Josh Wilson

Josh Wilson, a singer and songwriter born in Lubbock, Texas, grew up as the son of a preacher. Hymns and classical music formed part of his childhood soundtrack, yet he also took in secular pop, rock, and folk, fusing every strand into a contemporary yet spiritually rooted strain of Christian pop. His first independent album, Dragonfly, appeared in 2004, and he followed it with the independent EP Shake the Shadow in 2006. That same year Sparrow Records signed him; the label then released the much acclaimed Trying to Fit the Ocean in a Cup in 2008 and issued Sing: A Christmas EP in time for the holiday season. Life Is Not a Snapshot, another EP, surfaced in 2009.

On January 3, 2010, Wilson soothed and diverted fellow passengers during a prolonged security delay at Newark Liberty International Airport by performing the Beatles’ “Hey Jude.” A video of the moment spread rapidly online and markedly widened his audience. The self-titled Josh Wilson album arrived later that year. Early in 2011 he released See You, whose singles “I Refuse” and “Fall Apart” both reached the Top Ten on Christian charts. Noel, his second Christmas project and first full-length holiday album, came out in 2012; among its traditional songs was the original track “Jesus Is Alive,” which has since ranked among Wilson’s most popular recordings.

Carry Me (2013) and That Was Then, This Is Now (2015) continued his upward trajectory, peaking at number five and number four, respectively, on the Christian Albums chart while also entering Billboard’s Top 200.