Rachel Purcell knows what it means to sing about faith when faith has been tested. The Muscle Shoals, Alabama native, who first made her mark in country music as Rachel Wammack before following an unexpected calling into Christian music, reveals in this candid JubileeCast interview that one of the darkest chapters of her life came just after signing with Centricity Music. Purcell and her husband suffered a miscarriage, and complications became so severe that she says she nearly lost her own life. Months of physical recovery and overwhelming grief followed, leaving her struggling not only to regain her strength but also with questions about God and whether she could keep moving forward.
Now, that painful journey has become part of the heartbeat behind her new four-song EP, Keep Going, arriving September 4. Blending the Muscle Shoals soul of Aretha Franklin, Otis Redding and Gladys Knight with an unflinchingly personal testimony of faith, Purcell opens up about nearly giving up, learning to trust God again, running her first 10K, finding joy after grief, writing with Blessing Offor, and why she believes even mustard-seed-sized faith can carry us through seasons we never imagined we would survive
Q: For readers who may be discovering you for the first time, who is Rachel Purcell, and what part of your story has shaped you the most?
I grew up singing in a small town in northwest Alabama called Muscle Shoals. I basically came out of the womb singing, and as a small girl was making up little melodies in my head. I started piano lessons, ended up taking some of my diary entries and putting them to song, and BOOM - I was off to the races. I kept writing songs until high school and started performing them out at restaurants and town events. While performing in the corner of a steak restaurant in my town, I was approached by a Nashville label rep and my Nashville story began. I moved to Nashville after college, and I think that part of my story has shaped me the most. First, God divinely brought someone into my hometown who believed in my voice and my music. It only could have been God that made the stars align in that way. Then, God taught me the beginning of learning how to say "yes" even when I have no idea if success or failure is on the other side. It was so scary, but God gave me the courage to say "yes" and go for it.
Q: You previously found success in country music as Rachel Wammack before stepping into Christian music. What led you to make that transition, and how has your faith reshaped your purpose as an artist?
I moved to Nashville after I finished college. I grew up listening to all kinds of music, including country, and being a southern girl from Alabama, it just made sense to take advantage of the opportunity to dive into the country genre and I ended up signing my first record deal. After six years later being dropped by that label, I felt so defeated and confused as to what God wanted me to do with my life. I considered giving up music altogether and doing something else, maybe going back to college. Yet, God started pulling my heart towards the Christian genre. And as I started questioning how God would make it happen, lyrics about God started pouring out of my heart and He started opening doors I had no idea were even there. So I took a leap of faith, and here we are almost three years later. God has used my career to shape my faith in a huge way. To continue to trust Him through the unknown, and to give myself grace as I fumble through
Q: Your new EP is called "Keep Going." What were some of the personal highs and lows that inspired these songs, and why did that title become the perfect summary of this season of your life?
The Keep Going EP is a reflection of the beginning of Hebrews 12, and the way God gives me strength to keep going. Two years ago, right after I signed my record deal with Centricity, my husband and I miscarried. It was the kind of situation where everything that could have gone wrong, went wrong. I ended up almost losing my life in the hospital, and it took months to regain my physical strength while also dealing with the heaviest grief. For a while, I could barely walk through the house without getting out of breath. It was scary and really rocked my belief in God. I felt like I just wanted to give up on life all together. But God continued to help me put one foot in front of another. Day after day. God was my strength. A few months ago I ran my first ever 10K, and it was not only a milestone for me as a runner, but it reminded me how far God has brought me and my husband in trusting God again. God has restored so much, including my joy and my sense of fun in life - something I thought I would never get back.
Q: The songs on this project blend soulful influences from artists like Gladys Knight, Otis Redding, and Aretha Franklin with deeply personal faith. How did you find the balance between honoring those musical roots and telling your own story?
As far as telling my story and leaning into the retro soul sound, this record has the best of both worlds for me. I've wanted to make music like this for so long, and after writing "You Love Me The Best" with Blessing Offor and telling him my vision for my music, everything started falling into place. I started working with producer John Strandell who got me and my vision, and we wrote song after song that just felt like "me." It has turned into the project of my dreams, and I can't wait for everyone to hear these songs.
Q: You co-wrote "You Love Me The Best" with Blessing Offor, and you've worked with incredible artists and producers throughout your career. What did those collaborations teach you, and which song on the EP surprised you the most as it came together?
Blessing Offor and I were introduced by a mutual friend my first year in Nashville, and he quickly became one of my good friends. He has taught me to keep it simple and listen to my gut. Huge lessons that I've needed a good friend to remind me over the years. The song on the EP that has surprised me the most is "Who I Belong To." I wrote it with my producer John Strandell and another writer/producer icon Jeff Pardo, and the lyric is one of my favorites I've ever written with Jeff. The truth of belonging to God is something I need a daily reminder of, so I feel like I wrote that song for me.
Q: As "Keep Going" begins its journey into the world, what do you hope listeners will take away from these songs, and where do you hope God leads you next?
I really want people to hear the message that no matter how stuck or broken you feel, God can move you forward. He is completely capable of giving strength to us out of nowhere, and bringing restoration where it seems impossible. God has changed my life so much in the past couple of years, and even when I had the smallest mustard seed-like faith, he used it to do so much good. So I hope others will be encouraged to have more faith and courage to trust God even in the toughest of circumstances.
Keep Going EP is releasing Sept. 4 and is available to pre-add/save now from https://rachelpurcell.lnk.to/keepgoing2WE.
