''Hymn of Heaven'' is the eighth studio album by American

contemporary Christian Contemporary history, in English-language historiography, is a subset of modern history that describes the historical period from approximately 1945 to the present. Contemporary history is either a subset of the late modern period, or it is o ...

singer

Phil Wickham Philip David Wickham (born April 5, 1984) is a Contemporary Christian musician, singer and songwriter from San Diego, California. Wickham has released nine albums: ''Give You My World'' in 2003, a self-titled album in 2006, ''Cannons'' in 2007, ...

. The album was released on June 25, 2021, by

Fair Trade Services Fair Trade Services, formerly known as INO Records, is an American record label based in Brentwood, Tennessee, specializing in Contemporary Christian music (CCM). History The label was founded in 1999 as INO Records, a division of M2 Communica ...

and

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...

. The album features a guest appearance by

Brandon Lake Brandon Lake is a lake in Douglas County, in the U.S. state of Minnesota. Brandon Lake was named for John Brandon, a farmer who settled there. See also *List of lakes in Minnesota This is a list of lakes of Minnesota. Although promoted as th ...

. The album has been supported by the release of " Battle Belongs", "

House of the Lord A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called churches), Hinduism (whose temples ...

" and "

Hymn of Heaven ''Hymn of Heaven'' is the eighth studio album by American contemporary Christian singer Phil Wickham. The album was released on June 25, 2021, by Fair Trade Services and Columbia Records. The album features a guest appearance by Brandon Lake ...

" as singles. "Battle Belongs" peaked at No. 13 on the

Bubbling Under Hot 100 Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles (also known as Bubbling Under the Hot 100) is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. The chart lists the top songs that have not yet charted on the main ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Chart ...

chart, and No. 2 on the

Hot Christian Songs Hot Christian Songs is a music chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. It ranks the popularity of Christian songs using the same methodology developed for the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, the magazine's flagship songs c ...

chart. "House of the Lord" peaked at No. 12 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart, and No. 1 on the Hot Christian Songs chart. "Hymn of Heaven" peaked at No. 2 on the Hot Christian Songs chart. " It's Always Been You" was released as a promotional single. ''Hymn of Heaven'' will be promoted with the Nights of Worship tour, followed by the Singalong Tour and the 2022 Hymn of Heaven Tour, spanning cities across the United States. The album debuted at No. 1 on ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

''s

Top Christian Albums Chart Top Christian Albums is a weekly chart published in ''Billboard'' magazine that ranks the best-performing Christian albums in the United States. Like the ''Billboard'' 200, the data is compiled by Nielsen Soundscan based on each album's weekly ...

in the United States, and at No. 6 on the

Official Charts The Official Charts (legal name: The Official UK Charts Company Limited) is a British inter-professional organization that compiles various "official" record charts in the United Kingdom, Ireland and France. In the United Kingdom, its charts inc ...

Official Christian & Gospel Albums Chart The Official Christian & Gospel Albums Chart is a music chart based on sales of albums of Contemporary Christian and gospel music in the UK. It is compiled weekly by the Official Charts Company (OCC), with each week's number one being announced ...

in the United Kingdom. At the 2021 GMA Dove Awards, "Battle Belongs" was nominated for the GMA Dove Award for Worship Recorded Song of the Year. The album was nominated for the ''Billboard'' Music Award for Top Christian Album at the 2022 ''Billboard'' Music Awards. At the 2022 GMA Dove Awards, ''Hymn of Heaven'' won the

GMA Dove Award A Dove Award is an accolade by the Gospel Music Association (GMA) of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the Christian music industry. The awards are presented annually. Formerly held in Nashville, Tennessee, the Dove Awards ...

for Worship Album of the Year, the title track won the GMA Dove Award for Worship Recorded Song of the Year, and "House of the Lord" was nominated for two GMA Dove Awards: Song of the Year and Pop/Contemporary Song of the Year.

Background

'' first reported that ''Hymn of Heaven'' was Phil Wickham's upcoming studio album, slated for release on June 25, 2021, following the No. 1 peak of " Battle Belongs" on the

Christian Airplay Christian Airplay is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States since June 21, 2003. This chart lists the 50 most-listened-to records played on multiple Christian radio stations across the country as monitored by Ni ...

chart. Wickham collaborated with various songwriters such Jonathan Smith,

Jason Ingram Jason David Ingram is an American Christian music producer and songwriter. He has been a songwriter for many Christian artists, including Bebo Norman and Point of Grace. Career Around the end of 2001, he was the first artist to be signed to ...

, Ethan Hulse,

Brian Johnson Brian Johnson (born 5 October 1947) is an English singer and songwriter. In 1980, after the death of Bon Scott, he became the third lead singer of the Australian rock band AC/DC. He and the rest of the band were inducted into the Rock and Rol ...

, Ricky and Ran Jackson, Passion City's Sean Curran, Hillsong's Chris Davenport,

Bethel Music Bethel Music is an American music label and worship movement from Redding, California, originating out of Bethel Church (Redding, California), Bethel Church where they started making music in 2001. Bethel Music has grown from being a local church ...

's Kalley Heiligenthal, and

, whose vocals are also featured on the song "

Where I'm Standing Now "Where I'm Standing Now" is a song by American contemporary Christian musician Phil Wickham featuring American contemporary worship musician Brandon Lake. The song was released on June 25, 2021, as the fifth track on Wickham's eighth studio alb ...

". Wickham described the album as being "full of praise and thankfulness, just lifting up the name of Jesus and speaking what we know the reality is even though we don't see it," further adding that his intention was to "facilitate moments where people can encounter the presence of God."

Release and promotion

Singles

" Battle Belongs" was released as the lead single of ''Hymn of Heaven'' on September 4, 2020. "Battle Belongs" peaked at No. 13 on the

chart, and No. 2 on the

chart. At the 2021 GMA Dove Awards, "Battle Belongs" was nominated for the GMA Dove Award for Worship Recorded Song of the Year. "

" was released as the second single from the album on April 2, 2021. "House of the Lord" peaked at No. 12 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart, and at No. 1 on the Hot Christian Songs chart. At the 2022 GMA Dove Awards, "House of the Lord" was nominated for the GMA Dove Awards for Song of the Year and Pop/Contemporary Song of the Year. "

" was released as the third single from the album on February 11, 2022. "Hymn of Heaven" peaked at No. 2 on the Hot Christian Songs chart. At the 2022 GMA Dove Awards, "Hymn of Heaven" won the GMA Dove Award for Worship Recorded Song of the Year.

Promotional singles

On May 12, 2021, Phil Wickham announced that " It's Always Been You" will be released on May 14, 2021. "It's Always Been You" was released as the first promotional single from the album, concurrently launching the album's pre-order. "It's Always Been You" peaked at No. 27 on the Hot Christian Songs chart.

Touring

In promotion of ''Hymn of Heaven'', Wickham will embark on the Night Of Worship tour in the spring and summer, along with festival dates throughout the summer. Wickham will also embark on the Singalong Tour alongside Pat Barrett and

in various cities across the United States in the fall of 2021. Phil Wickham announced the 2022 Hymn of Heaven Tour, spanning 32 cities across the United States with

Josh Baldwin Josh Baldwin is an American Christian singer, songwriter and worship pastor. A member of the Bethel Music collective, Baldwin also serves as a worship leader at Bethel Church in Redding, California. Josh Baldwin starting serving as a worship l ...

featuring as a special guest.

Reception

Critical response

Jonathan Andre in his 365 Days of Inspiring Media review congratulated Wickham for the album, saying: "Well done Phil for such a project that stands tall amongst many of the worship album releases of 2021 so far. This is a perfect album for anyone who has enjoyed much of Phil's music catalogue previously, or those who love and appreciate worship-style music with more of a creative edge.". In a positive review for ''Worship Leader'', Caitlin Lassiter said of the album: "From top to bottom, ''Hymn of Heaven'' is one of the most lyrically encouraging, profound and impactful worship records I’ve ever heard. Aiding Wickham’s stunning vocal, the content of this album is carefully crafted to offer churches a dozen new declarations for their people that lift their eyes to Jesus and pour hope into their hearts." In a NewReleaseToday review, Kevin Davis wrote a positive review of the album, saying "This album provides listeners with songs that proclaim acceptance of God’s love in any circumstance. ''Hymn of Heaven'' provides words of appreciation and adoration of God. Phil's enthusiastic and reverent style of writing and singing praise and worship songs has consistently been a draw for me. His prayerful sentiments are consistently filled with his personal adoration of God. I've felt that he's improved with each new album and this is my top worship album of the year." Abby Thigpen, indicating in a positive review at Today's Christian Entertainment, said "I love how worship albums have evolved in more recent years. No longer can we only praise God with just piano and old English, but with a wide variety of joyful noises, including those found throughout ''Hymn of Heaven''. I ended this album feeling rejuvenated and with a renewed sense of awe and wonder for our Heavenly Father." Jesus Freak Hideout's Josh Balogh said in his lacklustre review of the album: "while the album as a whole is a classic mixed bag, the songs that nail it really do. Wickham is one of the better voices in the genre, and he continues to write hopeful and encouraging songs for the believer to belt at church and at home. Next time out, it would be nice to see some experimentation or a greater depth of lyric, perhaps better balancing the devotional songs with the congregational ones." Timothy Yap of JubileeCast concluded in his review of the album: "''Hymn of Heaven'' may not be perfect, but it does have its celestial moments."

Accolades

Commercial performance

In the United States, ''Hymn of Heaven'' earned 6,000 equivalent album units in its first week of sales, and as a result debuted at No. 1 on the

Background

Release and promotion

Singles

Promotional singles

Touring

Reception

Critical response

Accolades

Commercial performance

Track listing

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Release history

References

External links