Annual Christian SHOUTfest! Tour Offers Ministry, Music, Fun
by Jenni Parker
August 11, 2006
(AgapePress) - - A contemporary Christian music festival tour that features a variety of artists and musical genres on the concert stage, spirit-filled contemporary worship, and inspiring speakers with youth-targeted testimonies, is connecting with teens and young adults across the United States this summer.SHOUTfest 06 has booked dates in 25 cities this summer during the months of August through October; tour dates and other information about the event can be found at www.shoutfest.com, where visitors can also register to win prizes and receive e-mail updates about the tour. Some individuals who have attended events in this annual music and ministry series in the past describe SHOUTfest as a day to "let the walls fall down and come together to worship God."
With a roster that varies from location to location, SHOUTfest events feature major contemporary Christian artists like the Dove Awards' 2006 Female Vocalist of the Year Natalie Grant and Grammy and Dove Award winners Rebecca St. James and Jars of Clay. And with cutting edge bands like Building 429, Decyfer Down, Skillet, Superchick, EleventySeven, Day of Fire, DecembeRadio, Fighting Instinct and others appearing as well, this year's SHOUTfest is certain, once again, to bless audiences nationwide.
Christian radio station manager Ron Cottom of WAJS (the "All Jesus Station," 91.7 FM) in Tupelo, Mississippi, says SHOUTfest 06 promises to be an eye-opening time of praise and emotion that will appeal to Christians and seekers of all ages. He has been involved with the festival for three years running now, and this year is promoting the tour and hosting a local event, with more than 15 bands appearing, in Columbus, Mississippi, on September 3.
Cottom says people should bring family and friends to SHOUTfest not only for the incredible music and other fun activities, but "because of the evangelistic mission behind it -- a drive to empower the body of Christ and also to draw those that are lost." He says the 06 festival will feature a great family atmosphere.
Also, the Christian DJ and concert promoter points out that, as summer entertainment goes, SHOUTfest is "very affordable for everyone." He says parents would be hard pressed to find, for this price, an event as full of such a variety of activities and wholesome, Christ-centered entertainment for the whole family.
"You won't find anything else like it," Cottom says. "And it's not just great music and a great time," he adds, "it's also an opportunity to share the gospel, to build up fellow believers, and to win some souls to Christ."
Among the guest speakers at SHOUTfest 06 are Tony Nolan, who traveled with Casting Crowns as tour pastor on their recent Lifesong Tour; and Joseph Rojas of the band Seventh Day of Slumber. While each of that band's members has a personal story attesting to the power of Christ to heal and restore broken lives, all four agree that the center of their ministry is the life story of Rojas, a once hopeless felon who was saved from the brink of death by God's grace.
Through his music and his testimony, Rohas says he hopes to communicate to listeners that "God wants everyone to let Him in and to pray that whatever's messing them up gets turned around." He knows "from personal experience," he says, that "that's exactly what God will do" for those who are willing to lean on his grace.
SHOUTfest Extras: Food, Fun, and the Chance for Prizes
Along with inspiring music and messages, SHOUTfest events include extreme games, food, and opportunities for attendees to meet the bands. And, in addition to seeking to inspire faith among attendees, the event's planners and sponsors are also hoping to inspire some local talent, namely Christian bands aspiring to become recording artists.
Fervent Records, the Christian label that signed acts like Barlow Girl and Big Daddy Weave, has partnered with SHOUTfest and Band with a Mission in inviting local groups to take part in the 2006 "SHOUTfest Band With A Mission National Talent Contest." Winners will receive release of their single on the Fervent Records label, a booking contract, a management contract, and a spot onstage at SHOUTfest 2007.
In each of the 25 cities along the festival tour, the three top bands from the local contest will play onstage in front of the event audience and be judged by industry representatives. Each highest rated band will then become the city winner and go on to compete in Nashville, Tennessee, for the chance of becoming the National Winner. There in Nashville, each of the city winners will perform in front of Fervent Records and other industry executives, who will choose and announce the National Winner that very evening.
Registering Christian bands pay a $450 fee, in exchange for which they receive 25 tickets to SHOUTfest, which they are encouraged to share with others, and a professional evaluation of their performance from A&R at their local talent competition. Further contest details are available at the Band with a Mission website at http://bandwithamission.com or by phone at (615) 500-5039.
