Growing up in music and travel like I have, it can be easy to think that that’s what I’m interested in simply because of my family background. And while being in such an environment has certainly been a catalyst, I believe there’s more to it.
I attended my first concert when I was under two months old. Yeah, I know, two years for a concert is early, but I had that beat by a long shot. It was at RibFest in Sioux Falls, SD – Joan Jett, ironically, a vegetarian.
Going to see live music was always a big thing for my family and was made a priority as much as we could. Being in music ourselves attending concerts was used as “research”, and to this day I still check what sound system is used to report back to my dad. My first arena show was Casting Crowns in Springfield, MO on Halloween one year. I remember not knowing who they were despite a couple of songs on the radio, but being so excited nonetheless.
When I was little there was a free weekend-long Christian music festival a little outside of Sioux Falls called LifeLight. The last few years it went on (I was probably around 10) I found myself in the audience knowing all the songs but not who was playing them. It was there that I really started paying attention to artists and who they were. I quickly became a walking encyclopedia of songs, their titles, artists, albums, and year that they were released, etc. Since I’m just old enough to have bought physical CDs, I would always listen to the entire album. I noticed that some of the best tracks never made it to radio or mainstream. Finding new, lesser-known music to learn quickly became one of my main roles for our own band.
When social media and music streaming did enter my life, the music world in my brain expanded even more. Christian radio was great, but I wanted more. So, I dug further into Christian music, while also noticing pop, and later on, exploring country. There were songs that I heard and knew, but didn’t know what they were or who was behind them. I knew that good music not necessarily in the Christian genre existed, I just had a hard time finding it at first. There were sites and organizations that would track news in the Christian music scene to some extent, but would mostly exclude other music. I eventually found favorites I loved that weren’t simply clean, but that also had emotion and strong messages that connected with the human heart. It took some time, but eventually, it wasn’t just music that I was learning, but the stories of the artists behind it. Music isn’t just music, it is an extension of the people behind it, and who they are shows in their work.
A few years back I was reading in Exodus, we read this song in chapter fifteen, right after the Israelites cross the Red Sea. One verse caught my attention, being the music nerd that I am, because of the use of the word song.
The Lord is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation; this is my God, and I will praise him, my father’s God, and I will exalt him.
Exodus 15:2 (ESV)
Moses describes God as “my song”. When comparing translations, the word deliverance is used sometimes. The original Hebrew refers to a melody or musical piece declaring victory and celebrating deliverance. We also see almost the exact same wording in other places of scripture (i.e. Psalm 118).
Gradually (I don’t remember exactly when and where) the name The Song Behind rested in my head. Have you ever noticed that watching a movie, it doesn’t matter what the budget is, the method most effective at connecting a person to the story is the soundtrack? Whether it’s a musical that is completely music-led, or the background music during the ariel shot that brings you in, the sound effects added that take your breath away, it’s the audio because it makes the story real. (The reverse is also true, how the sound is handled can be an absolute deal-breaker for any film). In our lives, stories are all around, and sounds are all around. The music of life is the means by which we all connect. I used to say “Music pulls at heartstrings in the way nothing else can.” And it’s true. Music isn’t a human invention, it was Divinely created to work together and create beauty. It testifies to the intricate organization of our God. It’s math, it’s science, it’s literature. It can be related to everything, and yet, when it comes down to it, those twelve notes (or seven in a select key) simply work.
So, what is The Song Behind? Well, it’s a lot of things. But in short, it’s a website and community/company designed to help you, the listener, to find music you love and get to know the people and the stories behind it. And it serves artists by letting people get to know them for who they are as well as gain exposure in the right way. As it grows more will come, and I’m so excited to see where it will go.
So it is with great joy, that I introduce to you The Song Behind. It’s been 17 years in the making, and finally launches today. I hope it helps you connect with music and the artists behind it. I pray that it will encourage you to look for the stories in your every-day, and that it will reintroduce you to the beauty of God’s intricate involvement in our lives.
If you’re excited check out the website and social media pages (see below) and share it with someone, it truly does make all the difference and means so much.
Much love,
Joy Finn