The Afters is an American
Christian
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
pop rock
Pop rock (also typeset as pop/rock) is a fusion genre with an emphasis on professional songwriting and recording craft, and less emphasis on attitude than rock music. Originating in the late 1950s as an alternative to normal rock and roll, earl ...
band founded by Joshua Havens and Matt Fuqua. Havens and Fuqua first worked together in a
Starbucks
Starbucks Corporation is an American multinational chain of coffeehouses and roastery reserves headquartered in Seattle, Washington. It is the world's largest coffeehouse chain.
As of November 2021, the company had 33,833 stores in 80 c ...
coffee shop in
Mesquite, Texas
Mesquite is a suburban city located east of the city of Dallas, Texas, in the United States. Most of the city is located in Dallas County, though a small portion extends into Kaufman County. As of 2019 census estimates, the population was 140 ...
, where they performed songs for customers, before deciding to form a band. They were initially joined by Brad Wigg from the same Starbucks, and drummer Michael Burden and performed under the name Blisse. When Burden left the band Marc Dodd, from the Mesquite Starbucks, stepped in. Their song "Never Going Back to OK" was the most-played song on
R&R magazine's Christian CHR
Christian contemporary hit radio (sometimes abbreviated as Christian CHR) is a radio format that is common in the United States and Australia focusing on playing current and recent music as determined by the contemporary Christian music Top 40
I ...
chart for 2008.
[2008 Year End Charts/Top Christian CHR songs]
, R&R magazine
''R&R'' (also known as the "new" '' Radio & Records'') was a weekly music trade publication that followed the radio industry and tracked the monitoring of current songs by format, station and audience cumes. The magazine was a sister publication ...
, Retrieved January 6, 2009
History
As a precursor to Blisse, Josh performed several shows around Dallas with his band The Screaming Mimes that included Charlton Parker, who later formed
dEAf PEdESTRIANS, and Hans Grumbein. While Brad was a founding member of Blisse, he took time away from the band to perform with his own blues project, playing lead guitar. Shows at the Door in Deep Ellum were filled in by Dallas bassist Eric Kitchens and bassist/filmmaker Niko Red Star.
Under the name Blisse, the band recorded a six-song EP in 2000. From this they made enough money to cut their first album, ''When the World Is Wonderful'', which was released independently in 2001. This album contains songs also released on their major label debut album ''I Wish We All Could Win''. In 2002 they released a live concert DVD filmed at a local
Dallas
Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
club called The Door.
The band changed its name after discovering that another "Blisse" already existed. Settling on "The Afters", they continued to play local clubs in the Dallas area. They were eventually discovered by
INO Records
Ino or INO may refer to:
Arts and music
*I-No, a character in the ''Guilty Gear'' series of video games
*Ino (Greek mythology), a queen of Thebes in Greek mythology
* INO Records, an American Christian music label
*Ino Yamanaka, a character in t ...
and signed to a four-record deal. After this, word of the band got to
Epic Records
Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America
Sony Corporation of America (SONAM, also known as SCA), is the American arm of the Japanese conglomerate Sony Group ...
, who signed the band to a deal for mainstream promotion and distribution. Their first major label album, ''
I Wish We All Could Win
''I Wish We All Could Win'' is the debut album from the Christian rock band The Afters. The album contains their Dove Award-nominated hit single " Beautiful Love". The album is notable for having two tracks on it used as theme songs. The aforem ...
'', was released on February 22, 2005. The first single from the album was "
Beautiful Love", written by Josh Havens about a time when his wife was abroad doing humanitarian aid. The single's music video led The Afters to a 2005 MTVu "Streaming Woodie" award. In addition, "Beautiful Love" became the theme song for the MTV show, ''
8th and Ocean'' about the life of female and male fashion models living in Miami, Florida. The song was also featured in the 2006 film, ''
Just My Luck''. The song "Until the World" was the theme song for the American drama television series that aired on the ABC Family Network ''
Beautiful People''.
![TheAfters2011GreenBay](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/97/TheAfters2011GreenBay.jpg)
In an update posted on their official website, the band went into the studio in August 2006 to start recording their second album, ''
Never Going Back to OK
''Never Going Back to OK'' is the second album by Christian rock group The Afters, released on February 26, 2008.
The first single from the album is the title track, "Never Going Back to OK". The track has been released as a streaming file on ...
''. It was originally scheduled to be released on December 26, 2007, as per a post on their
MySpace blog, but was ultimately delayed and released on February 26, 2008.
The first single from the album, the title track "Never Going Back to OK" was premiered on October 16, 2007, on
Total Axxess Total Axxess was a contemporary Christian music radio program. The afternoon show was broadcast nationwide on WAY-FM Network and other affiliated Contemporary Christian music radio stations. The program was based out of Nashville, Tennessee. The s ...
. It was also released as a streaming file on The Afters' MySpace page on November 10, 2007. The song hit the
R&R magazine
''R&R'' (also known as the "new" '' Radio & Records'') was a weekly music trade publication that followed the radio industry and tracked the monitoring of current songs by format, station and audience cumes. The magazine was a sister publication ...
charts in December 2007. It reached No. 1 on the
R&R CHR chart in March 2008 and R&R magazine ranked it as the most played song on U.S. Christian CHR radio in 2008.
In spring of 2008, the band began their own headlining tour along with
Falling Up,
Ruth
Ruth (or its variants) may refer to:
Places
France
* Château de Ruthie, castle in the commune of Aussurucq in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques département of France
Switzerland
* Ruth, a hamlet in Cologny
United States
* Ruth, Alabama
* Ruth, Ar ...
, and
Everyday Sunday
Everyday Sunday was an American Christian rock band from Columbus, Ohio with the founding member Trey Pearson as lead singer. The band released two albums on Flicker Records including '' Stand Up'' and '' Anthems for the Imperfect''. ''Wake Up! ...
.
![The Afters with Kyle Sherman](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/14/The_Afters_with_Kyle_Sherman.jpg)
The Afters stated in their Twitter account that they started recording their next album on October 27, 2009. The album, called ''
Light Up the Sky'', was released on September 14, 2010. The album's first single, the title track, has reached No. 1 on Billboard's
Christian CHR
Christian contemporary hit radio (sometimes abbreviated as Christian CHR) is a radio format that is common in the United States and Australia focusing on playing current and recent music as determined by the contemporary Christian music Top 40
I ...
radio, and also received an appearance on MTV's ''
The Hills''.
In January 2011 The Afters joined the Rock And Worship Roadshow national tour headlined by
MercyMe
MercyMe is an American contemporary Christian music band founded in Edmond, Oklahoma. The band consists of lead vocalist Bart Millard, percussionist Robby Shaffer, bassist Nathan Cochran and guitarists Michael Scheuchzer and Barry Graul.
The b ...
. Light Up the Sky was produced by
Dan Muckala
Daniel John Muckala Work ID No. 881409494 ISWC No. T9052468594 is an American songwriter and producer.
Born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, Muckala was a musical composition student at Belmont University in Tennessee.
Awards (selec ...
.
The Afters announced a new album to be released on April 17, 2012. A month later, they released a new single entitled "Life is Beautiful" on iTunes, in which the song was part of the soundtrack for the movie ''
October Baby''. On February 19, 2013, a new single, "
Every Good Thing", became available on iTunes. The new album's title was ''
Life is Beautiful
''Life Is Beautiful'' ( it, La vita è bella, ) is a 1997 Italian comedy drama film directed by and starring Roberto Benigni, who co-wrote the film with Vincenzo Cerami. Benigni plays Guido Orefice, a Jewish Italian bookshop owner, who emplo ...
''.
On August 28, 2015, the band released "Live on Forever", the lead single
from ''
Live on Forever
'' Live on Forever ''is the fifth studio album by American rock band The Afters
The Afters is an American Christian pop rock band founded by Joshua Havens and Matt Fuqua. Havens and Fuqua first worked together in a Starbucks coffee shop in M ...
'', their fifth studio album set for release in late 2016 on
Fair Trade Records.
In 2018, "Well Done" appeared on the ''Billboard'' 100, followed by "I Will Fear No More" on October 19, 2018. Both songs were advanced releases for ''The Beginning & Everything After'', their greatest hits album released on November 2, 2018, and for ''Fear No More'', their sixth studio album released on May 31, 2019.
On December 3, 2021, the band released their first live album, ''Where Heaven Touches Earth: Live at The Grove'' which was recorded in Arizona.
Band members
Current members
: Joshua Havens - lead vocals, keys and guitars
: Matt Fuqua - vocals and guitars
: Dan Ostebo - bass guitar
Former members
: Brad Wigg - guitars, bass guitar and vocals
: Michael Burden - drums
: Marc Dodd - drums
: Niko Red Star - bass guitar
:
Jordan Mohilowski
Jordan Nicolas Mohilowski is an American songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist, based in Nashville, Tennessee. He is the drummer for the Contemporary Christian Music band The Afters as well as a songwriter and producer. He is currentl ...
- drums
Discography
Studio albums
Compilation albums
Independent albums
* ''When the World Is Wonderful'' (2001) (as Blisse)
Live albums and DVDs
* ''Live @ the Door'' (2002) (as Blisse)
* ''Where Heaven Touches Earth: Live at The Grove'' (2021)
EPs
* ''
Never Going Back to OK - EP'' (2008)
Singles
Awards and nominations
GMA Dove Awards
Notes
References
External links
*
The Afters - I Wish We All Could Win
{{DEFAULTSORT:Afters, The
Christian rock groups from Texas
Columbia Records artists
Musical groups from Dallas
Fair Trade Services artists
Musical groups established in 1999
1999 establishments in Texas