Casting Crowns

The group was founded just before the millennium by singer-songwriter and then youth pastor, Mark Hall, at First Baptist Church in Daytona Beach. It was created originally as a student worship band, where young Christians could play music within a religious setting.

After the band decided to move south to Georgia in 2001 and gathered various musicians, such as Melodee DeVevo on violin and Andy Williams on drums, they chose to independently release their debut full length album, the self-titled “Casting Crowns”. They quickly followed that up the next year with a sophomore indie release “What If The Whole World Prayed”. Both albums were popular in the local Christian community, and before long, after winning regional songwriting competitions, the band found themselves signing with the newly founded Beach Street Records.

Now a fully-fledged band, in 2003, Casting Crowns wrote and released their first official studio album, again a self-titled effort. The album was a massive success for the group, selling nearly 2 million copies and reaching the top of various Billboard charts, as did its lead singles “Who Am I” and “Voice of Truth”.

After the unexpected success of their first album, the group finished work on their follow up “Lifesong” in 2005. Again they found success, not only commercially, but also critically, with the LP winning a Grammy for the “Best Contemporary Gospel Album of the year”.

Since their early success, the group have sustained their ability to produce chart-topping music, such as their 2007 single “East to West” which broke records after spending 16 weeks at number 1. They have also continued to win awards, such as the Dove Award for Artist of the Year, in 2010 and embarked on various lengthy and prosperous tours.