Michael Morgan Donehey (born September 30, 1980) is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist primarily known for his work in the
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 ...
band
Tenth Avenue North
Tenth Avenue North was an American contemporary Christian music (CCM) band from West Palm Beach, Florida that was active from 2000 to 2021.
The group was formed while its founding members attended Palm Beach Atlantic University took its name f ...
. He is currently a solo artist and has authored the books ''Finding God's Life for My Will'' and ''Grace in the Gray: A More Loving Way to Disagree'' and hosts the "Chasing the Beauty" podcast.
Early life
Donehey was born to Dan and Sharon Donehey in
Omaha, Nebraska
Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest cit ...
in 1981. He graduated from Fredericksburg Christian School in
Fredericksburg, Virginia
Fredericksburg is an independent city located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 27,982. The Bureau of Economic Analysis of the United States Department of Commerce combines the city of Fredericksburg wi ...
in 1999. He attended FCS from
kindergarten
Kindergarten is a preschool educational approach based on playing, singing, practical activities such as drawing, and social interaction as part of the transition from home to school. Such institutions were originally made in the late 18th cent ...
through graduation and played
varsity soccer
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...
. Donehey was involved in a near-fatal, single-car accident on Mine Road in
Spotsylvania County
Spotsylvania County is a county (United States), county in the U.S. state of Virginia. As of the July 2021 estimate, the population was 143,676. Its county seat is Spotsylvania Courthouse, Virginia, Spotsylvania Courthouse.
History
At the time ...
during his senior year of high school. He broke his back in two places, broke his skull, and had an ear ripped off. He was told he would never walk again. He picked up a guitar during his days in the hospital and began to write music. He recovered and moved to Florida to attend
Palm Beach Atlantic University
Palm Beach Atlantic University (PBA) is a private Christian university in West Palm Beach, Florida. The university's nine colleges focus on the liberal arts with a select collection of professional studies. In 2019, its undergraduate enrollme ...
where Tenth Avenue North was formed.
Musical and written work
Donehey founded Tenth Avenue North with Jason Jamison in 2000. The band grew to become one of the most popular acts in
contemporary Christian music
Contemporary Christian music, also known as CCM, Christian pop, and occasionally inspirational music is a genre of modern popular music, and an aspect of Christian media, which is lyrically focused on matters related to the Christian faith and s ...
, releasing fifteen original music projects with multiple
Billboard 200
The ''Billboard'' 200 is a record chart ranking the 200 most popular music albums and EPs in the United States. It is published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine and is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of art ...
albums and
RIAA
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
gold singles.
During his time with Tenth Avenue North, Donehey was a guest vocalist on tracks from
Hawk Nelson
Hawk Nelson is a Canadian rock band from Peterborough, Ontario. Formed in 2000, the band has released eight studio albums to date.
History Early independent releases (2000–2003)
In 2000, Dunn, Clark, and Paige founded a Peterborough-based gr ...
,
Lecrae
Lecrae Devaughn Moore (born October 9, 1979), mononymously known as Lecrae, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record and film producer, record executive, actor, and entrepreneur.
He is the president, co-owner and co-founder of the ind ...
, and
Jars of Clay, among others.
In 2019, Donehey published his first book entitled ''Finding God's Life for My Will: His Presence is the Plan''. Donehey said the book was inspired by a frequent question he received: "Young artists come up to me and say, 'How did you know this was God's will for your life?' And the question behind the question is, 'I want to do what you are doing. How can I get there?' I always respond to that question -- 'How did you know this was God's will for your life?' --
aying'I don't and I never did.' Their face scrunches and they don't like that answer. We want to think God has an occupation for us because most of us view God as a means to some other end, a genie in a bottle and reward program. ... I don't think God is impressed with my resumé. He's calling for my heart, not my career. So Finding God's Life for My Will was the natural book to write to answer that question, to say, 'You need to stop worrying about what God's will for your life is. Stop asking God permission to go do what you love.' … God doesn't care if you are a banker as much as he cares as what kind of a banker are you."
[Tenth Avenue North Explores Faith, Shame and Regret on New Album 'No Shame'](_blank)
/ref> The book was an ECPA
Electronic Communications Privacy Act of 1986 (ECPA) was enacted by the United States Congress to extend restrictions on government wire taps of telephone calls to include transmissions of electronic data by computer ( ''et seq.''), added new pro ...
Bestseller.
Tenth Avenue North announced an amicable split in 2020, and Donehey began releasing music as a solo artist. He used crowdfunding
Crowdfunding is the practice of funding a project or venture by raising money from a large number of people, typically via the internet. Crowdfunding is a form of crowdsourcing and alternative finance. In 2015, over was raised worldwide by crow ...
to finance his first studio album, and reached his funding goal on Kickstarter
Kickstarter is an American public benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative projects to life". As of July 2021, ...
in 13 hours.[Mike Donehey Ventures Into Solo Territory With Debut EP 'Work Of Art](_blank)
/ref> He released two EPs, ''Work of Art'' and ''A Father and Two Sons'', as well as a single, ''Better'', in 2020. After Tenth Avenue North played its farewell shows and formally disbanded in April 2021, he released his first single as a solo artist, "All Together". His first studio album, ''Flourish'', was released on August 27, 2021.
Discography
Tenth Avenue North
* ''Over and Underneath
''Over and Underneath'' is the first major label studio album from Christian pop rock band Tenth Avenue North. It was released on May 20, 2008, and peaked at No. 130 on the ''Billboard'' 200 in April 2009. The album features two No. 1 singles: "L ...
'' (2008)
* '' The Light Meets the Dark'' (2010)
* '' The Struggle'' (2012)
* ''Cathedrals
A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...
'' (2014)
* '' Followers'' (2016)
* ''No Shame'' (2019)
Solo
Studio albums
EPs
Singles
Other charted songs
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Donehey, Mike
1981 births
Living people
American performers of Christian music
Palm Beach Atlantic University alumni
Musicians from Omaha, Nebraska
Guitarists from Nebraska
21st-century American singers
21st-century American guitarists