Casting Crowns releases new album and heads on tour 

Four years after the release of the RIAA Gold-certified album “Only Jesus,” the Christian rock band Casting Crowns recently released their ninth record, “Healer.”

The album hit the shelves on January 14^th and has so far peaked at number three on the American Billboard Top Christian Albums chart.

The new album consists of seven new songs and three lyric videos for the songs “Healer,” “Scars in Heaven” and “The Power of the Cross.”

The message of the new record concentrates on the need for Jesus, the healer, to be the center of our lives.

“The point of this song is that healing is not going to come from the people we are voting for or the people we are following on screens. It is only going to come from Jesus. He is the Healer,” lead singer Mark Hall said.

He wrote the new song “Anything but Easy,” which is about bringing loved ones to Jesus no matter the obstacles you may encounter on the way.

“The healing we are praying for in people’s lives, God may be saying, I am ready to heal their heart, but I am going to do it through how you love them. That is the question I am asking myself. Do I love my friend enough to push through the awkwardness or them pushing back and not wanting to hear it in order for them to have the truth?” Mark Hall asked.

People’s needs got lead singer through pandemic

Since the release of Casting Crown’s 2018 album and the new record, “Healer,” the world has gone through the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced concerts to be canceled and societies to be put under lockdowns.

“What kept me going is ministry. I feel you are growing the most when you spiritually matter to someone else… You never own your faith as much as when you are giving it away to other people,” Mark Hall told Billboard.

“As a youth pastor, I am a source for those students to get through hard times. I am reminding them of the truth, and the cool thing about that is when you are reminding people of the truth, you are reminding yourself of what you need to know too,” he added.

He explained that focusing on what other people needed kept him going during the pandemic.

“Being shut in our houses, if we are not careful, it gets you thinking about yourself and what you need. But when people need you… You wake up thinking, ‘How are they doing today’ instead of ‘How am I doing today?’ I was realizing I have got teenagers all over the city right now who cannot leave the house, and they cannot get to their friend groups. Students may not have as much as adults do to worry about but have just as much heart and are just as much invested in something,” he explained.

Casting Crowns going on tour

To support the new album, Casting Crowns is going on tour with We Are Messengers and Jonathan Traylor.

The tour is called ‘The Healer Tour’ and kicks off in Wallingford, Connecticut on February 18^th.

The tour takes them through the United States and culminates with a final show in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on April 1^st.

Tickets for the concerts can be bought on Casting Crown’s website.