Corey Voss Shares Some of the Highlights in the Making of "Heaven Come Closer"

Corey Voss, and worship ministry team, Madison Street Worship have recently released their new live album, Heaven Come Closer via Integrity Music. The new record is the soundtrack of the revival happening at Gateway Church in Shelbyville, TN, a multi-generational, multi-cultural Tennessee congregation situated on the small town's main thoroughfare of Madison Street and home of Corey Voss & Madison Street Worship.

Voss began leading worship at the church eight years ago, when their congregation was no more than 65 people. Now the church has more than 1,000 members as a revival sparks in the small, rural city. Voss is also no newcomer to songwriting as he has six songs in the CCLI Top 2,000, including hits "Nothing But The Blood," "I Got Saved," and "Praise Your Name." He's co-written alongside industry-leading writers Michael Farren, Lauren Daigle, Paul Baloche, Leslie Jordan, Jared Anderson and Dustin Smith and currently co-wrote the title track on Matt Redman's Let There Be Wonder album.

Madison Street Worship is the church's worship ministry. They call themselves a collective of shepherds, songwriters, worship leaders, and creatives. They have a heart to serve the body of Christ both locally and globally and their mission is to boldly walk in the presence of God and to see His Kingdom crash into the region of Middle Tennessee and beyond. Members of Madison Street Worship include: Corey Voss, Baily Hager, Harley Rowell, Lee Bataller, Jenna Bataller, and Olivia Bush. 

Q:  Corey, thanks for doing this interview with us.  Let me start by saying your song "Found Your Love" from your previous record is one of my all time favorite worship songs.  I am very excited to hear your new record. You currently lead worship at your own church which has seen revival in the last few years.  Tell us about the revival and how it started.

A:  That's awesome, thanks for sharing that. That song has meant a lot to myself and my church. Yes, I lead worship At GTWY Church in Shelbyville, TN. It's been a really beautiful and exciting journey over the last several years. We have grown from about 65 people to over 1,000 today. I would say that most of the growth started whenever we decided to just start seeking the heart and presence of God. We started holding 5:00 AM prayer meetings several years ago that were really formational for our church. God started pouring out His Spirit in a really special way. Our pastor has always encouraged us that God's presence is our priority. I think it all started with people coming together to seek the Lord. Of course, along the way, we have had to grow a lot to disciple and pastor larger numbers of people who have joined our church family.

Q:  You have a new album coming out. What were some of the highlights in the making of "Heaven Come Closer"?

A: Yes, we have been so excited about this project. Some of the highlights have been getting to introduce new songs to our local church, capture them live, and then share what God is doing in our church with the world. One of my favorite moments during the live recording was when we sang "Let It All Go." It was the first time we introduced the full song to our congregation and there was just such a powerful moment happening in the room where people were surrendering their struggles to Jesus. You could really feel freedom rising up from the people of God.

Q: What does it mean for you personally to have heaven come closer?

A: I think for me personally, "heaven come closer" means that as I draw closer to Jesus and His Spirit, that He also draws near to me. It's the reality that we were designed for fellowship with Him but it doesn't stop there...Jesus taught a lot about the Kingdom of God. He told us that the Kingdom is both at hand and it is within us. I believe that heaven comes closer through us as yield our hearts and walk with Him.

Q:  Recently, you co-wrote with Matt Redman and the song became the title cut of his new album "Let there be Wonder," which you also cut for your new record.  What was it like writing with Matt?

A: Writing with Matt was incredible. I have been impacted by his music and songwriting since I was a teenager and so having the opportunity to write together was really special. Something I immediately noticed in the writing session was how much he loves the Church and wants to craft songs that help the body of Christ to sing truth and encounter the living God. When we wrote "Let There Be Wonder," I brought an initial idea to the writer's room "let this place be an upper room where Your people learn to wait..." and it was really special to see Matt and Josh Silverberg believe in that idea with me and together we were able to craft the rest of the song. I loved it.

Q:  Who are some of the other co-writers you have on this new record?  Any interesting stories to tell while working with any one of them?

A: Most of the songs were co-written with our Madison Street Worship team, but we also wrote with Matt Redman, Josh Silverberg, Dustin Smith, Leslie Jordan, Benji Cowart, Ben Cantelon, and Matt Armstrong. Yes, When we wrote "Heaven Come Closer" with Matt Armstrong and Dustin Smith, they had already started the song in a previous session. They invited myself and Baily Hager into the co-write. It was really clear as we were hearing the initial idea that this song was very much the heartbeat of our church and it ended up becoming the title track. I'm really glad that Dustin shared it with us!

Q: Anyone else you would like to co-write with in the near future or future?  And why?

A: I definitely have a dream list of people I'd love to co-write with! A few that come to mind are Cody Carnes, because of his heart for genuinely knowing the Lord and leading people to Jesus, and Steffany Gretzinger because she's just amazing and it's evident that she walks so closely with the Lord, which shines through all of her music.

Q:  In these anxious times caused by the coronavirus pandemic, what words of encouragement do you have for your listeners?

A: Hold on to Jesus and stay near to His heart. We're going to get through this hard season and we will come out stronger on the other side. He's fighting for you and will never fail you.

 

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