{"id":18555,"date":"2026-03-11T06:18:27","date_gmt":"2026-03-11T06:18:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/uncategorized\/hillsong-united-building-an-empire\/"},"modified":"2026-04-10T06:06:03","modified_gmt":"2026-04-10T06:06:03","slug":"hillsong-united-building-an-empire","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/positive-living\/entertainment\/music\/hillsong-united-building-an-empire\/","title":{"rendered":"Hillsong United: Building An Empire"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s a Saturday night and I\u2019m sitting at a picnic table in Central Park, waiting to interview Taya Smith and Jonathon \u201cJD\u201d Douglass, two members of the band Hillsong United. I\u2019m here to talk about their new album Empires<\/em> — which drops May 26th<\/sup>— and to dig into the psyche of the group whose music reaches over 50 million churchgoers on any given Sunday and who\u2019s sold more albums than mainstream platinum artists like Lady Antebellum, Mumford and Sons and yes, even Miley Cyrus.<\/p>\n

I want to know what it\u2019s like to have millions of people across the globe singing your songs, repeating your lyrics, screaming your name when your worldwide tour makes a stop in their hometown. It has to be an ego-boost, an affirmation of God\u2019s favor in your life, but it\u2019s clear as Smith settles into her seat across from me, rocking a pair of black, cut-up skinny jeans and nestling a cup of hot lemon water; JD flashing a big grin while trying to manage his long, wiry (and I\u2019ll admit) attention-grabbing mane of hair, that ego is the last thing anyone from this band has to worry about.<\/p>\n

READ MORE: CROWDER’S NEW SEASON OF MUSIC<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s the grace of God. It\u2019s the biggest privilege because we know it\u2019s not us and we\u2019re not awesome, but through the grace of God, we get to do this and our heart is that we would serve with everything that we have, love people and just pray that God would use us,\u201d Smith says when asked about the success of the group\u2019s last album Zion<\/em>, which cracked the Billboard Top 5 two years ago and whose single \u201cOceans\u201d held the number one spot on Billboard\u2019s Christian music charts for 45 straight weeks.<\/p>\n

Success like that doesn\u2019t come often, especially for a Christian worship band, but according to JD, what United was able to do with Zion <\/em>had nothing to do with their talent and everything to do with their willingness to trust and follow God.<\/p>\n

\u201cNone of us ever sat down and said let\u2019s start a band, make albums, tour the world,\u201d the singer explained. \u201cFor us, the opportunities that we get, we just know who we are. I hope you don\u2019t think this is a clich\u00e9, but we\u2019re actually the most normal, ordinary people that go through every single insecurity as everyone else. We\u2019ve just encountered a good God.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n

We just want to hear the heart of God and let that be the message.<\/strong><\/em><\/h2>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Good doesn\u2019t even begin to describe the career the band has had in the past few years. With 15 albums, millions of records sold, hundreds of thousands of Twitter followers and undoubtedly even more fans, the group, which was birthed in the youth ministry of Australia\u2019s Hillsong Church, is the<\/em> name in Christian music right now. You can\u2019t turn on K-Love in the car or visit a Christian youth conference without hearing their lyrics. It\u2019s both a blessing and a weight.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s definitely pressure, but what we decided to do more than ever was to not feel it and to not carry it,\u201d JD said of the group\u2019s journey making their newest album. \u201cWe didn\u2019t shy away from hard work but we didn\u2019t strive to try and compare ourselves to what we\u2019ve done before.\u201d<\/p>\n

The result is Empires<\/em>, the band\u2019s fourth studio album and, both lyrically and stylistically, it\u2019s bravest to date. On it are the classic worship anthems Hillsong is famed for \u2013 the title track and songs like \u201cTouch the Sky\u201d and \u201cHeart Like Heaven\u201d were made to be sung by the masses \u2013 and a few tracks which speak not only to lead singer and songwriter Joel Houston\u2019s ability to pen a good tune \u2013 \u201cPrince of Peace\u201d is his crowning achievement in this category \u2013 but also the band\u2019s willingness to experiment with new sound. Synth beats, guitar riffs, percussion solos and quirky electro influences all have a place on the new record and surprisingly pair well with some of the album\u2019s heavier lyrics.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s challenging to keep creating music that appeals to the kind of vast, completely varied audience that is Hillsong\u2019s fan base, but even after all these years, JD says the group\u2019s goal still hasn\u2019t changed.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are trying to write songs that reflect a relationship that we all have with Jesus. Ultimately, the number one goal would be that people would hear this good news that is the gospel, that Jesus came and gave his life so that we could have grace. Then as well, if they\u2019ve already heard that message, we want to encourage them on this journey.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Smith, who started out as a youth leader in the church before being asked to lend her vocals to \u201cOceans\u201d two years ago, her journey — to being a part of the band — is the perfect example of God\u2019s timing and grace.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love the story of Taya and her coming in and singing \u2018Oceans,\u2019\u201d JD said. \u201cWe\u2019d known each other for a little while, and I just knew that she had a great voice and she was a cool girl. She was really known not for her singing but just being a great youth leader and it was the last day of recording and we really needed somebody to sing \u2018Oceans\u2019 and we thought \u2018Well, let\u2019s just give this Taya girl a try.\u2019 It was our last option, our only option and the song is doing what it\u2019s doing majorly because of who Taya is and what her voice is doing on that.\u201d<\/p>\n

READ MORE: A NEW SOUND IN CHRISTIAN ROCK <\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Smith, for her part, never expected the song to touch as many lives as it has, or the fame that came with it.<\/p>\n

\u201c[I] thought it was a great song, great lyrics, that was it. But what it\u2019s actually done and how it\u2019s reached people, that\u2019s completely a surprise for me and definitely a story of God taking it where maybe music has never gone before. These guys are just really good stewards and they just did the best with whatever\u2019s been put in their hands and they gave it everything and I fell like that\u2019s what we did with Empires<\/em> as well. Everything that we have we just laid it on the table. Like Joel says, our job is to build a ship. Build a ship the best that we can, make it really sturdy, and wait for God to just breathe on it. \u201c<\/p>\n

Part of building that ship includes promoting the new album, something the band finds themselves in the middle of doing. Tonight, they\u2019re playing to a packed crowd at Summer Stage at Rumsey Playfield in New York City; tomorrow, they\u2019ll catch a flight to L.A. where they\u2019ll play the Nokia Theatre. And then of course, there’s a new movie coming out later this year, Let Hope Rise<\/em>, which documents the rise to the top. It\u2019s an exhausting schedule, one that most people would balk at, but watching them jump around the stage with boundless energy, and hearing a crowd of thousands crooning along to their lyrics, it\u2019s easy to see why they do what they do.<\/p>\n

\u201cGod\u2019s love and grace is ridiculous,\u201d JD said. \u201cWe have to glorify Him and tell people about Him. We just want to hear the heart of God and let that be the message.\u201d<\/p>\n

I think people are starting to listen. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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