SCSEE Music
Release Date: May 1st 2020
Reviewed by: Jonathan Andre
Steven Curtis Chapman – Together [We’ll Get Through This] (Single) (Amazon mp3/iTunes)
Track Listing:
- Together [We’ll Get Through This] (feat. Brad Paisley, Tasha Cobbs Leonard & Lauren Alaina)
Steven Curtis Chapman is a legend in his own right. His songs like ‘More to this Life’, ‘For the Sake of the Call’, ‘Lord of the Dance’, ‘Let Us Pray’, ‘The Walk’, ‘All Things New’, ‘Cinderella’, ‘Heaven is the Face’ and more recently ‘Glorious Unfolding’, ‘Remember to Remember’ and ‘We Remember’ (to name a few) have all been melodies that have spoken to us throughout the years as we hear these poignant and poetically heartfelt songs of hope, confession, heartbreak, healing and clarity being carried with us in our hearts. Steven’s music has impacted my life so immensely throughout my teenage years, so much so that I wrote a blog piece about him and his music last year- you can all take a look here; so it comes as no surprise that when I see that Steven is releasing a new song in light of this COVID-19 pandemic, I was at least intrigued about the song. With a few days leading up to the song release last week, Steven teased a little about who was going to be collaborating with him on the track- 3 other artists aside from him, to be precise. And so, when Friday clocked over; it was interesting to see the beholding of the song, ‘Together’, by Steven, and featuring aritsts Lauren Alaina, Brad Paisley and Tasha Cobbs Leonard.
So to be perfectly honest with you, I know nothing about Brad Paisley and his music in the country genre, only that his music has been around since artists like Carrie Underwood back in the day of the 2000s. I know a little bit of Lauren Alaina and her music, a lot obtained through my brother’s blog about this up-and-coming country star a couple of months ago. And Tasha Cobbs Leonard…well, I don’t really know much about her, other than that she’s a famous gospel artist now, and such an artist that received her big break a while back when she covered the song ‘Break Every Chain’. And so these are the artists that have collaborated with Steven on the song ‘Together (We’ll Get Through This)’. And I’ve realised that you don’t necessarily need to know much about the artist, nor even their music or history, to enjoy any song- I know Steven and his music, and that alone was enough to delve into hearing the song ironically and sadly inspired by this global pandemic. Nevertheless, the resuilt is a powerful 3 minute song about unity and togetherness, about coming as one with a goal of bringing hope, healing and a greater sense of purpose and intentionality as this song (alongside for KING AND COUNTRY’s ‘Together’, that also released on Friday as well!) reminds us all of the need for us to have meaningful relationships, especially in a time of physical distancing and stay-at-home orders for much of not only America (where these artists are) and Australia (where I am), but in a lot of countries around the world. Regardless of our obvious disconnect physically, this is still a time where people can still catch up in a virtual way- Skype, Facetime and other technological platforms should be at the disposal of people who want their relationships to survive such a time as this. And maybe, just maybe, ‘Together’ can encourage us all that we are not meant to live life by ourselves, especially not during a time where togetherness and fellowship are very much needed for us to survive and come through the other side. We are called and wired for human connection, and Steven’s song can hopefully stir up some yearnings for this as we continue to live our lives in a COVID-19 and post-COVID-19 world. Well done Steven for such a powerful song, one that’s certain to be on my Spotify playlists for a long time yet. And with that, here below are two quotes, one by Steven, the other by Lauren, about the meaning of the song, and its necessity throughout this unprecedented time. Well done Steven and friends for such an uplifting song, and arguably one of my favourites of 2020 thus far!
‘…I can’t tell you how excited and honored I am to be joined by three incredible artists, Brad, Lauren, and Tasha, to share this song that we all hope will fan the flame of a message that seems to be desperately needed now more than ever in our world. We are in this together…we really do need each other…and together we will get through this…’ [Steven Curtis Chapman] ‘…I was so honored when I got the call that Steven Curtis Chapman wanted me to be a part of this beautiful song he had written. He is known for writing music that lifts people’s spirits and gives them an immense amount of hope. We are in a time when that is needed more than ever. I believe this song will be a gift to a lot of people and I’m so proud to be a part of it. Together we will get through this…’ [Lauren Alaina]
Score: 5/5
RIYL: MercyMe, Lady Antebellum, Rascal Flatts, Travis Greene, Michael W. Smith