Heart for Africa - Laura Hawthorne's Fundraising Page

Heart for Africa - Laura Hawthorne's Fundraising Page

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Laura Hawthorne Inside the Music

Laura Hawthorne and Odyssey Nashville is in the process of releasing a video that gives an inside look at her music and ministry, Livin in His Love. The video will be available soon.

CMC Music Network Announces the Addition of Joshua Smih Music

Joshua Smith has joined the CMC Music Network and will have his own music community where fans and others can join as a member and share in discussions, upload photos and videos, and invite friends to become members. The new music social network is growing rapidly and people from all over the world are getting a chance to discover new music and keep up on current events. Join now at http://joshuasmith.ning.com/

Christian Artist Association Welcomes New Member Samuel II

The Christian Artist Association is pleased to welcome new artist member Samuel II to the membership. Samuel II has a new release called "Don't Worry" and is now available at www.odysseystop.com Find out more about Samuel II at http://www.christianmusiccommunity.com/profile/SamuelII

Laura Hawthorne "He's Been Faithful" and Odyssey Nashville Release New Music

Laura Hawthorne and Odyssey Nashville are ready to launch her new CD, "He's Been Faithful". For more information go to Laura's fan group and keep up on what people are saying, events, and join in the discussions at www.christianmusiccommunity.com

John Buckler Ultimate Passion Hartford City IN Church of the Nazarene June 21st 2009

John Buckler will be performing at the Hartford City Church of the Nazarene on June 21st 2009.

John Buckler Ultimate Passion First Assembly of God Elwood IN May 17th 2009

John Buckler will be performing at the First Assembly of God in Elwood IN on May 17th 2009.

John Buckler Ultimate Passion

John Buckler Ultimate Passion

The Christian Artist Association would like to welcome new artist member John Buckler to the membership. His song Ultimate Passion from the album of the same title, has been chosen to release to national radio through the Odyssey Nashville label. The single is a song that is hard to come by. Everything about the song fits together to qualify as a hit. Listen to the song on the player at www.christianartistassociation.ning.com

Christian Artist Association Welcomes Seraph

The Christian Artist Association welcomes new member artist group Seraph. Brad Hill, Aaron Turner and Stephen Kelley make up the Mobile, Alabama based group. The music is a blend of contemporary rock style with power vocals and up tempo. The band has been through many changes in the past years and have recorded Shout it Out and a new release Goodbye is Not Forever now out on http://www.itunes.com/ . The Christian Artist Association is excited about the addition and we look for Seraph to have much success gaining more of a national audience as the music ministry continues to grow. The association focuses on ministry as the forefront of the artist calling, so this is a perfect fit for our marketing direction. Find out more about Seraph at http://www.seraph6.net/ or www.myspace.com/seraph6

Jeremy Camp in Concert With Jeff Johnson

Christian Rock Band Rex Lex Joins the Christian Artist Association

Christian Artist Association is pleased to announce the addition of the Christian Music Rock Band Rex Lex to the membership. Their driving force is a high energy live performance combined with a format that fits the needs of festival promoters nationwide. They have shared the stage with many of the top artists in Christian music including festivals with Michael W. Smith, Switchfoot, and others. Not only are they a solid band, but they are great guys. Aside from their music careers, several members are successful business owners and very well educated. David Brennan and I keep in close contact and talk about levels of ministry and our shared views of Christianity. The band has a ministry called Evolution is Pollution which teaches against the misguided concept of the theory of evolution to youth. More information on the band can be found at http://www.christianartistassociation.com/

Christian Artist Association Forms Alliance With National Coalition for the Homeless in Washington DC

The Christian Artist Association has formed an alliance with the National Coalition for the Homeless in Washington DC. Coalition Development Director Megan Hustings had been contacted by a member and resident of DC and encouraged to view the music video "That Kind of Man" by DeLayne Chowen. A meeting took place this week at the DC national headquarters and it didn't take long to understand that this was a partership that was waiting to happen. The association will be working with Megan and her staff to combine forces to effect an eventual end to homelessness in America. By providing the association artists the tools to educate the audiences of music events, the two parties will work together to organize major events at the local level of their network. Please take time to view the videos at the links below to see the faces of homelessness and the overview of the coalition. Select the link to match your internet speed, click the start arrow and then at the bottom right hand corner of the video screen choose to view in full screen mode. To return to the blog to view the next video don't forget to hit the back arrow in your browser. Clicking the x in the upper right hand corner will close the browser and the blog.

Low Speed Internet Faces of Homelessness 1
Higher Speed Internet Faces of Homelessness 1
Low Speed Internet Faces of Homelessness 2
Higher Speed Internet Faces of Homelessness 2
Low Speed Coalition Overview
Higher Speed Coalition Overview

Christian Artist Association artist member Laura Hawthorne Begins New Project in Nashville

Artist member Laura Hawthorne begins her new project in Nashville Tennessee the first week of September. Well known producer and association member Lonnie Wilson will work with Laura and record an EP of singles directed towards the Christian radio network. Lonnie is best known for things such as 2005 CMA drummer of the year and writer of the Rascal Flatts hit "Lovin' Out Loud" among many other career studio accomplishments in Nashville. The recording will take place at Ridgetop in Brentwood under the direction of Lonnie. Also during the week, Laura will complete an album cover photo shoot with association board member Allen Clark. Allen was nominated for a Dove Award for photography in the recorded package "All Things New; Watermark; Buddy Jackson, Sally Carns; Allen Clark; Rocketown Records" in 2001. This will be an exciting trip from her home in New York to Music City to complete what is certain to be a great set of songs that the Christian music community will embrace. Laura is also an accomplished speaker at church and special events. Look for updates on the release of her new project soon.

Christian Artist Association artist member Joshua Smith Ready to Launch New EP

Christian Artist Association artist member and rocker Joshua Smith's new EP production enters the packaging phase this week at association business member Vision Van Gogh. The project was written by Joshua and recorded by well known producer Jerroll Lehman. Jerroll's expertise in expressing the rock style really projected the true nature of Joshua's ministry. Photos for the album cover project were shot by board member Allen Clark at Thunder Image Nashville. We would like to congratulate Joshua for following the recommendations of the association and we are happy to see him move his music to the next level.

Odyssey Nashville Produces DeLayne Chowen Music Video "That Kind of Man"

Christian Artist Association member DeLayne Chowen has just completed the music video titled "That Kind of Man" produced by Odyssey Nashville, directed by Allen Clark, Thunder Image Nashville, and filmed and edited by Mark Pleasant of Small Wonder Studios Nashville. The video is a story of a homeless man who lost his wife and child 25 years earlier with the song and video building a dialogue between the singer and the homeless man about faith and dreams. View the video by clicking the following link:

http://www.odysseynashville.com/TKOM.html

GodTube Broadcasts Jeff Johnson Remake of Old Rugged Cross

Jeff Johnson Band Performs at KLTY Come Worship Texas With Jeremy Camp, Mercy Me, Skillet and Pillar

Christian Artist Association Announces Upcoming EP from Artist Joshua Smith

Christian Artist Association will soon announce the release of a new project by artist Joshua Smith. The EP recording disc is a three song package with singles "How Long", "I Am" and "Raise" in a format of Christian rock. The recording was done by well known producer and engineer Jerroll Lehman at the Gaither Studio in Alexandria, Indiana. Album cover design was done by Vision Van Gogh with image and photography by Allen Clark of Thunder Image Nashville. Check back for details on the date that the package will be available.

Jeff Johnson Debuts on The FISH Nashville

Congratulations to the Jeff Johnson Band. Jeff is pictured above with board member Brenda Delgado at the FISH in Nashville during Gospel Music Week, after interviewing with her. We submitted his single Ruin Me from the album Glorious Day to The FISH FM 94.1/93.7 this month. It was accepted and will begin to air soon. Also, Ruin Me has climbed to number 27 nationally on the Billboard Christian Music chart. An article in CCM Magazine stated that Jeff and his bandmates are in the top five most successful new artists in Christian music. Purchase the song Ruin Me by downloading it from http://www.odysseystop.com/ But don't stop there, the full album has all great songs on it and you might as well purchase a full copy and tell others about it because you won't find much better out there.

Christian Artist Association Welcomes Member Artist Jeff Johnson

The Christian Artist Association welcomes recording artist Jeff Johnson and his band members, Jacob Schrodt (Drummer), Jimmy Green (Bass) , Hai Phung (Guitars), Wes Martin (Guitars) and Steve Miller, to the membership. Their album "Glorious Day" is one of the best albums on the street, especially for youth groups, but music that all ages will find favor with. We're excited about the addition of Jeff and his bandmates and look forward to the energy they will bring to this organization.

Check out his music samples at http://www.myspace.com/jeffjohnsonmusic and http://www.christianartistassociation.com where you can also find music and videos of Jeff and his band.

Christian Artist Association Appoints Dennis Craft To The Board Of Directors

The Christian Artist Association has appointed Dennis Craft to a position on the Board of Directors as Vice President of Evangelistic Outreach and Church Publicity. Dennis will strengthen the association's position with churches around the world by making them aware of our core purpose and enhancing the ministries of each artist to the church. He is currently working on a new book about the Christian Artist Association and Odyssey Nashville that will be the centerpiece of understanding the journey of the Christian music artist in the changing environment of today's Christian music. Blue Collar Ministries will also be a key business member of the association. Dennis has earned BA in Philosophy (UNC-Chapel Hill, 1982), a Masters of Divinity degree (Southeastern Seminary, Wake Forest, NC, 1986), and a Juris Doctorate (Ohio Northern School of Law, Ada, Ohio, 1996). Dennis has been a pastor for fifteen years and is now an evangelist and founder of Blue Collar Ministries, Inc., Glendale, AZ. He is the author of four books, including _Blue Collar Gospel _(Evergreen Press, 2006) and _Slipping Back Into the Jungle_ (BCM Publications, 2007)

Christian Artist Association Welcomes New Artist Member Joshua Smith

The Christian Artist Association announces the addition of new artist member Joshua Smith. Joshua's music is a Christian rock style with worship lyrics. His new single, "Raise", is a song that is sure to catch the attention of the Christian music audience. For more information, go to our website at http://www.christianartistassociation.com/ where you can hear music samples and learn more about Joshua and his music ministry.

Christian Artist Association Welcomes George Ann Skelton

The Christian Artist Association welcomes new member artist George Ann Skelton. Her new praise and worship album "Always There" is her latest release. She will also be working with the association to initiate a program that focuses on east coast churches. The purpose is to introduce and promote musical variety from different cultures as a way to enhance outreach programs for churches that want to expand beyond an inclusive congregation. The association will develop a music and drama set for Sunday morning services that include association artists with styles that include contemporary, southern rock, gospel, praise and worship, southern gospel and contemporary country. The theme will be to challenge the audience on their listening styles by demonstrating that artists with a true cause of ministry, lyrics consistent with biblical teaching, integrity, and a performance free of controversial selfish ambition, actually can redefine the listeners preference when considering Christian music sub genres. It will also serve to support churches who are looking outside of a complacent outreach and appeal to a more diverse audience without losing the biblical base that defines the proper message being sent through the medium of music and artistry. Asking audiences to evaluate how and why they have reduced their musical vision to one genre and maybe even one or two artists will be a giant step in advancing Christian music. We believe that if the message is consistent and the song is great, that these songs are often overlooked because instead of listening to the song we often refuse to listen because it is categorized outside of our comfort zone. At one point I was reduced to listening to one or two artists until the association taught me that knowing the artist and developing a liking to the song opens up a whole new selection of likable music. In any Christian music sub genre, there can be offensive music. But if we learn to focus on the message and know how to identify horrible theology and selfish showmanship, then we can identify new music in a variety of styles with a common message that we will learn to love. But if we don't listen we will never discover the awesome talent and the personal expansion that takes place when we are open minded. Stay posted and watch for the exciting expansion taking place with George Ann's music and this new program in the coming months. Also, watch for George Ann on the 700 Club television program in Nashville this coming May.

Christian Artist Association Welcomes Gregory Paul Valdez

The Christian Artist Association welcomes new member Gregory Paul Valdez of Albuquerque, New Mexico. Valdez has just released his latest CD "Surrender". Greg is an accomplished guitar player and vocalist with a contemporary rock and worship style that highlights his ability to perform in the studio on the original tracks. For more information go to the website at http://www.christianartistassociation.com/

Christian Artist Association Partners With Daystar Television for the 2008 Refreshing Times Women's Conference and Cruise

The Christian Artist Association and Nashville Christian Concert Promotions are pleased to be partners of the Daystar Television 2008 Refreshing Times Women's Conference and Cruise. To register or become a supporter go to http://www.daystar.com/ and join them on the cruise.

BRIANA SCOTT AT CENTRAL CHRISTIAN BOOKSTORE

DeLayne Chowen Performs with Natalie Grant

Odyssey Nashville Distributes New Releases

Odyssey Nashville distribution will release new albums to retail markets in January, 2008. DeLayne Chowen "Help Me Change" has two singles running on national radio with the American Family Radio Network. Stellar Award New Female Artist of the Year 2006, Briana Scott and her album "While I'm Here" is a blend of uptempo and slow worship songs. "Beside Me", by artist Nathan Salsbery, was recorded in Nashville recently and already radio is taking interest in the title cut "Beside Me" and the uptempo "You're Calling". "Intimacy" and "Jackie Live" are two compilations by artist Jackie Peters. "Jackie Live is a live DVD/CD in a set. Soul Provider and "The Promised Land" was released in December. The talented Southern Gospel quartet is a perfect fit for booking in churches throughout country that love four part harmony. Chris Higginbottom's "Higher Place" was produced recently in Nashville and features the title cut "Higher Place". Odyssey Nashville is forecasting much success with these albums from very different styles. The final release is a compilation of selected songs from Christian Artist Association members that is called "Monthly #1 Songs - Volume 1".

CAA Artists on Daystar Monday October 22nd

The Daystar Television Network will be airing the first stop on the Odyssey Tour Monday October 22nd, 2007, at 12 noon, 8:30 pm and October 23rd at 1 am EST. The filmed event "Let There Be Light" was produced by Northlake Family Recreation Center and filmed by the Christian Artist Association and Nashville Christian Concert Promotions, featuring CAA members and Odyssey Nashville artists, Soul Provider, DeLayne Chowen, Donna Kay, Nathan Salsbery, Briana Scott and comedian Greg Wilson.

Christian Artist Association Welcomes Soul Provider Quartet

The Christian Artist Association welcomes new member artist group Soul Provider to our mission of keeping Christian music based on biblical standards. The group members (left to right above) are Brett Heintzman, Alex Conti, Phillip Spinks and Skip Roberts. I met Soul Provider in a small church in Western New York, near Fredonia. I was told by an associate that they were holding a practice there and he wanted me to come meet them. It was only minutes after I walked in that they took to the stage and performed a list of their favorite songs. I had little doubt that they were ready to reach a larger audience based on their sound. Within weeks after they joined, we sent them to Allen Clark to work on getting their image onto photos. Then, with little hesitation, they were directed to Jerroll Lehman Productions to begin work on a new album. Jerroll is currently with the Gaither Studios doing work on Southern Gospel projects, so we felt it was a perfect fit for the group. By this winter, they will have the recording completed. Vision Van Gogh will do the cover design and packaging and the completed project will be launched to Southern Gospel stations around the country. Please join me in congratulating Soul Provider on the launch of their new album.

CAA Artists To Be Televised on Daystar

Nashville Christian Concert Promotions in partnership with Christian Artist Association and Daystar Television Network, has completed the filming of the Northlake Family Recreation Center "Let There Be Light Festival" in Westfield, New York. Member artists performing included DeLayne Chowen, Briana Scott, Nathan Salsbery, Soul Provider, Jeremy Brothers, Greg Wilson and Donna Kay. A film crew that included Pat Pierce, Richmond, VA, Matt Gould and a third camera man from Buffalo, NY, filmed performances of New Song and the members listed above for the October airing on Daystar Television Network. The times can be found on http://www.daystar.com/. Jerroll Lehman of the Gaither Studios engineered the multi-track recording and post mixing of the sound from a production field station connected to the stage. Jeff Deyo made his appearance at 7:30 pm Saturday evening as the rain began to fall steadily on a crowd that refused to seek shelter. A light crowd scattered across the field on Saturday to unpredictable weather. At noon Sunday the Christian Artist Association segment began with Greg Wilson announcing Briana Scott. Within a short time the field began to populate and by the time Avalon came on stage there was a crowd of well over 2000 and the weather was perfect. I would like to congratulate all of the CAA members that performed for a wonderful experience and truthfully something that I will never forget. Westfield is the first of a number of stops on the Odyssey Tour. Watch the tour as it grows at http://www.nashvillechristianconcert.com/ . Also, don't forget to watch Daystar in October to see the program of the event. A special thanks to Northlake Family Recreation Center and all who helped make this event possible.

Christian Artist Association Welcomes Chris Higginbottom

CAA Sponsors "Let There Be Light" Festival

The Christian Artist Association and Nashville Christian Concert Promotions is pleased to be a sponsor of the Northlake Family Recreation Center "Let There Be Light", a two day Christian music festival featuring six members of the association. NewSong and Avalon along with Jeff Deyo will headline the event and be joined by members Briana Scott, DeLayne Chowen, Jeremy Brothers, Nathan Salsbery, Soul Provider and Comedian Greg Wilson. Please visit http://www.nashvillechristianconcert.com/ to order tickets and view all the other artists that will be performing.

Christian Artist Association Welcomes New Business Member Vision Van Gogh

The Christian Artist Association welcomes it's newest business member, Vision Van Gogh. They specialize in creative imaging and branding including press kits and promotion tools, CD package design and manufacturing, tour merchandising, creating fan bases and driving people to performances.

Vision Van Gogh has been selected by the Christian Artist Association as the recommended source for professional quality design and printing of CD packages and all other media print literature. I cannot stress the importance of quality and choosing a Christian based design firm like Vision Van Gogh to protect the image of our artists. Our goal is to produce top shelf projects that properly reflect the music and represent the artist so that the right message is projected to the public.

Guy Mahmarian, founder and President of Vision Van Gogh, has been involved in the Christian music industry for over a decade with a well known record label and an artist management agency before starting Vision Van Gogh.

His creativity and insight into what it takes to grow a music ministry and project the artist to the public through graphic design and print media is one of the most valuable assets to this association. We are excited about this partnership and welcome Guy and his staff to the mission of the Christian Artist Association and it's members.

WFRN is CAA Business Member of the Year

The Christian Artist Association has chosen WFRN Christian Radio, Elkhart, Indiana, as the premier business member of the year. Joining in May of last year, WFRN has brought it's experience and knowledge to the association so that artist members know what is required of their music production in the view of the radio networks. Also, the partnership has allowed CAA to get involved in the major concerts that WFRN promotes. An experiemental promotional web site was used for one of their concerts with Casting Crowns last year. We were pleased to use our resources to support our valued member.

http://www.nashvillechristianconcert.com/castingcrowns/index.html

Ed Moore, General Manager and owner of the station, operates a genuine Christian radio station that has the integrity and biblical foundation that our association supports. We look forward to working with WFRN to support their ministry and music.

CAA Welcomes DeLayne Chowen

The Christian Artist Association welcomes new member DeLayne Chowen to it's roster of artists. DeLayne's latest release "Help Me Change" has been released recently and you can hear his music on over 150 national radio stations on the American Family Radio network. DeLayne will be performing at the "Let There Be Light" Christian Music Festival in Westfield, NY on July 15th with NewSong, Avalon, Jeff Deyo, Bethany Dillon and others. DeLayne is an accomplished piano player with all original written music. "Help Me Change" features his studio piano playing along with four of the top studio musicians in Nashville, including drummer Steve Brewster, bass player Gary Lunn, guitarist Dave Cleveland and keyboard player Eric Copeland. The first song of the album "He Will Listen" has made the Monthly #1 Songs CD being released by the Christian Artist Association in early summer 2007.

CAA Welcomes Briana Scott

The Christian Artist Association welcomes new member Briana Scott. Briana was nominated for new artist of the year at the Stellar Awards and finished as the top new female artist of the year. She has also been nominated for a Dove Award at the upcoming GMA Awards. It has been a pleasure to work with her ministry. Briana will be performing at the "Let There Be Light" Christian Music Festival in Westfield NY on July 15th along with NewSong, Avalon, Jeff Deyo, Bethany Dillon and others. We're excited to be a part of the growth of this music ministry. If you would like to hear two of her best songs "While I'm Here" and "I Worship You", go to www.christianartistassociation.com and click on WCAA Christian Radio.

Photos by Board Member Allen Clark

Christian Artist Association board member Allen Clark recently completed photos for Chris Tomlin that were published in CCM magazine. We are looking forward to the work that Allen is doing on Nathan Salsbery's new album.

Nathan Salsbery Starts Work on New Album

Christian Artist Association member Nathan Salsbery is starting work on his new release to hit the market this fall. Thunder Image Nashville and Nathan will be working together starting this month to photograph for the album. Video interviews describing the music and ministry will be available on the CAA web site as soon as it becomes available. We congratulate Nathan for his new creative works and recognize him as a leading artist in our quest to redefine the definition of Christian music and true artistry.

Membership Report

It's time to post some numbers for the Christian Artist Association website for our members and the public to see. Since April 1, there have been 7563 visitors and 153,313 hits. Not bad for 41 days. I'm very optimistic about the exposure to the public that our roster artists are getting. Membership has tripled in the same period, due in part to our internet advertising campaign that is underway. Christian Artist Association ads have received 9,269,152 impressions and produced new members at a very encouraging rate. I have spoke with each new artist member and they are excited about entering the development stage. It is really amazing to me that there are so many positive comments about something that was a dream just a few years ago. It's great to give new hope to people and to encourage them to move forward in their ministries and help them overcome the discouragement that comes along with trying to find the tools they need to be succesful in reaching the people in need of their message. God can move mountains and I believe he can turn your life around so quick that it is hard to comprehend sometimes. We live in a fast pace environment, so it's easy to slip into a discouraging valley and at times do things we don't understand, but it's easy to see that if we all work together and slow down a little, that ministries can be rebuilt, revived, and restored to a place that makes the journey worth it. I would like to offer thanks to everyone who has shared in our success and as we move forward I will make sure that this association does all it can to please it's members.

WFRN Casting Crowns Concert

Here we are again. It's concert time at WFRN Christian radio. This one is Casting Crowns and it's at the Morris Performing Arts Center in South Bend Indiana. I would highly recommend this concert to the people who read this blog. I love to see this. WFRN is gaining more and more momentum as the concerts are getting more and more popular. They are skilled at choosing the right groups and they are a success because of their close relationship with the listening audience and communities.

Stay focused on the concerts that WFRN schedules as will I. This is very interesting to me and it takes a lot to get me to focus on particular subjects, but this one is worth it. Again, I just love to see honest success. Also, check back June 11th to read the review and see photos of the concert from Casting Crowns and WFRN.
For more information on this concert visit www.nashvillechristianconcert.com

WFRN Family Festival Big Hit

Caedmon's Call

About the time I think winter has the best of me and there is nothing that is going to raise my spirit, the WFRN Family Festival Christian music event Saturday night was just what the doctor ordered. The doctor in this case being God himself. Ed Moore and his staff at WFRN have great taste when it comes to artists that are focused on core biblical values. Caedmons Call, Bebo Norman, Geoff Moore, Aaron Shust and John David Webster, took to the stage often performing together and sharing testimony that the crowd of nearly 1200 acknowledged in a very positive way. Even my children of 9 and 12 were touched by Geoff Moore's testimony of how he and his wife came to adopt two children from China. I had the chance to meet and talk with Geoff, Aaron, and John after the concert. John and Aaron signed their albums for my children. John signed their album with a reference to Matthew 5:19 which I thought was nice of him. He also told me that he had recorded music in one of the studios where I recorded with One Name.

Overall, it was a great night of musical worship. Again, everytime I think I've seen and done it all, WFRN comes up with a concert that puts me back on track again. It's just good to see great people that keep Jesus as the focus in their concerts. That's what our organization supports and the Christian Artist Association would like to congratulate WFRN and the artists on a splendid job. This is surely the concert model that the industry should follow.

*Christian Artist Association*

Welcome to the *Christian Artist Association*. These are the letters from the desk of the Chairman of the Board of the association. My name is Brian Meade and I would like to personally invite you to regularly visit this news blog for the latest progress and personal thoughts about this association, the latest events, and how our mission is being accomplished. If you are a Christian music artist, business, individual, or church and would like information on joining the association, visit our website at www.christianartistassociation.com

Enjoy the reading and welcome aboard.

Brian Meade
Chairman of the Board
*Christian Artist Association*
1130 8th Avenue South
Nashville TN 37203