Mercy Me as they prepare to release their upcoming album called 'Always Only Jesus' to talk about the song writing process and also a little about their collaboration with Bart's son.
Stephen Stanley is an American singer/song-writer, Pastors Kid and a soon-to-be dad! One of the things that sets Stephens journey apart from others is that he can actually only hear out of one ear! But he doesn’t let that stop him from spreading the gospel through his music.
Sean BE is inviting us to step into his story as we learn more about this up and coming artist. Although growing up in the church and even going into ministry at a young age, Sean still had to come to a place of letting go of the expectations others had of him and a need to prove himself. He never walked away from faith but had to wrestle with pride before he could start to see the story that God has been writing in his life. We’ll get to know more about his journey and his music.
Matthew West is a prolific and talented songwriter... but did you know he's also an author and a Podcaster? We catch up with Matthew West to talk about his brand new book 'The God Who Stays', his faith and musical journey, a season where he thought he may have lost his voice forever and we'll hear about his close encounter with Aussie icons Keith Urban and The Wiggles! (New supergroup anyone?)
Special guest host Laura from Hope Media gets to catch up with one of the biggest CCM artists TobyMac. Toby talks about his new album 'Life After Death', and he also touches on loosing his son and collaboration.
How many musical groups can you think of that feature siblings? How about husband and wife? There’s probably a few but a mother/son duo? That’s definitely unique! We catch up with mother/son duo Dupree (Lauren and Dylan) to hear their story, what it’s like to work together as mother and son and how Dylan’s faith reignited Lauren’s.
Ginny Owens has been releasing music since the 90s and bringing her unique vocals and style to pop music. But even more unique is her story and journey as she is a blind recording artist. We’ll get to know more about her journey, her music and how she has not let being blind get in the way of making music she loves.
Steven Curtis Chapman is a legend of Christian music. The COVID season shut down his ability to tour but he didn’t let it stop him making music and he wrote and released ‘Together’. We chat with Steven Curtis Chapman about why being ‘together’ is important and take a look back at a very difficult season for he and his family after the tragic loss of their daughter.
You’d think releasing a brand new album right as a pandemic hits would ruin the plans of a touring musician but for Aussie artist Levi McGrath it was the start of a whole new adventure. We’ll catch up with Levi to hear about his work in remote communities across Australia, bringing hope and joy through his ‘Instruments for the Outback’ organization. We’ll talk about how God used the pandemic to send him down a different path for his music and ministry and we’ll hear about the new album ‘Be Here Now’.
We chat with Chris Sebastian, winner of The Voice 2020 about an incredibly difficult season he and his wife went through with the loss of a child, he'll offer some advice for supporting people going through that season and some words of encouragement as well as talking about his musical journey and his faith.
From the north west town of Takaka on NZs South Island, Evan Brent Downing moved across the ditch to Perth where he has been making a life and music. Dropping out of school at an early age, Evan has been on a journey to share God's love through his music. We'll hear the heart behind his music, his faith journey and his choice for a good coffee.
We're pulling out a favourite from the archives! Back in 2013, Aaron got to chat to one of his favourite artists Jimmy Needham. At the time he had just released his album 'Clear The Stage' (in Aaron's opinion, one of his best!) and we got to talk to him about the album, his faith, his family and how he was nearly a history teacher instead of a musical artist. Plus we'll find out what Christmas is like in the Needham household.
Hillsong United have just released their brand new album ‘Are We There Yet’ and so Aaron Brown caught up with Ben Hastings to talk about recording the album across the globe, trusting God through a difficult season and how a golfing accident inspired some of the lyrics of a worship anthem.
The world quickly came to know TAYA’s voice when she was chosen to record the Hillsong United song ‘Oceans’ for their album. Since then she’s been a regular voice on albums from Hillsong and Hillsong United, but now she’s stepping out solo with her debut album! We’ll catch up with TAYA to hear more about her journey, how she almost wasn’t going to be the lead singer on ‘Oceans’, her faith journey and how it got her through a very tough time. Plus of course we’ll hear the stories behind some of the songs from the new album.
Tauren Wells is as comfortable dancing up a storm on stage to one of his pop hits as he is leading the same audience in moments of worship. We’ll chat to Tauren about how he finds that balance musically between pop and worship artist, plus he’ll give us some insight into his new album, how it reflects his journey over the last few years and we’ll reflect on his time as lead singer of Royal Taylor.
Rebecca St James was one of the biggest pop CCM artists of the 90s. After a long hiatus of stepping away from music and starting a family she has been returning with new music focused on worship. We’ll catch up with her to talk about her new album ‘Kingdom Come’ as well as balancing family and music, collaborating with artists and working with her brothers Luke & Joel from For King & Country.
Evan Craft grew up speaking English… but then he developed a passion for Latin culture and language and a calling to reach them in their own language. After learning Spanish, Evan has released numerous albums in both English and Spanish and brings together the styles of Latin pop, worship and CCM. Join us as we find out more about his cross-cultural heart, his Aussie connections and how the first 6 months of his marriage are going!
Last week For King & Country released their highly anticipated album ‘What Are We Waiting For’. We’re catching up with Joel from the band to talk about the new album, finding unity in divisive times, why they wrote a song for their mum and which music legend they reached out to, to collaborate with on the album.
The Afters have been writing anthems and incredibly catchy songs for the last 15 years and their latest single ‘Say Goodbye (Say Hello)’ is no exception. We’ll find out the powerful story behind the song, including the long journey of believing to see a close loved one who had walked away, return to their faith again. We’ll also catch up on world travels, being a band that live in separate cities, is a new album on the horizon and which Australian city did one of the band members name their cat after?
Brooke Ligertwood’s music has reached the world in incredible ways! As Brooke Fraser she’s had several hit songs and albums, as a worship leader with Hillsong she has written some of the biggest worship songs of the last decade! What A Beautiful Name, Hosanna, Lead Me To The Cross, King Of Kings, Who You Say I Am and more! She has now released her first solo worship album, so join us as we hear the story behind the new album ‘Seven’, what the last 2 years have been like for her and we’ll find out if this means the end of ‘Brooke Fraser’?
Blessing Offor was born in Nigeria and moved to the US at a young age to treat blindness in one of his eyes. After a backyard accident he ended up completely blind in his good eye! But that hasn’t stopped him having an incredible outlook on life and sharing his talent with the world. He has competed on the US Voice and his current single ‘Brighter Days’ has hit Christian radio in Australia. We’ll hear more about his journey to become a professional musician, competing on The Voice and how he has not let his blindness hold him back.
From the Disney Channel series, ‘Bunk’d’, to the Netflix Christian musical ‘A Week Away’, Kevin Quinn seems to love starring in camp themed projects! But now he’s releasing his first Christian EP! We’ll get to know Kevin, find out what it’s like to be a Disney star, how filming ‘A Week Away’ transformed his life and his faith and how he wants to impact others with his music.
DJ Maj has broken down a lot of boundaries throughout his career, helping grow Christian Hip Hop throughout the 90s. He has worked with some of the biggest names in Christian music including dcTalk, TobyMac’s ‘DiverseCity’ touring band, Grits and more. We’ll hear his musical journey, the story behind his name and his heart to see people live out lives of compassion, love and understanding.
Aaron talks with the country director for Australia, Tim about the Watoto Choir, about their Christmas album 'What Child Is This'.
(2021 Interview)
Join us as we talk to 'Zachary Ray' about his time of living in India and how he rights songs from his journal. We also talk to Zach about his collaborations with other artists.
(2021 Interview)
On this episode of the Artist Spotlight we talk to one of the members of 'The Rock Music'. As he talks about their album and his time in secular music.
(2021 Interview)
On this episode we get a 'part 2' to the last Planetshakers interview, where we talk more about Joshua Browns journey with Alabaster Box, For King & Country, Rebecca St James and touring with Planetshakers.
(2021 Interview)
Join us as we talk to Joshua Brown from 'Planetshakers' about their 2 albums themed around revival and the heart behind these releases. We also get to hear a bit of an insight into the process of creating their Christmas release 'A Very Merry Christmas'.
(2021 Interview)
Join us as Aaron chats with 'Alexander Pappas' about his time with 'Hillsong Young & Free' and his journey of pursuing his own music.
(2021 Interview)
Mac Powell from 'Third Day' joins us today to talk about his own music and what being on the road with Stephen Curtis Chapman is like. Mac also touches on his faith story of coming to Jesus.
(2021 Interview)
We talk with Ben Hastings from Hillsong Worship about 'These Same Skies' and the challenges of creating an album through a pandemic. Ben has also release his own music and we talk about his heart behind that journey.
(2021 Interview)
Join us as we talk to Hannah Hobbs from 'Hillsong Worship' about their album 'These same skies' and their single 'Hope For The Ages' and what ministry looks like for them during lockdowns.
(2021 Interview)
Join us as we talk to 'Dami Im' about her time in reality tv, including celebrity MasterChef. Dami also discusses her Korean heritage and the heart behind her album 'My Reality'.
(2021 Interview)
On this episode we talk to artist 'Cade Thompson' about his album 'Bigger Story', and we also get to hear what it's like to be on tour with the Newsboys.
(2021 Interview)
We chat to Bella Taylor-Smith about her journey on 'The Voice' and sharing her faith publicly. We also get to hear about her single 'higher' and her tour with Guy Sebastian.
(2021 Interview)
This episodes special guest is the 'Newsboys'! We get to hear from the whole band about their album 'The Stand'.
(2021 Interview)
Join us as we talk to Cheryl from Cross Point Music about life balance and their collab with North Point Church. We also get to hear the heart behind their debut album 'Never Going Back'.
(2021 Interview)
This episode we are joined by Anne Wilson as we talk about her aspirations of becoming an Astronaut and how singing at her brothers funeral went viral.
(2021 Interview)
Join Aaron as we talk with this episodes artist 'Andrew Ripp' about his experience of becoming a father, and we also hear the heart behind a few of his songs.
(2021 Interview)
This episode we get to chat with 'Hannah Kerr' as she goes through her writing process and what it was like to get married in the midst of a global pandemic.
(2021 Interview)
On this episode Aaron talks with guest Colton Dixon about his release 'The Devil A Liar' and how becoming a dad to twins changes things for him.
(2021 Interview)
On this episode we get to speak with Ellie Holcomb about her album 'Canyon'. We also talk with Ellie about performing in the kitchen and growing up with Amy Grant.
(2021 Interview)
Join us as we talk to this week's artist 'Rebecca St James'. We take a look back into her album 'God' which was released 25 years ago (at the time of recording). Rebecca also talks with us about writing music in her teens, doing a collaboration with her brothers 'For King & Country' and finding a balance between being a performing artist and ministering to people.
(2021 Interview)
Join Aaron with his special guest Tim Foreman of 'Switchfoot' on this episode of 'The Artist Spotlight' as we talk about the 'Interobang' album.
(2021 Interview)
Join us for another episode of 'The Artist Spotlight' with our guest John Waller. We talk to John about his time touring with 'According to John, and about recording with his family for his solo project 'A Family Thing'.
(2021 Interview)
Join us as Aaron talks with today's guest Pat Barrett. He tells about his time in 'Housefires' and why he felt called to step out to do his own thing. Pat's one of the main writers for the song 'Build My Life' which is a song that needs no introduction by any means!
(2021 Interview)
Danny Gokey is our guest for this episode of 'The Artist Spotlight'. Danny shares with us about his time on American Idol, his first beak out into the music scene as country artist and how he made a shift into the more pop/worship space.
(2021 Interview)
Join us as we gain insight into how Riley was discovered in the 8th grade in school. Riley also tells us about her heart behind her album 'God Send Me'.
(2021 Interview)
Join us for another conversation on 'The Artist Spotlight'. Today's guest Jonny talks with Wayne about the songs he's written for his wife and his how he was able to record new music during a global pandemic.
(2021 Interview)
Tori joins us this time on the show to discuss her earliest songwriting and working with Neon Feather. We also get to hear about the heart behind her music.
(2021 Interview)
Join us again for 'The Artist Spotlight' as Branan talks about how his name isn't really Branan. We also discuss his love for sports and the 'Beach Boys'.
(2021 Interview)
Aaron talks to Jeremy about his testimony, leading youth and worship ministry and his motivations behind his EP 'Life Worth Living'. Also we get some insight into his recording process.
(2021 Interview)
On this episode of the Artist Spotlight we talk (but mostly laugh) with Paul, Grant and Phil as they talk about the Paul Colman Trio reunion. They share gig stories, and they successfully find a way to insert a joke into most of their conversation.
(2021 Interview)
Zach gives as an honest insight into their songwriting process, and talks about Alive City's latest release.
(2021 Interview)
Join us for another episode as we talk to Coby about what it's like to have a label. Coby also gives some insight into his storytelling and song writing process.
(2021 Interview)
Join us for another episode as we talk to Coby about what it's like to have a label. Coby also gives some insight into his storytelling and song writing process.
(2021 Interview)
In this episode Andrew talks about the difference between worship and performance, and how that looks for him as an artist and a worship leader. We also get to know a little more about Andrew and his history!
(2021 Interview)
Wayne talks with Phil about his time with the NewsBoys, his solo project 'Better Than I Found It' and his book called 'Redwoods and Whales: Becoming Who You Actually Are'.
(2021 Interview)
Join Wayne as he talks with Patrick Mayberry about his music and ministry.
(2021 Interview)
Jad Gillies from Hillsong United chats to us about playing Madison square garden, how covid affected their music and an interesting skill he has picked up personally during lockdown working on an old 4wd ute!
(2021 Interview)
Dave Ware from Hillsong Worship shares what's been keeping him busy during lockdown, and it's a culinary journey you might not expect! He also shares the heart behind 'Fresh Wind' and hints at new music on the horizon.
(2021 Interview)
Greg shares the heart behind some of the music that came out of lockdown and a life changing moment he had in Israel that set him on a course to empower women, particularly in the technology industry.
(2021 Interview)