for KING & COUNTRY captivates Grand Rapids, Michigan for Christ

It all started with the biggest curtain I have ever seen for a concert that hid the stage inside a cube. That was the first hint that the show was going to be insane. A woman in the background counted down the minutes left until it was zero, building all the anticipation. As soon as the clock hit zero, Joel and Luke Smallbone started singing, “You’re the Voice”. The curtain then came down right before the chorus, revealing Joel, Luke, and the rest of the for KING & COUNTRY band, descending from the heavens on giant cubes with laser lights attached to chains.

Singing in unison, Joel and Luke finished the song wowing the crowd.

The boys and the band eventually jumped off the cubes, running up and down the catwalk singing and playing instruments periodically for the next couple of songs. A bang went off and confetti showered the crowd. Joel borrowed a cowboy hat from a kid named Matthew and they sang “Fine Fine Life”. The boys then dedicated their song “Priceless” to the ladies, saying they were “fearfully and wonderfully made and an image bearer of God.”

The boys didn’t stop there with the dedication. They spent time giving love to their multi-talented band members, going as far as bringing backstage crew members onstage and thanking them — the “Unsung Heroes”. This led them into their song, “Unsung Hero”, named after their recently made movie about how they came to America and leaned on God for help and their mom (the unsung hero) being the rock and reminder to look to Him as they struggled through their lack of funds and necessities. 

The fun wasn’t over after that.

After that insane set, the only thing these boys did was have an intermission. They weren’t even close to done. They started the second half of their set with “Run Wild”, Joel singing into a bullhorn into a microphone. The boys then had a small drum solo competition in the middle of the songs with Joel and the two other drummers. They then played all three drums together to add to “Run Wild”… a true sight to see. The cubes didn’t go away as the band spent time riding those things up and down through the rest of the night. The last song on their setlist was a surprise as Joel and Luke brought Christmas to Grand Rapids early and sang their version of “The Little Drummer Boy”. It was never too early for them to honor Christ, our savior, as he came from heaven to earth for Christmas.

For King and Country is that band that I never expected to make it as far as they have, but they have made it, surpassing artists like their sister Rebecca St James and the Newsboys. Colossians 3:23 says « Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters. » The Lord gave them a talent and they used that talent to their full — and then some.

Photography by Kayla N. Rising

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