Jeff Deyo
Genre: Pop/Rock/Worship
Official Web Site
Jeff Deyo Bibliography: (click on each album cover to view tracks and Jeff Deyo lyrics)
Jeff Deyo Biography As amazing as it may be for him to consider, Jeff Deyo is coming to grips with the fact that he is truly one of the pioneers of modern worship. While it wasn't his initial intention, his creative influence has continued to bring fresh energy, inspiration, and innovation to the new worship revolution he helped ignite. Today, almost every modern worship collection contains at least one Deyo-sung track, with the latest WoW Worship featuring the singer's #1 hit "More Love, More Power." Equally telling, Deyo's three group and solo projects have combined for a Dove Award and a second nomination, a Grammy nomination, a certified gold record, three #1 radio hits, and over a million copies sold. Not surprisingly, Deyo is poised to illuminate the world of worship once again with his latest solo release, Light.
As evidenced on Light, Deyo possesses a profound ability to instill energizing tempos and catchy choruses into worship without ever diminishing the reverent spirit upon which these songs are built. "Ray of Light", "Bless the Lord" and "Your Name Is Holy, Holy", epitomize this signature Deyo gift, while the songs on Light also highlight the singer's growth in capturing a progressively more organic and earthy band feel. Within the context of Deyo's magnetic electric guitar-laden, drum-driven, sound, Light breaks new ground for Deyo by incorporating several modern piano parts, while the two more melancholy tracks, an ethereal edge is created by clean electric guitar delays. As with 2002's Saturate, Deyo recruited only the best for guest vocal spots on Light, which include Third Days' Mac Powell on "We Come to Your Throne with Weeping," international worship leader Rita Springer on "Bless the Lord," and Curb recording artist, Natalie Grant on "Keep My Heart." Bryan Lenox and Otto Price join Deyo once again as Light's remarkable producers.
Lyrically speaking, Light aspires for a balanced approach to God by daring to expand the understanding of praise and worship music through addressing real life struggles and frustrations, an idea inspired by the Psalms. Deyo, who penned each of thirteen tracks on Light (three with the help of his band mates), uses songs like "I Fear You" and "We Come to Your Throne with Weeping" to interject honest questions and responses that are otherwise rare in the context of most modern-day praise and worship. Though not uncommon in the Psalms, this approach to worship makes Deyo unusual among the majority of his peers.
In regards to his efforts to revolutionize our approach to worship, Deyo explains, "We tend to adopt certain styles as inspired, as if at some point God said, 'Oh my, you've finally figured out the music style I really like!' I'm not criticizing traditional worship or saying that everyone should pick up electric guitars. I am saying that we need to stretch ourselves and expand the means of expression by which we worship God. The bottom line: our worship (our response to God) should be creative because our God is creative!"
Looking back, the SoCal-born Deyo spent his youth in Denver's mile-high beauty before going to Wheaton College on a music scholarship and finishing his Music Business degree at Anderson University. Tassel in hand, Deyo toured and released three independent albums from his new Nashville base before co-founding the pioneer modern worship group Sonicflood, with whom he recorded two groundbreaking albums, Sonicflood and Sonicpraise. When Jeff was recording the Sonicflood debut, he and his bandmates considered it a risky move since worship albums weren't popular at the time. Sonicflood's Gold-selling debut changed all that. Three years later Deyo returned to his solo ministry with Saturate, the critically embraced album that connected with fans of the original Sonicflood.
Deyo, who served as a YFC missionary in Singapore, has contributed his worship style to countless crusade events with such people as Josh McDowell, Reggie Dabbs, Dawson McAllister, Kirk Cameron, Louie Giglio, Melody Green, Darrell Scott, Ron Kenoly, and for such events as Saddleback's 2002 worship conference, the 2003 National Assemblies of God Youth Conference and the South Korea-based worship summit co-hosted by Dr. David Yonggi Cho's church, the largest in the world. Likewise, Deyo's music appears on several WoW Worship and Time-Life's Worship Together discs, in addition to Acquire the Fire's Unshakeable and the Max Lucado concept album He Chose The Nails which included the Deyo-penned worship anthem, "These Hands."
Regarding the future, Deyo plans extensive touring with Light as he feels that is where so much of the grassroots, real relational stuff begins. He remarks, "At our worship concerts, I want people to walk away truly beginning to understand how to interact with their God and then be able to apply that experience to their everyday, personal lives. Truly, the greatest blessing for me is to see our music help jump-start someone's growing experience and passion for God."
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