For King & Country (band)
For King & Country, stylised as for KING & COUNTRY and formerly known as Joel & Luke as well as Austoville, is a Christian pop duo composed of Australian brothers Joel (born 5 June 1984) and Luke Smallbone (born 22 October 1986).[2] The brothers were born in Australia and emigrated to the United States as children, settling in the Nashville area.
For King & Country
After releasing a short EP as Joel and Luke, in 2012 they released their debut record Crave. The band was declared by Billboard as one of the "New Artists to Watch" for 2012.[3] American Songwriter described them as "Australia's answer to Coldplay".[4] In 2014, they released their second studio album, Run Wild. Live Free. Love Strong., which won a Grammy award.
In 2018, they released Burn the Ships, which achieved gold status. The album featured three singles, including "God Only Knows", which achieved platinum status, and "Joy" and "Burn the Ships", which reached gold status. In 2020, they released a full-length Christmas album, A Drummer Boy Christmas. In 2022, they released their fifth studio album, What Are We Waiting For?
The band has collaborated with many artists on their work, including Dolly Parton, Timbaland, Tori Kelly, Lecrae, Needtobreathe, and others.
History[edit]
Early music career[edit]
The brothers supplied background vocals and other supporting roles for their sister and family members, Rebecca St. James, and various bands in concerts across America.[5] Shortly after Luke graduated from high school, the brothers decided to explore the possibility of forming a band, and in 2007, they began performing as their band. They began their career as "Joel & Luke", which they later changed to "Austoville", before settling on their current name.[6]
In 2008, "Joel & Luke" released a six-song EP titled A Tale of Two Towns. Three of those songs ("Missing", "Sane", and "Love's to Blame") appeared on Crave with slightly different melodies and lyrics. The other three songs were "Broken Lullabies", "Believe Me Now", and "Something's Gotta Give". Love's to Blame was co-written by St. James.[5]
Rename to "for King & Country" and Crave[edit]
In 2009, they signed on with Warner Music Group with Ben Glover as their producer. They changed their name to "For King & Country", after a British battle cry. Luke said,
Personal lives[edit]
Joel David Smallbone was born on 5 June 1984[1][49] and Luke James Smallbone was born on 22 October 1986.[1][2][50] Both were born in Sydney, to David and Helen Smallbone, and moved to Nashville, Tennessee in 1991, after their father's job relocation.[5] Their father was a music promoter, and Joel recalls, "going to these rock concerts, sitting on my father's shoulders, plugging my ears...Honestly, in a lot of ways, I feel like music chose me and as I grew older, I made a clear decision to fully lean into it."[51] The Smallbones are the younger brothers of Christian recording artist and speaker Rebecca St. James, and the brothers-in-law of Jacob Fink, former bassist for the band Foster the People. They were raised with another sister, Libby, and three other brothers, Ben, Dan, and Josh.[52]
On 26 June 2010, Luke married Courtney Helm.[53] Their first child was born on 19 December 2012.[54] They also have a son.[55][56] In late 2016, Luke announced via social media that he and his wife are expecting their third child.[57] From 2013 to 2015, Luke battled a life-threatening case of ulcerative colitis, pushing him near death and causing him to miss 40 of the band's live shows.[58] He went into remission in 2015.[59] He and his wife also nearly lost their two-month-old son in 2018; he has since made a full recovery after skull reconstruction surgery.[60]
On 7 July 2013, Joel married Moriah Peters, who is also a recording artist, in California.[61] They now reside in Franklin, Tennessee.[62]
Both brothers are dual citizens of Australia and the United States.[28]
Other media[edit]
Film[edit]
In 2014, Joel Smallbone starred in the movie "Like A Country Song" which also starred multi-platinum selling recording artist Billy Ray Cyrus and Two And A Half Men's Jennifer Taylor. Joel Smallbone was the lead actor in a 2016 drama about human trafficking entitled Priceless, which was released in theatres in October 2016. Luke was one of the producers (together with their father) and their brother Ben directed the movie. Some of the music for the film was written by For King & Country.[63]
In 2019, it was announced that the brothers were working on a musical under the title The Drummer Boy with the Erwin brothers,[64] though no new information has since been released.
On 30 November 2022, the brothers announced via social media that they had made a movie with their brother Ben, called Unsung Hero, which is about their mother, although they didn't announce a release date.[65] On 1 August 2023, the brother announced via their social media that the movie was going to be released via Lionsgate on 26 April 2024.[66][67]