Australian-based Christian rock/worship band Hillsong United has earned the #2 spot on the iTunes Top Album Charts for its just released CD A Cross The Earth:Tear Down The Walls. The album sits just behind Eminem’s new CD Relapse, which is at #1.
“For a band that is virtually unknown outside the Christian culture to be selling more than Green Day and Lady Gaga and almost as many as Eminem on iTunes, it says something about United’s amazing trajectory as an impact artist beyond just the Christian music scene,” says Chris Estes, Director of Digital Marketing for Integrity Music, the label that distributes United in the U.S. in a press release. “And, they did all this without traditional industry drivers like heavy radio play and mainstream TV. Not only do they sell out major venues, churches around the world are singing their songs every Sunday.”
My first thought was that it’s a little ironic to have a Christian band with an album #2 in the nation, and yet still be “virtually unknown outside the Christian culture.” I mean, wouldn’t it be great if the message of Hillsong United and this album – Jesus Christ, compassion, social justice – was being heard in every corner of the market? Isn’t that kind of what we’re supposed to be doing, sharing the gospel and preaching Jesus to every corner of the globe, not preaching to the choir?
I’m not faulting Hillsong United, just questioning the reality that oftentimes the very things the world needs to hear are kept under wraps in the Christian culture. It’s not Hillsong’s fault. It’s just the by-product of our commercialized subculture.
Now through August, Hillsong United is playing to capacity crowds, including sell-outs at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles, the Roseland Ballroom in New York and the Verizon Wireless Ampitheatre in Atlanta. Remaining shows are:
5/27 Atlanta, Ga.
5/29 Birmingham, Ala.
5/30 Nashville, Tenn.
6/1 Washington, D.C.
6/2 Boston, Mass.
6/3 Virginia Beach, Va.
6/5 New York
6/6 Toronto
6/8 Grand Rapids, Mich.
6/9-10 Chicago (Willow Creek Conference)
8/21-22 Los Angeles (Encounterfest)
8/24 Denver, Colo.
8/25 Dallas
8/28-29 Miami (Encounterfest)
Updated tour details for Hillsong United can be found at the Hillsong United website.
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posted June 2, 2009 at 9:41 am
Hillsong United’s success may say something about their fans. I’d ‘bet’ that people are much less likely to download pirated versions of Christian songs. Lady Gaga, for example, has had huge iTunes downloads, but how many more would she have if people respected copyright? (Her latest video, for example, was leaked and its all over the internet, before she’s even had a chance to put it on iTunes.) All the same, congrats to Hillsong United, and to their fans! I’ll check them out!
posted June 2, 2009 at 2:17 pm
They actually made it to #1 at some point last week, they had a screenshot on a facebook update I think. I think it’s more impressive than other Christian artists, or any artist for that matter, to be up there with basically ZERO radio support. They may get dismissed as just P&W music, but there are actually a few gems on each release.
posted June 5, 2009 at 7:59 am
even i was amazed when i read these news from the internet…
i love hillsong united…
the very things the world needs to hear are kept under wraps in the Christian culture.
your right in these statement…
christian music is not only for people who are inside the church, but mostly its for the people outside the church!
TEAR DOWN THE WALLS as the title says,
why not they TEAR DOWN THE WALLS that divide christian music to the people around the world… hehe.. anywayz, loved this album!
posted June 7, 2009 at 3:21 pm
Does anyone have a recommendation for a track from the new album?
posted June 9, 2009 at 12:20 am
I don’t fully understand Hillsong United’s appeal to me–a relatively stuffy, well-educated 58 year-old man who cannot carry a tune–but when I attended their recent Friday night (5/29/2009)worship service in Birmingham, Alabama, I was overwhelmed by the sense of joy and hope these young men and women shared with their 5,000 +/- audience of mostly teens and young adults. Irrespective of the beautifully simple lyrics of most of the songs on their new album, A Cross the Earth: Tear Down the Walls, which reflect a traditional Christian theology, the music is at the same time energetic, reflective, and inspiring.
As is nearly always the case with Hillsong’s music, I find one of Brooke Fraser Ligertwood’s songs, “Soon,” to be the highlight of the new album, although it was not among those sung in the worship service.
If you have a desire to experience what I have concluded is the real presence of the Holy Spirit, I highly recommend the new album and especially your attendance at one of Hillsong’s worship services. The hair on the back of my neck is still standing.
posted July 20, 2010 at 2:17 am
HiLLSONG…..FiRST TiME ONE HEARS THAT ONE MAY THiNK…HHmmmm…A ‘SONG ON THE HiLLS’SERiES!!….OR SUMTHiNK OV THE SORT?….THERE MAY BE LOADS OV CRiTiCS,CRiTiCiSM,AND CULTURE CRiTiCiZED VERSiONS OV OPTiMiST,CYNiCS…AND iVN DOWNRiGHT ATHiESTS WHO’S FiRST REACTiON TO ANYTHiNG iS MET WiTH THE DESiRE TO TEST A FAiTH THAT PROCLAiMS SUCH ‘SiMPLE iDEALS’AND BOASTS OF A GOD WHO COMMiSSiONS A ‘WAY OF LiFE’ THAT MYTE APPEAR A TAD BiT ‘SiMPLETON’ AND TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE TO FOLLOW….LOVE THY ENEMY/NEiGHBOUR AZ THY SELF…THOU SHALT NOT COMMiT THiS….OR THAT…HUNOUR THY FATHER AND MOTHER…SO THAT YOU MAY SEE LONG YEARS…HOW DARE THEY??!! WHAT iF my PARENT WAZ A COMPLETE LOSER JERK WHO HARRASSED AND MOLESTED HiS KiDS THEN HUH…WHU ‘BOUT THAT THEN??!!! THESE REFERENCES OFTEN ARE HARNESSED BY THOSE WHO SEEK THAT ‘QUiCK FiX’ THAT THERAPHY THAT LEAKS AND PENETRATES THROUGH THAT FABRiC OF TiME,SPACE, CONTiNiUM & REALiTY….OTHERS JUST REALLY WANT TO BE GENUiNELY ‘NUMBED’ iF iVN ONLY FOR A PERiOD TO THE CONVENTiONAL PROBLEMS,STRESS,WORRiES,SORROW,DiFFiCULTiES,PEDiTiON,BONDAGE,iLLNESS….AND THE LOT THAT HAS CONFORMED TO BE ‘THEiR WORLD’ NOW….MUZiK,iN SO MANY CASES PROViDES THE SOUL WiTH THiS FULFiLLMENT…ENYA MAKES MUSiCAL PiECES THAT WAS MEANT FOR THE MOST BiT,TO BE HEARD AS YOU WATCHED THE SiLVER SCREEN…THiS GAVE/GiVES MORE DEPTH TO WHAT ONE iS WATCHiNG…BUT iVN SO HER MUSiC HAD THE EFFECT OV ‘CALMiNG THE MENTALLY iLL’!! SO…..i HAVNT YET LiSTEND TO THE HiLSONG (UNiTED) ALBUM…BUT i HAVE BEEN TO THEiR SERViCE ONCE…TAKEN BY A FRiEND…AND ENDED UP GOiNG SEVERAL OTHER TiMES…UNESCORTED…HENCE i CAN *CONFiDENTLY* SAY THUS…ANYONE WHO FALLS iNTO ANY ONE OV THE CATEORiES i HAVE AFORE MENTiONED AND SEEKS….SHOULD JUST BY ANY MEANS FiND THEMSELVES A COPY (CD) OV THE ALBUM…AND FOR 90 MiNUTES OR WATEVER THE LENGTH…BUMP THA iSH AZ YOU WOUD UR ‘NORMALLY CONVENTiONAL STUFF’…AND i *PROMiSE* YOU….AT SOME POiNT THROUGH iT…LOOK AT YOU iN A MiRROR…AND PREPARE TO BE SURPRiSED OR DAMN RYTE SHOCKED AT THA iMAGE UR CORNEA’S MAY/SHAiLL/MOST DEF WiLL,CAPTURE!!! AND i’ll BET YOU…YOUD NOT HAVE EXPECTED ‘THAT’ NOW….TRUST me…OR NOT…OR OUTRYTELY PRETEND…BUT WHAT YOU URSELF EXPERiENCE CANNOT AND NEVER WiLL BE DENiED…NOT iVN BY YOU…FRiEND. PEACE,ONE.
HiLLSONG R O C K S!!!