By Jordan Thomas Hall
Knott County contemporary Christian band Shiloh is broadening their audience to spread the word of Christ. The band is currently trying to raise funds through a Kickstarter page titled “Shiloh Album Kickstarter” that would allow them to produce their own CD. They are preparing to perform in Nashville next month with big-name Christian bands.
“For us to have the opportunity to praise God’s name through our music means everything to us,” says the band’s bass guitarist Byron Sparkman. “We all come from such different backgrounds and we’re at very different stages in our lives when God brought us together to form this band. We are amazed and continue to be humbled by the doors that He continues to open for us. There’s absolutely no better way to serve such a loving God than to use the very gifts that He gave us to give Him glory!
“To be given the chance to both minister to the lost and worship with people who also want to lift up the name of Jesus on a nightly basis is truly a dream come true for us. In today’s world, as we can all attest, God is not exalted like He used to be in society, in our schools, or even at our workplaces. Even churches sometimes want to “tone down” those who are “on fire” for Jesus. But, we’ve been given a command, by Jesus himself, to simply “GO” and fulfill His will for us and that’s what we’re doing. We don’t always know what we’re doing or how to do it, but we’re being obedient to His command, which is something that every person can learn from.”
The group looks to their past to write their future.
“Our music is influenced mostly by our personal experiences, our struggles, our accomplishments, and most importantly, our walk with Christ,” says Sparkman. “We want our listeners to understand that we are regular people, just like them, who have made mistakes and continue to have struggles. A lot of people assume that Christians are perfect (or in a lot of cases try to “act” like they are perfect) but we want to portray the opposite. We are all sinners, but we strive to be more like Christ.
“We are all huge jokesters! But, writing sessions are usually very mellow and for the most part, one of us will throw out an idea, a melody, a verse, or sometimes just a thought and we run with it from there. We all contribute in ways the others can’t so it works perfectly. We do a lot of writing with Mikey Howard, lead singer of the Christian rock band 7eventh Time Down, and he is talented beyond words. He can take a small idea and make it into a masterpiece. So, it’s definitely helpful to have someone like him to guide you through the writing process. We have a lot of good songs that we’re working on and we have a lot of terrible songs that we still laugh at from time to time. But that’s part of growing as musicians and as people in general.”
Their artist bio tells of the path that brought them to Christ and music to glorify Him:
Throughout the Bible, God used unlikely people to do extraordinary works. As modern disciples for Christ, members of the contemporary Christian band, “Shiloh” are perhaps the most unlikely candidates. Lead singer Ashley Sparkman spent her childhood singing country music. However, she lost faith in both herself and her voice after the death of her best friend, Karen Engle, also a singer, to a car accident in 2005.
“I felt as though I had lost the one person who believed in me and without her, I didn’t want to sing anymore,” recalls Ashley. “My love for music didn’t go away, I just felt an overwhelming sense of guilt for even wanting to sing knowing that she couldn’t sing with me anymore. But, after seven years, when I actually wanted to sing again, I had a terrible hold on me; these debilitating nerves that made even the thought of singing where someone could hear me the most terrifying thing ever.”
But, after rededicating her life to the Lord in 2012, Ashley felt as though God was leading her to use her voice to glorify Him, and she submitted to Him the talent that He had given her.
“I sing from my heart to the Lord and I know that’s what my purpose is now.”
Her husband Byron lived a life as far from God as anyone could be. He left the military to make a career as a Kentucky State Police officer where God used a traffic accident and a young girl he helped save to rededicate his life to the Lord. Soon after, he was called to the ministry and immediately had a dream of building a college ministry that would move and revive the quiet and sleepy town of Pippa Passes, KY. God opened doors and Caney Student Ministries (CSM) arose, established in a small, abandoned church on the campus of Alice Lloyd College.
As yet another step in God’s plan, through CSM, Alex “Bubby” White (lead guitar) came to know the Lord and Braxton Burke (drums) rededicated his life to Christ as students at Alice Lloyd College. Consumed with a love for Christ and music, they had no further intentions except to form a live praise and worship band for CSM. However, God moved in the ministry, their lives, and their talents. They called themselves “Shiloh”, derived from Genesis 49:10 and it became obvious to the band that God had plans for them that extended outside the four walls of their college ministry. They’ve gratefully shared the stage with bands like Disciple and After Edmund and look forward to a busy summer in 2014.
After song writing and much prayer, God opened the doors that led Shiloh to Mikey Howard, who is also a co-writer of Christian Music’s hit song, “Just Say Jesus”. Howard recently co-wrote and produced Shiloh’s first 3-song EP. The title track “Overcome the World” is based on Ashley’s struggle with fear of failure and redemption.
“I love that this song has a message that can relate to every single person and their unique struggles. We all face giants, each and every day, but those problems are nothing to Jesus, because He has overcome the world. There are no giants that can stand against Him,” Ashley says.
With many new ideas for songs and collaborations with other artists in the works, Shiloh is ready for what God has next on the checklist they feel He has made for them. Producer and mentor, Howard says that Shiloh is “a powerhouse vocal, laced with hope and conviction. Their rock roots mixed with their polished pop choruses are a fresh and welcomed sound!”
Most importantly, Shiloh wants to create music that gives God all the glory and that their fans can get lost in.
“I can remember exactly where I was when I heard ‘Come to Me’ by Kari Jobe” says Ashley. “I literally dropped to my knees and was moved to tears by her voice and the power in that song.”
With that goal in mind, the members of Shiloh want their music to be an important and memorable part of their fans’ journeys to come to know Christ and submit their lives fully to Him.
Shiloh will be playing with Rhett Walker at “Vision for Him” in Pineville, KY on 7/26th. The next Saturday they will be with King and Country and Vertical Church at Pneumafest in Belfry, Ky. They will be performing with 7eventh Time Down and Rhett Walker at the Impact Festival in Spring Hill, TN on August 17 in a showcase in front of Christian record labels. A complete schedule of events can be found at www.facebook.com/Shiloh1.
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