Brandon Lake and Phil Wickham Say They Tour for Spiritual Impact, Not Mere Entertainment
- Michael Foust Crosswalk Headlines Contributor
- Published Oct 23, 2024
The two artists who headlined one of the biggest Christian concert tours of the last two years say they aim to entertain, but more importantly, to transform lives with the gospel. Brandon Lake and Phil Wickham traveled the country in 2023 and 2024 as part of their Summer Worship Nights Tour, featuring their award-winning music and their testimonies about Christ's power. Fans who missed the tour or want to relive it can do so in theaters from Oct. 27-29 with the tour documentary For the One, featuring highlights and the stories behind the music.
"I often say it's more than entertainment," Lake told Crosswalk Headlines.
"[Of course,] we want people to be entertained if they're sacrificing a lot for a ticket and taking time off, maybe from work, or going to work the next day, maybe tired -- but we really want people to have an encounter. That's what it's all about."
The tour's message is "for the one who's far from God, or who needs a breakthrough, who needs to encounter this living God that loves them so much."
"That's really what this is all about," Lake said. "Yes, we want them to be entertained, but we want them to walk out better than they came in."
Wickham recounted a tour story in which a "row of security guards, up in the balcony," raised their hands, acknowledging they wanted to accept Christ.
"I was so proud of our concertgoers -- the people that came to hang out with us," Wickham said. The fans around the security guards "flooded them" with hugs and encouragement. Such stories, though, are not "unique to that one night," Wickham said.
"There's a real spirit of family and community" on the tour, he said.
Just as the tour impacted lives, Wickham hopes the movie does the same.
"I hope people in the church see it and get really encouraged by God on the move throughout the country, in the world, and in people's lives. We're all in it together, one big church, just taking ground for Jesus," Wickham said. "We hope that people get saved through this documentary or recommit their lives to Jesus."
The film, Wickham added, shouts a "message to the world that the church is alive."
For the One was directed by Noah Taher, produced by Ken Carpenter (The Shift), and executive produced by Ben Howard (Blue Miracle, The Long Game).
WATCH: Brandon Lake & Phil Wickham Present: FOR THE ONE (Trailer) | Summer Worship Nights
Photo Credit: ©Facebook/Phil Wickham
Michael Foust has covered the intersection of faith and news for 20 years. His stories have appeared in Baptist Press, Christianity Today, The Christian Post, the Leaf-Chronicle, the Toronto Star and the Knoxville News-Sentinel.
