For as long as he’s been able to, Brandon Lake has been singing as powerfully as he can about his Christian faith. That was a likely path for someone like him, an extremely talented singer and musician who was very active in the church. What’s surprising is how far he’s taking that message.
Lake is already one of the best-known contemporary Christian artists around, and his profile is rising. After barely a decade as a professional in the music business, he’s won five Grammy Awards and is credited with digital music streams approaching the 300 million mark. His impassioned lyrics are on the lips of everyday music fans more and more these days as he spreads the word more widely than he ever has.
Lake, whose father was a pastor, is a longtime worship leader himself at the non-denominational Seacoast Church in Charleston, South Carolina. He sees his growing visibility as nothing less than a divine response—and not for what it’s done for him and his family, but for what it can do for others.
“That’s the prayer, that we would go out beyond the four walls and reach people and help people,” Lake says.
Brandon Lake Rolls On With Jelly Roll
One big reason for the transformation is Jelly Roll. Last year, Lake and a team of co-writers (Steven Furtick, Benjamin William Hastings, Chris Brown and Rodrick Simmons) put together a redemption anthem called “Hard Fought Hallelujah.” Lake had a strong feeling that the song was a perfect match for the country music megastar, who has re-embraced religion after opening up about the struggles of the past.
“When we wrote the song, we just immediately knew it was special,” Lake says, “and I was kind of simultaneously watching Jelly Roll’s journey. I didn’t know him at all but I was just so proud of him and incredibly inspired by the things he’d overcome and the way he just loves people and that he’s so genuine about it. I could tell he’s just a teddy bear at heart.”
Lake recorded a solo version of the song and put it online, but his thoughts kept going back to getting the song to Jelly Roll, whose real name is Jason Bradley DeFord. What sealed the deal for Lake was seeing Jelly Roll perform “Believe” with Brooks & Dunn on the televised CMA Awards.
“I don’t think anyone saw it coming, but when they sang that song people started to stand up and lift their hands and had tears streaming down their faces,” Lake says. “They led the world in worship that night, and it gave me the confidence to reach out to him about the song.”
Lake was elated to learn that Jelly Roll was already familiar with “Hard Fought Hallelujah” and wanted to sing on it.
“He had heard the song teased on TikTok and fell in love with it,” Lake says. “He didn’t know who I was and had no idea that I was already working on reaching out to him. He said, ‘Absolutely. I love the song and I’ve been praying for a song like this.’”
They recorded a new version as a duet, and it quickly took off. Its punchy, catchy chorus can quickly draw you in. And like Jelly Roll, many of his fans could, no doubt, relate to the song’s theme, which is essentially that it is not always easy to follow the right path, but the payoff in the end makes it worth the sacrifice.
Suddenly, Lake was joining Jelly Roll on stage for electrifying duet performances. Standing on some of those big stages with audiences singing along, he could experience firsthand how tightly people connected with the song.
“He kind of took me under his wing and invited me to everything he was doing,” says Lake. “He said, ‘I’m in because this song is going to get millions of people to worship for the first time or for the first time in a very, very long time, just like I did.’”
King Of Hearts Album And Tour
These are exciting times for Lake, his church family in South Carolina and his real family, which includes his wife Brittany and three young sons, Blaize, Beau and Banner. With notoriety in new circles, Lake has an ambitious new album and has a tour lined up for arenas and stadiums in 50 cities this fall and spring.
King Of Hearts covers lots of bases in terms of musical styles. Some of the 16 songs lean into modern country, while others steer more toward pop, gospel, gentle acoustic folk and even hard rock. Always at the center is Lake’s remarkable voice. A guitarist who also plays some piano, he possesses a broad vocal range that climbs from a low, throaty growl to clear, soaring notes that gracefully take flight.
Of course, the album contains “Hard Fought Hallelujah,” which hit the country charts right away and went platinum (a million units sold) within months. Another standout cut is “Spare Change,” a soulful track that could invite comparisons to Chris Stapleton or the Red Clay Strays.
“It’s very much a gospel song but it’s also a country song,” Lake says. “It’s about a guy that asks somebody for change and it happens to be Jesus.”
Gospel legend CeCe Winans joins in on the exuberant “I Know a Name,” and Lake rocks hardest on a song called “Sevens,” with an apocalyptic-sounding riff he says was inspired by going to a Royal Blood concert.
“A lot of artists stay in one lane, and I’ve just never been able to,” Lake says. Though the musical vibes vary from song to song, he says, “they’re all just another expression of who I am as a person and what I believe.”
While the album sounds accessible to mainstream listeners musically, Lake hopes they pay close attention to what he’s singing about. Beyond the layers of instrumentation is the deeply personal spiritual passion that he’s been sharing for much of his life as a worship leader, singer and songwriter.
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