Carolyn Arends

Folk-pop-styled CCM performer Carolyn Arends initially gained notice through her songwriting, crafting hits for Carman, Susan Ashton and Michael James, including the smash “Love Will” for the latter. Her solo career began in 1995 with the LP I Can Hear You, which became a major pop success in her native Canada by sending the singles “Seize the Day,” “This Is the Stuff” and the title track into the Top Five; the album also fared well on American Christian stations and received extensive adult-alternative airplay. Nominated for Best New Artist at the 1996 Dove Awards, Arends followed up in 1997 with Feel Free, whose CHR chart-topper “New Year’s Day” marked the release. Her next effort, 1999’s This Much I Understand, proved her most personal album, exploring the birth of her son alongside the death of close friend Rich Mullins. In 2000 she issued Seize the Day and Other Stories, a hybrid greatest-hits and live set that included two new recordings.