By Molly Atchison | Print Managing Editor
The national Passion conference began in 1995 in order to reach out to American young adults and invite them to explore their Christian faith. The Passion collective brings some of the best worship artists together to perform for thousands of students and young adults aged 18-25, which is later made into a worship album and shared with the world.
The 2018 Passion album, titled “Passion: Whole Heart” was released online Feb. 23 of this year, and the physical release will take place Friday in stores across the country. “Whole Heart” contains tracks from famous Christian artists like Crowder, Kristian Stanfill and Melodie Malone.
“Whole Heart” was recorded on Feb. 6 for over 32,000 students from universities across the world. After listening to the album myself, it’s clear that the caliber of the worship music industry’s talent was thoroughly represented in this collaboration.
“Whole Heart” has a combination of live and pre-recorded music on the digital copy of its album. The lead artists and coordinators of the event, Stanfill, Brett Younker and Malone, collaborated with several artists such as KB, Crowder and Brooke Ligertwood to cover songs from each of the artists’ original albums for a live audience. Each artist in the group was chosen for a specific reason, each bringing their own unique sound to the table.
For instance, Crowder, a band created from the remains of the famous “David Crowder Band,” has created both a new band and a new sound. David Crowder, the lead singer and creator of both groups, has participated in several Passion events over the past few years. In fact, Passion helped him to rebrand his creative outlet once the former David Crowder Band separated.
Other artists, such as KB and Brooke Ligertwood, use Passion as a way to grow their fan base. With so many college students attending the live concert, listening to the album online and attending physical releases, Passion is a surefire way for an artist to get their sound out to the public.
For students looking to explore new music, the physical release date for “Whole Heart,” which includes 18 tracks from the live recording at the Passion convention, will be released Friday, March 23 at superstores and bookstores across the country. For more information about Passion, the organization, the album and tour dates, visit https://passionmusic.com.
