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Forrest Frank’s Child of God II arrives at No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Christian Albums chart (dated May 24). Released May 9, the 20-song set earned 33,000 equivalent album units in the United States in the week ending May 15, according to Luminate.
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Frank adds his second Top Christian Albums No. 1, as Child of God II dethrones his Child of God after 35 weeks on top beginning last August (the third-most weeks at No. 1 among all titles this decade).
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Concurrently, “Your Way’s Better,” which is on the deluxe version Child of God and the new Child of God II, ascends a spot to No. 1 on Hot Christian Songs, where it’s Frank’s first leader. The track, which the Fulshear, Texas, native and Pera Krstajic co-wrote, drew 7.9 million official U.S. streams (up 3%) and likewise lifts 2-1 on Christian Streaming Songs, also marking Frank’s first No. 1. Plus, track sold 2,000 downloads. On Christian Airplay, it climbs 22-19 for a new best (1.1 million audience impressions, up 29%).
The single, which went viral on TikTok, previously became Frank’s first solo hit on the Billboard Hot 100.
Notably, Frank is the first artist to lead Top Christian Albums and Hot Christian Songs simultaneously since Brandon Lake on the Nov. 4, 2023, charts. That week, his Coat of Many Colors blasted in at No. 1 on Top Christian Albums as “Praise You Anywhere” rose to the summit on Hot Christian Songs.
Concurrently, Child of God II enters the all-genre Billboard 200 at No. 12, bestowing Frank with his highest rank. Child of God, his lone prior entry, arrived at its No. 28 peak last August.
Three years after initially earning a top 20 pop hit on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100 as part of the duo Surfaces, singer-songwriter Forrest Frank began to compile contemporary Christian music hits. He’s become one of the genre’s fastest-rising artists, melding elements of pop, hip-hop and gospel on songs such as “No Longer Bound,” a collaboration with Hulvey, which cracked the top 20 on Billboard‘s Hot Christian Songs chart. But it’s the ebullient, summer-ready “Your Way’s Better” that becomes Frank’s first solo Hot 100 entry — the hit has reached a No. 61 high on the chart and crowns Hot Christian Songs for the first time this week (charts dated May 24). Meanwhile, his recent team-up with country artist Thomas Rhett, “Nothing Else,” resides at No. 4 on the same chart.
Frank originally released the pop-inflected “Your Way’s Better” in October 2024, but the song’s success was spurred by TikTok momentum earlier this year, thanks to a viral TikTok dance that both resonated with fans — and took Frank, then on a social media hiatus, by surprise.
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In the past year, Frank has released music at a dizzying speed, stoking fervor in the industry and his growing fan base. His July 2024 album, Child of God, was nominated for a Grammy for best contemporary Christian music album and nominated for top Christian album at the Billboard Music Awards. By that November, he returned with a deluxe version of the album; on May 9, he released its follow-up, Child of God II. The two installments currently hold Nos. 1 and 2 on Top Christian Albums, with his more recent project leading the chart.
“That’s kind of a theme for me in my career,” Frank tells Billboard, calling while on the road during the second part of his sold-out Child of God tour. “I love pushing the boundaries, and I feel like my career is busting myths.”
Below, Frank talks about “Your Way’s Better,” Child of God II and Christian music’s current Hot 100 surge.
How did “Your Way’s Better” come about?
I was having a hard day and had gone for a drive. I remember pulling into my neighborhood and that chorus came spilling out. It was just a prayer that ended up having a melody with it. I recorded a voice memo of it on my phone and didn’t do anything with it for a few months. Then, backstage at [Frank’s 2024 Child of God tour], I pulled out my laptop and produced the beat for it. Then, my producer friend PERA came out to a session and we were jamming on this song and I said, “What if you play something kind of somber?” He starts playing it, and I freestyled the melody [and] some of the words that ended up on the track.
You released “Your Way’s Better” last October, but a dance that went viral on TikTok and social media helped boost it. How did that happen?
It was my 12th- or 13th-highest streaming song at a daily rate — it was not making a big splash. There’s a couple, David Myers and Bridgette [Nicole], and they post a new dance almost every day to different songs, and it was one they did [in February]. What’s interesting is that I was taking a social media break — I had posted maybe three times in a four-month period. At first, I didn’t really engage with it, but then I saw a significant jump in my streams. I’m seeing these kids doing the dance, and it’s kind of like this vacation Bible school type thing, [learning] the dance to go with the song and do the hand motions and stuff. It is like that energy, but not in an enclosed church space. It just kind of feels like it’s across the whole world.
You just released your new album, Child of God II, on May 9, just 10 months after Child of God, and six months after its deluxe edition. Why did you want to drop another full album so soon?
They say you have to upload a song about a month before it comes out to make sure that all the distributing partners have enough time to add it to playlists and can properly program. I remember a year or two ago thinking, “Is that really the case?” So, I uploaded music closer to the deadline, like 48 hours before a release and it made it on [Spotify playlist] New Music Friday.
With Child of God, I had a song with Connor Price called “Up!” and that splashed and two weeks later, we released “Good Day,” which became the next biggest one. We kept dropping songs every two weeks because that’s the pace I was writing music. Rather than hold back music for months, why not just put everything out there and see what happens? I feel like life is short: My time and moment is finite to a degree, so if I’m excited about these songs and the fans are excited, why would I hold stuff back?
There are a lot of crossover efforts between contemporary Christian music and country happening now, such as your collaboration with Thomas Rhett on “Nothing Else.” Why do you think that’s the case?
I think including God is pretty common in country music, [but] I’ve noticed that transition in my heart and the fullness I get to experience in praising God specifically. I think the country space is starting to feel that as well. I could see in the next year or two, a lot of the A-list country artists just making straight-up Christian worship songs.
With Brandon Lake and Jelly Roll’s “Hard Fought Hallelujah” also on the Hot 100, what’s your take on the surge in Christian music’s popularity?
I think it’s just the people. Yes, it’s the artists who are expressing their genuine love for God, but also, it’s the consumers that are supporting it and championing it. With my tour, there’s this family thing going on: We didn’t expect for families to come to the show, but “Your Way’s Better” has become the music for the car ride, the music on the way to school. It was like an invisible market. I knew that there was kind of a starving family market, but here it is.
A version of this story appears in the May 17, 2025, issue of Billboard.
Say your prayers: Christian music is making a serious comeback.
On the Billboard Hot 100, dated May 10, two Christian songs are making waves: Brandon Lake’s “Hard Fought Hallelujah” ranks at No. 44 in its 11th week on the chart (after reaching No. 40 last week) and Forrest Frank’s “Your Way’s Better” jumps from No. 72 to No. 62 in its second week.
Lake and Frank have both emerged as breakout stars in the Christian music world, thanks in part to their growing popularity across social media platforms like TikTok.
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Lake has charted 42 songs on the Hot Christian Songs chart, all since 2019. Nine of those reached the top 10 and six hit No. 1. Three of those hits, including “Hard Fought Hallelujah,” spent 20-plus weeks on top.
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Frank, meanwhile, first broke onto Billboard’s charts in 2020 as half of the pop duo Surfaces (alongside Colin Padalecki), thanks to their viral hit “Sunday Best.” The TikTok-friendly song climbed to No. 19 on the Hot 100 and even found success at radio, reaching the top 10 of Pop Airplay. Since then, Frank has pivoted to Christian music and quickly became a force in the genre. He’s logged 34 entries on the Hot Christian Songs chart, including six top 10s: “Good Day” (No. 2 peak in 2024); “Up!,” with Connor Price (No. 8, 2024); “Never Get Used to This,” with JVKE (No. 6, 2024); “The Present” (No. 9, January); “Nothing Else,” with Thomas Rhett (No. 4, March); and “Your Way’s Better.” No other artist has charted more songs on the ranking since the beginning of 2022. He also finished 2024 as Billboard’s No. 1 top new Christian artist.
Frank’s album Child of God has also dominated the Top Christian Albums chart, spending 34 weeks and counting at No. 1, making it the fifth-longest-leading No. 1 album this century. He released the set’s follow-up, Child of God II, Friday (May 9).
Christian music has historically had a limited presence on the Hot 100. Dating to when Billboard’s Hot Christian Songs chart adopted its current multimetric methodology on Dec. 7, 2013 — blending U.S. streams, radio airplay and sales — 52 Christian songs have charted on both the Hot 100 and Hot Christian Songs. But there are some important caveats.
Of those 52 songs, 34 were by Kanye West from his albums Jesus Is King or Donda and one was by DJ Khaled featuring West and Eminem (“Use This Gospel [Remix]”) — both were, of course, already long-established hip-hop acts with a core fanbase outside of Christian music. Another six were religious-themed holiday songs (Carrie Underwood’s “Silent Night,” for example).
That leaves us with just 11 Christian songs that are not tied to the holidays or crossover rap acts:
Artist, Title, Peak Year on the Hot 100:
Carrie Underwood, “Something in the Water,” 2014Craig Wayne Boyd, “The Old Rugged Cross,” 2014Hillsong UNITED, “Oceans (Where Feet May Fail),” 2014Jordan Smith, “Great Is Thy Faithfulness,” 2015NEEDTOBREATHE feat. Gavin DeGraw, “Brother,” 2015Jordan Smith, “Mary Did You Know,” 2016Avril Lavigne, “Head Above Water,” 2018NF, “Let You Down,” 2018Lauren Daigle, “You Say,” 2019Brandon Lake, “Hard Fought Hallelujah,” 2025Forrest Frank, “Your Way’s Better,” 2025
And there may be more on the way. Two additional Christian tracks are climbing Billboard’s Bubbling Under Hot 100 ranking — which lists the 25 songs just below the Hot 100 that haven’t yet debuted: Elevation Worship’s “Praise,” featuring Brandon Lake, Chris Brown and Chandler Moore (No. 20; currently No. 3 on Hot Christian Songs) and Forrest Frank’s “Good Day” (No. 23; peaked at No. 2 on Hot Christian Songs last year).
What makes this specific chart week extra notable for Christian music, though, is that it’s just the second time (since 2013) that two Christian songs are charting simultaneously. It only happened once before on Dec. 27, 2014, when Underwood’s “Something in the Water” and Boyd’s “The Old Rugged Cross” charted together. The latter song, however, spent a week on the chart before dropping off. Unlike that week, Lake’s hit has significant longevity and Frank’s is still on the rise.
For Provident Label Group, which finished 2024 as Billboard‘s No. 1 Top Christian Label and whose roster included Lake and genre powerhouse Elevation Worship, pivoting their marketing efforts to younger demographics has been key to their success.
“Over the past few years, we’ve focused on investing in the future of the genre instead of just seeking to repeat past successes,” said marketing & brand strategy vp Mat Anderson. “For Christian music to thrive in the next 5-10 years, we must attract younger audiences seeking sonically diverse music that authentically reflects their faith and life experiences. We’ve partnered with young artists who offer unique perspectives, enabling them to shape the genre’s future rather than molding them to fit its past. This approach by Provident and others has been highly successful, as the genre’s rapid growth over the past three years demonstrates that Christian music is resonating with new audiences and reengaging previous ones.”
Christian music has, in fact, been rising — and it’s part of a broader trend. According to Luminate’s 2024 year-end report, Christian/Gospel is one of the fastest-growing genres among young audiences in the U.S., with the average listener is spending 19% more time with Christian/Gospel music than in 2022.
Bell Partners Worldwide has acquired Tennessee-based Christian label Gotee Records’ label operations and Emack Music Publishing arm. The partnership marks the launch of a new division, Bell Partners Christian Music, aimed at expanding the global reach of Christian music artists.
Gotee executives Joey Elwood and Toby McKeehan (tobyMac) will continue in leadership roles at Gotee as well as at Bell Partners Christian Music, with Elwood serving as CEO of the latter.
Producers Todd Collins and Elwood, along with Grammy-winning artist tobyMac, founded Gotee Records in 1992. The label has launched the careers of artists including Christian hip-hop pioneers GRITS, Christian R&B group Out of Eden, Relient K (“Who I Am Hates Who I’ve Been”), Jennifer Knapp, SonicFlood (“I Could Sing of Your Love Forever”) and Jamie Grace. Gotee’s current roster includes Jon Reddick (“God Turn It Around”), Cochren & Co. (“Money Can’t Buy”), Terrian (“In The Arms”), Ryan Stevenson and Joseph O’Brien.
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Bell Partners Worldwide is headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden, with operations across the United States, Europe, Asia and Latin America. The multifaceted music company specializes in rights management, publishing, synchronization, licensing and label services.
“This isn’t an exit strategy — it’s a strategic evolution,” Elwood said in a statement. “After many discussions with Bell Partners, we saw the potential in combining our 30 years of independent label experience with Bell Partners’ global infrastructure. This partnership allows us to elevate Christian music on a worldwide scale, and we’re excited for what’s ahead.”
Hayden Bell, founder/CEO of Bell Partners, added, “We are excited to welcome Gotee Records into the Bell Partners family. Joey and Toby have built an amazing company that has been a cornerstone of the Christian music industry, and I couldn’t wish for better partners as we move forward. This partnership not only strengthens our commitment to nurturing talent but also underscores our dedication to expanding the global influence of Christian music. Together, we will unlock new opportunities for artists, empower their voices, and share their inspirational messages with audiences around the world.”
Singer-songwriter Jason Nelson earns his fifth No. 1 on Billboard’s Gospel Airplay chart (dated Jan. 25) as “Yahweh,” featuring Melvin Crispell III, rises a spot to the top of the Jan. 25-dated survey. During the Jan. 10-16 tracking week, the song increased by 8% in plays, according to Luminate. Nelson, who hails from Baltimore, co-authored […]
Salem Media Group has sold its seven remaining Contemporary Christian-formatted radio stations to the Educational Media Foundation (EMF) for $80 million, the company announced Monday (Dec. 30).
The agreement, which is pending approval from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), will add or expand EMF programming to seven U.S. markets, with stations including KLTY-FM in Arlington, Texas; WFSH-FM in Athens, Ga.; WFHM-FM in Cleveland; KFSH-FM in La Mirada, Calif.; KKFS-FM in Lincoln, Calif.; KBIQ-FM in Manitou Springs, Colo.; and KFIS-FM in Scappoose, Oreg.
EMF — the parent organization of Christian radio networks Air1 and K-LOVE — noted in a statement that it intends to launch K-LOVE or Air1 Worship Now programming on those signals according to market needs, pending FCC approval. It indicated that it aims to begin programming the stations via a local marketing agreement on Feb. 1.
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Also on Monday, Salem announced that it has entered into an advertising and marketing agreement with EMF for $10 million.
Through its Air1 and K-LOVE networks, EMF reaches approximately 18 million listeners each week. Its Air1 and K-LOVE radio networks have over 1,100 broadcast signals across all 50 states, with global reach through streaming audio.
Salem Media Group’s CCM-formatted radio stations were most commonly operated under the nickname “The Fish.” Founded as Salem Communications in 1974, the company rebranded as Salem Media Group in 2015. It has since grown to become a multimedia company with properties including talk radio, digital media and book/newsletter publishing. According to a March 2024 corporate guide, the company’s other radio signals include 38 Christian teaching and talk radio stations and 30 news talk stations.
Salem’s sale of the seven stations came as part of a group of strategic transactions aimed at shoring up the company’s financial security. As part of this effort, the company repurchased all $159.4 million in outstanding 7.125% senior secured notes due 2028 for $104 million cash and $24 million in subordinated unsecured promissory notes. By midyear 2025, those notes are slated to be exchanged for series A preferred stock. Salem also issued $40 million in series B convertible preferred stock to the foundation WaterStone, with proceeds being used to fund Salem’s debt repurchase. On Dec. 23, Salem extended its revolver line of credit with Siena Lending Group for one year.
“As Salem has leaned into its talk and information programming, we are honored to carry the torch and keep Christian music flowing over these frequencies,” said Tom Stultz, EMF’s interim CEO, in a statement. “These strong stations expand our coverage area and help us deliver on our mission to reach more people with the gospel of Jesus Christ. We feel it is an incredible opportunity to continue serving listeners with Christian music in these important markets.”
Edward G. Atsinger, Salem Media Group’s executive chairman/co-founder, said in a statement, “We have made a strategic decision to exit the Contemporary Christian Music format in order to pay off all of Salem’s long-term debt. We could not be more delighted that the buyer is EMF. EMF has demonstrated over many years a unique ability and dedication to creating and distributing the highest quality Christian music content to its listeners in a positive and encouraging way. I am confident that their impact on listeners and their communities will be incredibly effective.”
This isn’t Salem’s first sale to EMF. In March, the company sold its stations in Nashville and Honolulu to EMF for $7 million.
In 2024, Elevation Worship, the music collective based in Charlotte, N.C., leads Billboard’s Top Christian Artists in the overall year-end recap. The group also rules as the leading duo/group of 2024.
Elevation Worship’s eight-song album, Can You Imagine?, is Billboard’s No. 1 Top Christian Albums title of 2024. The set, which spent 14 weeks at No. 1 during the 2024 eligibility period (charts dated Oct. 28, 2023, through Oct. 19, 2024), has remained in the top five on the weekly ranking for most of the chart year.
The week that the album arrived at the summit, group frontman Chris Brown told Billboard: “We’re blown away by the response to our new album and how it’s pointing people to Jesus,” he said. “It’s reminding us that He is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine in and through our lives.”
Explore All of Billboard’s 2024 Year-End Charts
Billboard’s year-end music recaps represent aggregated metrics for each artist, title, label and music contributor on the weekly charts from Oct. 28, 2023, through Oct. 19, 2024. Rankings for Luminate-based recaps reflect equivalent album units, airplay, sales or streaming during the weeks that the titles appeared on a respective chart during the tracking year. Any activity registered before or after a title’s chart run isn’t considered in these rankings. That methodology detail, and the October-October time period, account for some of the difference between these lists and the calendar-year recaps that are independently compiled by Luminate
Additionally, Elevation Worship’s “Praise” featuring Brandon Lake, Chris Brown and Chandler Moore leads multiple major year-end song charts: the multimetric Hot Christian Songs, along with the radio rankings Christian Airplay Songs and Christian AC Airplay Songs, and even Christian Streaming Songs.
“Praise” hit No. 1 on the weekly Hot Christian Songs chart in March and became the act’s third chart-topper among 15 top 10s. It was the first leader for Brown, Lake’s third of five and Moore’s first. It spent 31 weeks at No. 1 on Hot Christian Songs during the 2024 chart year.
Meanwhile Singer-songwriter Brandon Lake, who is featured on “Praise,” leads Billboard’s Top Christian Artists – Male roundup. Lake, who hails from Dallas, is No. 2 on the overall Top Christian Artists recap.
Lake’s 2023 hit “Gratitude,” which led Hot Christian Songs for 13 weeks during the 2024 chart year, finishes at No. 6 on the year-end Hot Christian Songs recap. The singer-songwriter banked two additional Hot Christian Songs No. 1s: “Praise You Anywhere” rang up six weeks in the penthouse starting in November 2023, and “That’s Who I Praise” became his fifth leader in the final week of the 2024 chart year (Oct. 19, 2024).
Lake notched his first No. 1 on Top Christian Albums with Coat of Many Colors which debuted atop the Nov. 4, 2023 dated tally. The 16-song Colors ranks at No. 5 on the year-end roundup. The 34-year-old from Charleston, S.C., also posts the No. 14 album of 2024, House of Miracles. It peaked at No. 6 on the weekly Top Christian Albums chart in June of 2023, but continued to have a sustained chart run into the 2024 eligibility period.
Billboard’s Top Christian Artists — Female of 2024 is Lauren Daigle, who was 2023’s overall Top Christian Artist. She finishes fourth in the latter category this year. The singer-songwriter who hails from Lafayette, La., has the No. 6 spot on the 2024 top albums survey with her 2023 self-titled album.
Daigle released the initial 10-song self-titled album with the promise that the deluxe version with 10 more tracks would come later. The LP paired the 33-year-old Daigle with new producer Mike Elizondo and was her first through Atlantic Records, which her longtime label, Centricity, formed a partnership in early 2023.
The first version of the LP entered at the summit on May 27, 2023, returning to the apex that September with the deluxe version, which added 13 tracks to the original release. It led on Sept. 23, 2023, with 13,000 units and has remained on Top Christian Albums throughout 2024.
Meanwhile Daigle’s earlier albums remain extremely popular. Her third of four No. 1 sets, Look Up Child from 2018, is No. 3 on the Top Christian Albums year-end ranking.
The No. 2 female of the year (and No. 5 overall) is Anne Wilson. She is notable as her music is being promoted to both Christian and country radio (by Capitol Christian and Capitol Nashville, respectively). The two-sided promotion between these two genres is still not all that common. While she has not impacted Country Airplay yet, her single “Strong,” hit No. 3 on Christian Airplay and No. 2 on Christian AC. Wilson has earned five top 10s on each of the lists to date.
Queen Is ‘New’ King
At No. 1 on the 2024 year-end Top New Christian Artists ranking is Josiah Queen. He concurrently cracks the top 10 on the overall Top Christian Artists list, coming in at No. 9.
His independently released debut set, The Prodigal, opened atop Top Christian Albums in June. Queen’s rookie single, the album’s title track, reached No. 4 on Hot Christian Songs in May becoming his first top 10. The 21-year-old from Tampa, Fla. initially accumulated traction by posting videos on TikTok, where he has more than 100,000 followers.
Speaking of artists who springboard from social media, Forrest Frank, who was 2023’s Top New Christian Artist, is No. 3 among all acts this year. Frank’s “Good Day” is the No. 2-ranked Hot Christian Songs title of 2024. “Good” reached No. 2 on the weekly version of the list in March, becoming his first of three top 10s. His duet with Connor Price, “Up!”, peaked at No. 8 in April, while “Never Get Used to This,” with JVKE, climbed to No. 6 in August.
Rock and country veterans Van Zant — the duo of brothers Donnie and Johnny Van Zant — make their initial appearance on Billboard’s Top Christian Albums chart as the pair’s first spiritually themed LP, Always Look Up, enters the Dec. 7-dated tally at No. 4.
Released Nov. 22, the collection earned 5,000 equivalent album units, almost all from album sales, in the U.S. Nov. 22-28, according to Luminate.
The 12-song set is a mix of classic rock and country that has defined the siblings’ careers, along with Southern gospel.
Donnie Van Zant, 72, co-founded 38 Special in 1974 and was a member until he retired in 2013. The longtime successful touring act logged nine entries on the Billboard 200, including the top 10 Special Forces in 1982. The band banked nine top 40 Billboard Hot 100 hits, led by the top 10s “Caught Up in You” (No. 10, 1982) and “Second Chance” (No. 6, 1989).
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Johnny Van Zant, 64, still tours with Lynyrd Skynyrd, which he has helmed since the loss of older brother Ronnie Van Zant, who, along with five others, was killed in a plane crash in October 1977. Lynyrd Skynyrd was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2006. The band boasts three Billboard 200 top 10s and the No. 8-peaking 1974 Hot 100 classic “Sweet Home Alabama.” The group followed with fellow signature hit “Free Bird” (No. 19, 1975).
The duo Van Zant has made two appearances on Top Country Albums: Get Right With the Man entered at its No. 2 peak in 2005 and My Kind of Country hit No. 10 in 2007. The twosome’s third entry, Red White & Blue (Live), arrived at its No. 39 high in 2016. On Hot Country Songs, the pair’s “Help Somebody” hit No. 8 in 2005.
Of Van Zant’s rookie Christian LP, Donnie Van Zant stated, “This has been on our bucket list for some time. We’re big believers in Jesus Christ, and with Always Look Up, we’re sharing that faith through our music.”
Adams Unlocks Third No. 1 With ‘Doors’
Yolanda Adams earns her third Gospel Airplay leader with “Church Doors.” The song increased by 4% in plays during the latest tracking week.
The single was authored by Donald Lawrence and Sir the Baptist and is from Adams’ album Sunny Days, which opened at its No. 9 best on Top Gospel Albums in September, awarding Adams her 17th top 10.
Adams’ new Gospel Airplay chart-topper is her second in a row, following “In Him There Is No Sorrow,” her collaboration with Donald Lawrence & Co. and Twinkie Clark that ruled for a week in April. She first led with “Be Blessed” for three weeks in 2005.
Brandon Lake achieves his fourth No. 1 on Billboard’s Christian Airplay chart as “That’s Who I Praise” jumps three spots to the top of the ranking dated Nov. 30.
During the Nov. 15-21 tracking week, the song drew 5.6 million audience impressions, according to Luminate. Over on Christian AC Airplay, it reigns for a second frame. It’s Lake’s fourth chart-topper on each list.
The 34-year-old Lake, from Charleston, S.C., co-authored the single with Steven Furtick, Benjamin William Hastings, Zac Lawson and Micah Nichols, the lattermost of whom also produced it.
“I’m completely blown away. To hear that this song is connecting with so many hearts out there is humbling and just unreal,” Lake tells Billboard. “Keep praising God even when you don’t feel like it. Your worship is a weapon and our God is faithful.”
Lake last led both tallies as featured on Elevation Worship’s “Praise,” also featuring Chris Brown and Chandler Moore, beginning in May. He also scored his first No. 1 on the charts in collaboration with Elevation Worship: “Graves Into Gardens,” in 2021. Lake has also topped the surveys with “Gratitude” beginning in March 2023.
Transformation Worship Makes History
Gospel and Christian music collective Transformation Worship banks its third leader on Top Gospel Albums, as well as its third top 10 on Top Christian Albums, entering at Nos. 1 and 3, respectively, with Undefeated Champions. Released Nov. 15, the set earned 4,000 equivalent album units in its first week.
The Tulsa, Okla.-based act launched in 2010 at the city’s same-named church by lead pastor Michael Todd.
On Top Gospel Albums, Transformation Worship becomes the first worship collective to achieve three No. 1s in a calendar year, as Undefeated Champions follows Dominion, which opened on top in July, and Overflow, which started at the summit in June.
The group boasts a fourth Top Gospel Albums top 10 this year: Thy Kingdom Come debuted at its No. 6 best in October.
Brooks & Dunn, Jelly Roll Chart Remake
Renowned country duo Brooks & Dunn returns to Billboard’s religious charts with an update of “Believe,” which hit No. 6 on Hot Country Songs in 2006. The new version features Jelly Roll, who joined Kix Brooks and Ronnie Dunn for a performance of the song on the 58th annual Country Music Association Awards (Nov. 20), broadcast live on ABC.
The remake is from Brooks & Dunn’s collaborative LP Reboot II, which debuts at No. 5 on Top Country Albums with 24,000 equivalent album units. It marks the twosome’s 15th top 10 and first since 2019, when Reboot started as the pair’s seventh No. 1.
The new “Believe” bows atop Christian Digital Song Sales with 5,000 sold, while the 2019 original reenters at No. 6. It also debuts at No. 6 on Hot Christian Songs, bolstered further by 1.8 million official streams, marking Brooks & Dunn and Jelly Roll’s first appearance each on the chart.
Caleb & John’s “Somebody Like Me,” featuring CAIN, climbs to No. 1 on Billboard’s Christian Airplay and Christian AC Airplay charts (dated Oct. 5). It leads the former with 5.4 million audience impressions Sept. 20-26, according to Luminate. The duo of Caleb Crino and John Secker earns its first chart-topper with its second entry. “Hallelujah […]