Worship to God

Israel Houghton is an internationally recognized worship leader, recording artist, songwriter, and producer. He has been in full time worship ministry since 1989. He, His wife Meleasa, and his two children, Mariah Engelique, and Israel Duncan II reside in Austin, TX.

He is the National Director of Music and Worship for Champions for Christ a high impact ministry to college and professional athletes with Pastor Greg Ball. He also leads worship regularly at Lakewood Church in Houston, TX. with Pastor Joel Osteen. Israel and Meleasa founded New Breed Ministries in 1995. Comprised of world class musicians and singers who are all ministers in their respective churches. They travel extensively with a message that crosses cultural, generational, and denominational boundaries.

Known specifically for their diverse sound effectively captured on the 2001 Hosanna! Integrity release of New Season as well as 2002's Lakewood Live 'We Speak to Nations', their heart is to deliberately diminish the lines that separate the Church, and bring all people together through worship. Once a member of Fred Hammond and RFC, he has also worked with the Young Messiah Tour, TBN, Crystal Lewis, Anointed, CeCe Winans, Donnie McClurkin, Yolanda Adams, and is currently finishing an Israel and New Breed- Integrity Gospel / Sony release produced by Tommy Sims due in October. With a heart for the Nations, true worship, and a passion for the Presence of God, Israel and New Breed add purpose to any event.

Worship leader Kristian Stanfill is emerging as one of this generation's most compelling singer/songwriters. A writer of rare insight and vulnerability, he has the unique ability to build bridges over boundary lines that separate the hurting from the Healer. Consequently, the songs on ATTENTION, his sixstepsrecords debut, create an atmosphere of worshipful unity in this too often fragmented world.

"A great worship leader must first be a great follower," Kristian asserts. "In order to lead people in worship you must first know how to listen to and follow the Holy Spirit. That is something I've been learning over the past few years, just by observing how people respond to what God is doing at any given moment."And as a worship leader at Alpharetta, Georgia's North Point Community Church, Kristian knows first hand the ability of worship to usher in God's redemptive power.

"I've had the opportunity to lead worship at North Point for more than seven years," Kristian says. "There are some amazing worship leaders there, and just to have the opportunity to observe the way they lead people into the presence of God has been like attending seminary. I started in the High School department and gradually kept growing, observing and learning how to hear the leading of the Holy Spirit. I've been leading worship in the main church for four or five years now. It has been an incredible place for me to learn how to be in front of people and how to lead them in worship."

Kristian's fearless insight and ear for authenticity infuse his songs with a visceral resonance that connects with listeners on multiple levels. That authenticity compelled Louie Giglio, founder of the Passion Movement, to invite Kristian to lead worship for a community group at Passion '05 in Nashville. It was an opportunity Kristian felt he had been preparing for his entire life.

"Before I was ever involved with Passion or sixstepsrecords, I was a college student attending Passion events," Kristian recalls. "I loved Louie and his teaching, and I loved Chris Tomlin and his songs. I was a part of that generation. When I was in high school I had a mentor who asked me, 'If you could do anything, what would it be?' Without hesitation I said, 'I would want to lead worship at Passion events.' When Louie invited me to come to Nashville and be one of the worship leaders at Passion '05, I happily agreed. It is amazing to think that when I was 16 years old all of this was just a dream."

Kristian continued his relationship with Passion, leading worship at Passion '06, Passion Regionals USA in 2008, and on last year's first-ever Passion World Tour. His worship songs have appeared on numerous Passion CDs including Passion: Everything Glorious CD and DVD (2006), The Best of Passion (So Far) (2007), and Passion: God of This City (2008). When he signed with sixstepsrecords for his debut project, ATTENTION, Kristian became the label's first new artist since it's inception in 2000.

Joining the label home of well-known worship artists Chris Tomlin, David Crowder*Band, Charlie Hall, and Matt Redman is heady stuff, but rather than fostering pride it merely served to reinforce Kristian's conviction that worship of a holy God is serious business.

"When you deal with the sacred, as intimate and corporate as worship is, there has to be some fear involved," Kristian confesses. "You have to approach it with a good sense of awe, and wonder. As a worship leader you are carrying a message that is amazing, awe-inspiring, life-changing, and transformative. It's a big message and you want to do it right."

To produce an album that captured Kristian's unique approach to worship, the label enlisted noted producer Matt Goldman (Underoath, Copeland). Marked by the same multi-layered, no-boundaries song crafting that make Kristian's live performances unforgettable, ATTENTION offers a stunning, eleven-song collection of fist pumping rock worship anthems, shimmering pop ballads, and reverential hymns.

Their collaboration resulted in songs such as the thumping, militant call to worship, "Kingdom," and the pop-flavored, energetic song, "Faithful." Nontraditional worship aria "Wake Up" combines Kristian's compelling storytelling ability with his signature pop sensibilities. Cuts like "Go" and "Lead Us On" are joyous, encouraging exhortations, while the hymns "Glowing" and "Beautiful Jesus" are presented with awe and reverence.

As fresh as his music is, it's the lyrical depth of Kristian's songs, delivered with heartfelt conviction, that captures the listener's heart. And it's his ability to connect with his audience, to lead them to worship God with reverence and authenticity that evokes respect from peers and fans alike.

"There is a growing obsession in our country with pop culture, Hollywood, fashion, and body image that are set by the world," Kristian declares. "I wanted to write songs that would take people's ATTENTION off of the stuff of this world and point them back to the cross. I want to inspire wonder and awe again in people's hearts when they think about the cross. That message is eternal. That message is life changing. That message is the heart of this CD."

The Cutting Edge years (1992–1996)

The origins of Delirious? stretch back to 1992. The band began life as a collection of musicians, known simply as 'The Cutting Edge Band'. The group's function was to be a Christian worship band for a youth outreach event called "Cutting Edge", instigated by the Arun Community Church in Littlehampton, West Sussex. The first members were Tim Jupp and Martin Smith, who became friends while working together at a recording studio. There they decided to form a band. Jupp had previously released an instrumental album titled "Hooked On Ishmael". Originally, Jupp fronted the band, which also contained youth worker and drummer Stew Smith. Several different musicians filled the role of guitarist and bass player. The events became popular via word-of-mouth, leading the band to play at other 'Cutting Edge' events along the south coast of England – monthly events in Portsmouth and Southampton. The events in Portsmouth only lasted a year but the events in Central Hall, Southampton were to run for three years, the duration of the Cutting Edge events. The group remained as the house band for Cutting Edge for several years, and they began to record and release the 'Cutting Edge' cassette tapes.
The turnout at the events grew so much that the regular venue (a local school hall) had to be replaced with the school's sports hall, whilst the organizers had to charge a small fee to control the numbers attending. Similar challenges took place at the Central Hall in Southampton where up to 1200 people would gather each month. In 1996, an event was held in the open air, on the green next to Littlehampton's beach. An estimated 4000 people attended, while filmed it for a documentary.
The band were able to release their increasingly popular material thanks to lead singer Martin Smith and keyboard player Tim Jupp's roles as recording engineers and producers at a local recording studio. During this period, the lineup of the band began to take shape. Permanent guitar duties were taken up by Stu G shortly after the release of the band's first EP, whilst Jon Thatcher became permanent bassist for the band's fourth release, 'Cutting Edge Fore'. In total, four EPs were released under the "Cutting Edge" name, in addition to a solo EP from guitarist Stu Garrard, which featured the entire band. Many of the band's most famous songs were written and recorded during this time, including possibly their most famous: 'I Could Sing Of Your Love Forever.' Others included 'The Happy Song', 'Lord, You Have My Heart', 'Thank You For Saving Me', 'Did You Feel The Mountains Tremble?', 'I've Found Jesus', 'I'm Not Ashamed', 'Find Me In The River', 'Shout To The North', 'All I Want Is You' and 'Obsession'. The music became well known in Christian circles, and demand grew for recordings. By 1996, they had sold over seventy thousand EPs by mail order. These EPs were later released as two albums in the UK, and one double album in the US. A similar composite edition of Cutting Edge was released to retail and achieved 'Gold' status in Canada.

 Taking the band full-time: King of Fools & early success (1997–1998)

The turning point came in 1995 when Martin, his wife Anna and Jon Thatcher, were involved in a serious road accident. Jon and Anna were unhurt, but Martin was hospitalized for several weeks with broken bones. While in the hospital, Smith went through a period of depression, before making the decision to become a full-time musician. At this point, Delirious? was conceptually born. The band changed its name in January 1996, and they began to start work recording their new album.
They gained unexpected mainstream success in 1997 following the release of King of Fools, the first studio album released under their new name. King of Fools eventually went 'Silver' in the United Kingdom, and Delirious? became one of the most popular and well-known Christian rock groups both in the UK and the United States. Songs such as "Deeper" gained anthemic status and still surface regularly at Christian youth events. Delirious? also released four singles to the mainstream UK Charts – "White Ribbon Day", "Deeper" (twice), and "Promise". 'Deeper' and 'Promise' both reached number twenty with very little radio airplay; For the majority of their career, "Deeper" was the band's best-selling single with over thirty thousand copies sold. The album also contained the song "History Maker", which arguably became one of the band's most popular anthems. The song was played regularly at gigs throughout the rest of the band's existence, and was eventually released as a successful UK single in 2010. During the summer of 1997, Stewart Smith and his wife lost their unborn baby through a miscarriage, inspiring the song "Summer of Love"on the "DeEPer EP", a re-release of the "Deeper" single. The re-release attained number thirty-nine on the UK Charts.
The group signed to EMI for its British releases but in 1997 the group signed to both Virgin and Sparrow Records for distribution in secular and Christian markets in the United States.
The success of the King of Fools album allowed the band to tour the UK for the first time comprehensively in 1997's 'd:tour'. Delirious? chose to tour without a support band, instead using a DJ and a large visual aspect to the performance. In 1998, the band released their second live album, d:tour, which featured many of the songs from the King Of Fools album in addition to some songs from the Cutting Edge period. It was recorded at Southampton Guildhall on the final night of the 'd:tour'.

 First mainstream push: Mezzamorphis & Glo (1999–2000)

After a brief hiatus, the 1999 album Mezzamorphis attained number 25 in the UK mainstream album charts (number two in the independent section), and soon became certified silver in the UK. During this time, the band found resistance in the mainstream due to their "Christian" label, despite widespread critical acclaim in the music press. However, the work was aimed at a "secular" audience, causing many former fans to shun the album and claiming that Delirious? had "sold out" to mainstream markets.
Several singles from Mezzamorphis gained some British chart success. For example, the first single, "See The Star", peaked at number sixteen on the charts (a career high for the band), following an appearance on television show The Big Breakfast. Despite the success of the single, the song choice was slightly controversial as it was arguably one of the weaker songs on the record.
The second single, "It's OK", subsequently reached number eighteen. In the US, "Gravity" was chosen over "See the Star" as lead radio single for promotion.
Exactly one year later, in 2000, the band released Glo (short for glorious). This album was the number one seller for eight months. Several songs from the album, while not being released as actual singles, gained immense popularity in the Christian-music world, most notably the guitar-driven "My Glorious" and the more introspective "Jesus' Blood". The track "Investigate" eventually became a favourite concert closer for the band. That year, Delirious? toured the US and appeared to an audience of 55,000 at the Creation Festival.

 Second mainstream push: Audio Lessonover? (2001–2002)

The second attempted mainstream album, Audio Lessonover? (an anagram of 'Radio One Loves Us') was released in 2001. The band hired well known music producer Chuck Zwicky (Semisonic, Madonna). Zwicky wanted to go with a more stripped down sound than the sonically layered Mezzamorphis and Glo. The band noted that there were tense and strained moments during the Audio Lessonover recording sessions, but in the end it stretched them as musicians and as a band. The first single "Waiting For The Summer" reached number twenty-six on the charts, hindered by limited radio airplay. This led to a planned second single, Take Me Away, being cancelled. Critically, the record itself received less favourable reviews in comparison to their previous three albums, whilst commercial album sales were also lower.
Again they received criticism for "selling out" to achieve success in mainstream markets.The band members are often questioned about the apparent critical 'failure' of the album in interviews to this day.
That year the group took part in major tours with Bon Jovi and Matchbox Twenty.
The band's first compilation, Deeper, was released in early 2002. It was a double album, consisting of many remastered classic songs from the band. On addition to tracks taken from previous work such as Glo and King Of Fools. It also included several new versions of popular Cutting Edge tracks and a new song, 'Not Forgotten'. Later that year, Audio Lessonover? was significantly edited by the band, and restyled as Touch. This new version of the album was intended for the North American market, although it was also made available in the UK. Some editions of Touch included a second disc featuring several live tracks, although these recordings were later incorporated into the band's third live album, Access:D. Access:D was released towards the end of 2002, capping a year which had seen four full album releases from the band. A two disc set, it featured many tracks which had previously been seen on their studio albums King of Fools, Mezzamorphis, Glo, Audio Lessonover? and Touch. A special edition was made available in an exclusive tin case.

 Return to roots: Post-mainstream 'trilogy' (2003–early 2008)

In 2003, Delirious? released World Service, the first of what guitarist Stu G later described as 'a trilogy'. Although this was more of a worship-oriented album, Delirious? released two singles to the German market: "Inside Outside" and "Every Little Thing". The former sold over twelve thousand copies, was number one in German radio station SWR3's chart, and spent seven weeks in the German singles charts peaking at number seventy-two. Delirious? also released two free MP3 downloads on mp3.com, both topping the Guitar Rock charts (the first for a full month). The first MP3, "Majesty (Here I Am)", hit number fifteen on the worldwide charts; the second, "Rain Down", reached number twenty-eight. The two together had amassed over 500,000 listens/downloads after fifty days. Delirious?’s World Service is finding success in the United Kingdom and America as well. The band’s American single 'Rain Down' has become its biggest multi-format hit since "Deeper".
In 2005, long-term manager Tony Patoto parted company with the band, stating that he wanted a fresh challenge. The role was filled by band member and Delirious? keyboard player Tim Jupp.
The band's sixth studio album, The Mission Bell was released in the UK in 2005. The album received very positive reviews, with Christianity Today, Jesus Freak Hideout, and Cross Rhythms all praising The Mission Bell for "Effectively stretching the boundaries of music". "Paint The Town Red" was released as a CD and iTunes single in the UK, entering the charts at number fifty-six. Several singles were released to CrossRhythms radio in the UK, all charting at number one for several weeks. The Mission Bell was nominated for the May 2007 Dove Awards, in the Rock/Contemporary Album of the Year Category.
Delirious? spent much of 2007 recording and working on their new album Kingdom of Comfort with producer Sam Gibson. It was released internationally in April 2008. This strategically coincided with the launch of the third version of their official site. The first single from the album was God Is Smiling.

 Retirement (mid 2008–2009)

Prior to the release of 'Kingdom of Comfort', long-time drummer Stew Smith announced that he would be leaving the band in April 2008. He made his final appearance on a recording during the production of a live album and DVD while on tour in Brazil. The album was titled Unidos, and served as a collaboration project with André Valadão. It has been released in several countries, although it remains unreleased in the UK. Stew Smith's final performance with the band took place at Sydney, Australia. His departure had a great impact upon the other members of the band, who came close to breaking up. However, Smith insisted that they should carry on. Paul Evans became the new drummer for Delirious? in May. He had previously played with Delirious? before when Stew Smith was unable to perform during a tour of the US.
On the 6th of July of the same year, the band announced via a press release that they would be "taking a break" at the end of 2009 to allow the band to focus on things close to them. Martin said that he wanted more time to spend with his family and devote more time to the CompassionArt project.
However, the band later announced that they would release the second single from Kingdom of Comfort to the UK charts in November, 'Love Will Find A Way', which was featured on Kingdom of Comfort. The single entered the charts at number thirty, but had dropped to number fifty five by the end of the first week.
Another live album and DVD, My Soul Sings, was recorded in Colombia during that year, and released in 2009. Additionally, a Greatest Hits album, History Makers, was released in November.
Delirious? finished their career by conducting a small farewell tour of Europe which concluded at the end of 2009. They played their final show in front of a sell-out crowd at London's Hammersmith Apollo on 29 November 2009.

 Post-Retirement (2010-present)

The three-and-a-half-hour final show was filmed for a live album, DVD and Blu-ray package, titled Farewell Show - Live In London. It was released in April 2010.
In February 2010, a campaign to get History Maker into the UK charts for Easter began on social networking site Facebook. In response to this, the version from the final live album was released as a single on 28 March 2010. The two versions of "History Makers" reached as high as numbers 3 and 21 on the iTunes Store during the week and the combined sales placed the single at number 6 in the midweek charts of 31 March 2010.
 The single rose two places, to chart at number four in the Official Singles chart on 4 April 2010.^{[citation needed]} It also reached number one in the UK Indie Singles Chart.
Away from the band, many of the members have started work on, or announced, future projects that they intended to pursue after the band ended in November 2009. Lead singer Martin Smith intends pursuing the Compassionart project, the decision that triggered the split. Smith has written an autobiography titled 'Delirious', providing a detailed account of his life and time with the band. It was released in February 2011, alongside a similar autobiography from his wife Anna, which provides an alternative perspective on the band's history. Smith has also been writing songs and leading worship at conferences around the world. A new website, launched to coincide with the autobiography, hints at future plans to 'record' and 'tour'.
Keyboard player Tim Jupp has been involved with a series of one-day Christian music festivals based mainly in West Sussex, England, called 'The Big Church Day Out'. Delirious? headlined the first annual event in May 2009. Another expanded event, held across three days, was held in May 2010. A slightly reduced two day event is scheduled to take place over the same weekend in 2011.
Guitarist Stu G and bassist Jon Thatcher formed a new band with Jason Ingram as lead singer and Paul Mabury as drummer early in 2009. The band is called 'One Sonic Society', and they started work on their debut record in June 2009. As a group of four, the band released two EP's. The first, 'One', was released in June 2010, whilst the second, 'Sonic', was released in October 2010. Following the release of 'Sonic', all references to Jon Thatcher were removed from the band website and official press releases, and it was confirmed by a source close to the band that Thatcher was no longer a member and that the band were now officially a three-piece. There have been no official comments on Thatcher's departure from any of the band members, although the split is thought to have been an amicable one. As of March 2011, One Sonic Society have been recording 'Society', the third and final EP in the trilogy. A live album compiling the songs from the EP has also been planned.
Stu G also began writing and recording with many other artists around the world, and has continued to be a member of the Compassionart writing team. He has also toured extensively with other artists, most recently with Amy Grant and Michael W. Smith in 2011.
Thatcher has launched a creative solutions project called 'Arkyard'. The services of the organisation have been since used by several notable clients including David Byrne, in addition to Delirious?, One Sonic Society and producer Sam Gibson.
Old drummer Stew Smith has already launched his graphic design company, 'Smeezer', which has designed advertising campaigns for Premier Percussion, clothing lines for high street store Fat Face, and the marketing of 'The Big Church Day Out' festival.
New drummer Paul Evans continues to play for various artists and for Soul Survivor and is currently considering returning to college.
However, in spite of all of these new projects, Martin Smith has hinted that the band may reunite some day.