MercyMe
MercyMe is an American contemporary Christian music band founded in Edmond, Oklahoma. The band consists of lead vocalist Bart Millard, percussionist Robby Shaffer, bassist Nathan Cochran and guitarists Michael Scheuchzer and Barry Graul.
This article is about the band. For the Alkaline Trio song, see Mercy Me.
MercyMe
Edmond, Oklahoma, U.S.
1994–present
- Bart Millard
- Nathan Cochran
- Michael John Scheuchzer
- Robby Shaffer
- Barry Graul
- James Bryson
- Trent Austin
- Kendall Combes
The band formed in 1994 and released six independent albums before signing with INO Records in 2001.[1] The group first gained mainstream recognition with the crossover single "I Can Only Imagine", which elevated their debut album, Almost There, to triple platinum certification. Since then, the group has released eight additional studio albums (six of which have been certified gold) and a greatest hits album, 10. The group has also had 13 consecutive top five singles on the Billboard Christian Songs chart, with seven of them reaching No. 1. MercyMe has won eight Dove Awards and has had many Grammy Award nominations. On April 8, 2014, the band released its eighth studio album titled Welcome to the New. Their ninth studio album, Lifer, was released on March 31, 2017, and tenth, Inhale (Exhale), was released on April 30, 2021.
History[edit]
Formation and early years[edit]
Singer Bart Millard met pianist James Phillip Bryson in Lakeland, Florida, after an invitation from his youth pastor.[2] Both led a praise team on a trip to Europe. They both felt a call to work full-time in music. They later met the guitarist Michael John Scheuchzer, who joined them, then moved to Oklahoma City. The group was officially formed in 1994 in Henderson Hills Baptist Church in Edmond, Oklahoma.[3]
In 1997, MercyMe moved to Nashville to find a record label. After a year, they left Nashville for Dallas and recorded an album.[4] Then they settled in Greenville, Texas, and served at Highland Terrace Baptist Church.[5]
The trio set up a studio and a "living area" in an old abandoned day-care center.[6] Bassist Nathan Cochran and drummer Robby Shaffer later joined the band, accompanying the band in releasing six independent projects before signing with INO Records in 2001. Unlike their first three major label albums, their earlier indie projects tended to orient more towards rock rhythms.[7] The group's name, "MercyMe", originated during Millard's time as a youth ministry intern in Florida. Concerned that her grandson was home whenever she called, Millard's grandmother would exclaim, "Well mercy me, why don't you get a real job?"[8][9]
For several years, the band was a mainstay at the popular PlanetWisdom youth conference. The popularity of “I Can Only Imagine” and their meteoric rise led to their no longer leading worship at the conference.[10]
Almost There, Spoken For and Undone (2001–2004)[edit]
After signing with INO Records, Now known as Fair Trade Services, the band released its first major debut album, Almost There. The single "I Can Only Imagine" earned the band a Dove Award in 2002 for song of the year. However, it was not until three years after its release that the song began to gain mainstream success,[6] topping the Billboard 200 sales chart for seven weeks,[11] and peaking at No. 71 on the Hot 100, No. 33 on the Mainstream Top 40, No. 27 on the Adult Top 40, No. 5 on the Adult Contemporary, and No. 52 on the Country Songs charts. The success of the single ultimately propelled Almost There to being certified double platinum, representing sales of over 2 million albums, as well as the single itself being certified platinum.
In 2002, MercyMe released Spoken For, which peaked at No. 2 on the Christian Albums chart. The album's two singles, "Spoken For" and "Word of God Speak", went on to peak at No. 1 on Christian radio charts, with "Word of God Speak" spending a record 22 weeks atop the newly created Billboard Christian Songs chart.[11]
The album was eventually certified gold by the RIAA.[12]
Spoken For earned the band three Dove Awards, but was to a certain extent overlooked by the attention that "I Can Only Imagine" was receiving in the mainstream markets at the time.
In 2003, guitarist Barry Graul, who had previously been with the Christian hard rock band Whitecross, and one of the guitarists of DC Talk joined MercyMe,[13] giving MercyMe a second guitarist to provide greater depth on their third studio album, Undone.[13] In 2004, the band headlined the "Imagine Tour" with fellow artists Amy Grant and Bebo Norman.[11] In addition to headlining the "Imagine Tour", MercyMe released their third major label album, Undone, which peaked at No. 12 on the Billboard 200 and No. 1 on the Christian Albums charts, their highest debut on the chart at that point. The album spawned three successful singles – "Here With Me" (which topped the Christian Songs chart as well as reaching No. 12 on the Adult Contemporary chart and No. 38 on the Adult Top 40 chart), "Homesick" (which reached No. 3 on the Christian Songs chart and No. 9 on the Adult Contemporary charts), and "In the Blink of an Eye" (which topped the Christian Songs chart). The album itself won a Dove Award for Pop/Contemporary Album of the Year at the 36th GMA Dove Awards, and was certified gold by the RIAA.
MercyMe also released a live video album, MercyMe Live, in 2004, which eventually was certified platinum by the RIAA.
Charity[edit]
In 2005, MercyMe participated in a benefit concert at Belmont University with various other country, gospel and contemporary Christian artists for the people affected by the Asian tsunami.[33]
In 2009, MercyMe conducted a tour in partnership with Compassion International and Imagine A Cure in order to raise money to help kids with diabetes through Imagine A Cure and people with medical needs around the world through Compassion International.[34]