River Valley Worship emerged in the early 2010s as a collective of CCM performers tied to River Valley Church in Minnesota’s Twin Cities area. The ensemble quickly established itself through a series of energetic alt-pop worship projects—Edge of Heaven, Million Lifetimes, and Altars—that highlighted both its live presence and studio craftsmanship.
Ryan Williams has guided the group since 2011 as its principal singer, songwriter, and worship leader, steering the release of multiple studio efforts that began with the uplifting alt-rock debut You Are // I Am. Subsequent projects followed, among them 2012’s All in All and 2014’s Sounds Like Victory. In late 2015 the ensemble captured its expansive live album Edge of Heaven at the church’s Shakopee, Minnesota campus, issuing the recording the next year. The 2018 studio LP Million Lifetimes marked the collective’s first release on the Tooth & Nail imprint BEC Recordings and featured the Billboard-charting single “Hope Has a Name.” Two years later Altars appeared, an ebullient collection drawn directly from a live worship service, while 2022 brought the six-track studio release Attention: A Devotional Project.
