Interview: Brooke & Boggs
Michael Boggs of Brooke & Boggs spoke to LTTM about their 'Wildfire' album, and how the duo came together to produce music for the church community.
Tell us a little bit about this new album of yours?
I asked a friend of mine who the best worship leader in Nashville was. He said Brooke Voland. I had never heard of her before, but when I finally got a chance to see her lead, I knew my friend was right. I asked her to lead with our team at Kairos one night and she graciously accepted. I felt like that night I knew something was different about leading with her. After a few months of leading together, our families began to pray about the possibility of us partnering together in ministry. Then, a few months later, we were recording our next EP. Since we’re both worship leaders at our own churches and desire to lead people to worship, we began writing and recording corporate worship songs, which eventually led us to the title, Wildfire as the name of our EP. In the Message’s paraphrase of Acts 2 it says that "the Spirit spread among the people like wildfire." Brooke and I have been praying that for our churches, homes and families. It’s not just the title of the EP, but it’s the center piece of most of our prayers.
Which is your favourite track on the album and why?
I have 2 favorites! I’m excited about “Grace Upon Grace.” It comes from John 1:16 that says "out of his fullness we have all received grace upon grace." Sometimes I think that I had done something just outside of God’s grace and there isn’t enough to cover my mistakes, but the reality is that no matter what we’ve done, God’s grace is greater than our sins.
“The Cross Stands” is another song we are excited about. We’ve had the opportunity to lead this song and were reminded of how much we need to be reminded of this truth. The Cross was a place of unspeakable tragedy, brutal death and unfathomable pain, but God brought life out of that mess and extended that same life to us. The cross stands over our guilt, shame, mistakes and faults.
Does this music sound and feel different to the stuff you did with FFH?
I think our music is definitely aimed at corporate worship for the church. FFH wrote songs we’d sing to people, Brooke and I are trying to write songs we sing with people.
If you could work with any songwriter, who would it be and why?
Fortunately, because I live in Nashville, I’ve been able to write with many of my heroes. However, one person that I’ve yet to write with that I would love the opportunity is Jason Ingram. He’s unbelievably talented and I’m grateful that he is writing songs for the church to sing.
Do you prefer playing live or working in the studio?
I like both. In the studio you need to be creative and help imagine what your music is going to sound like. When you’re playing live, you’re trying to execute what you’ve already created. Both are challenging and both are rewarding.
How would you describe your style of music and what are your influences?
I think singer-songwriter-worship-leaders is the best way to describe it. Although, I’m not sure that's a genre. Ha. I was influenced by church music growing up. Also my dad and mom played and sang together and most of my early years were spent listening to them sing together.
How would you define success in your career?
Obedience to what God was telling/asking me to do.
What is your favorite album of all time?
That’s such a hard question but the one album that most likely has the most plays would be Rich Mullins Greatest Hits.
You're stuck on an island, it's hot, you only have enough battery life left to listen to one song on your mp3 player. What track is it?
A brand new song from one of my favorite writers. Oh, and it has to be just an acoustic/vocal work tape version.
What does the next year hold for Brooke & Boggs?
We are traveling some together this year but in short, we’ve promised to take the next step, whatever that means and wherever that goes. We’re just trying to be obedient, putting one foot in front of the other.
