Based in Jonesboro, Arkansas, Zach Williams fronted the Southern rock outfit Zach Williams & the Reformation prior to shifting his focus to inspirational solo work, where he notched a Christian hit single via 2016's "Chain Breaker." Capturing a live performance inside a Nashville prison helped propel his second solo effort, 2019's Rescue Story, to number two on the Top Christian Albums chart. His third studio album, A Hundred Highways, surfaced in 2022 and included the hit "Heart of Gold." Momentum carried forward the next year with the live recording Austin City Limits Live at the Moody Theater, then continued into 2024 through guest appearances alongside T. Graham Brown and Crowder.
Pensacola, Florida, marked his birthplace, though Jonesboro, Arkansas, became the setting for his upbringing. The Reformation took shape in 2007 alongside guitarist Josh Copeland, guitarist Robby Rigsbee, bassist Red Dorton, and drummer Creed Slater. For the ensuing five years the group worked the Southern circuit and made occasional trips to Europe. Two independent releases followed—2009's Electric Revival and 2011's A Southern Offering—before the band dissolved in 2012.
Religion drew Williams in after the split, leading him to serve as worship leader at Jonesboro's Central Baptist Church starting in 2014 while he began writing and performing inspirational material. A deal with Provident's Essential imprint arrived in 2016, bringing the Christian hit "Chain Breaker." Jonathan Smith handled production on the Chain Breaker EP, issued that September, with the matching full-length album arriving in December. Williams next brought his music into a Nashville prison for an acoustic inmate performance that became the 2017 EP Survivor: Live from Harding Prison. Rescue Story, the proper follow-up album, appeared in 2019 and featured Dolly Parton as a guest. Early 2020 brought the singles "Empty Grave" and "Go Tell It on the Mountain," while 2021 saw a deluxe edition of Rescue Story that added the new track "Less Like Me."
September 2022 marked the arrival of his third full-length, A Hundred Highways. Once again produced by longtime collaborator Jonathan Smith, the set delivered the Top Ten Christian hit "Heart of Gold" along with the Walker Hayes duet "Jesus' Fault." A tour stop in Austin, Texas, later that year yielded the concert album Austin City Limits Live at the Moody Theater, released in June 2023. In 2024 Williams appeared on T. Graham Brown's cover of "When a Man Loves a Woman" and on the Crowder single "Grave Robber," then issued an expanded edition of A Hundred Highways.
