On Friday, Oct. 21 at 7:30 p.m., Oklahoma Christian University will host Chris Renzema and Jervis Campbell for their annual fall concert in the forum. The duo previously worked together to produce an acoustic version of Campbell’s most popular song, Teach Me to Dance.
Sophomore Caylea Smith has seen Renzema in concert before and said she is excited to see him again.
“He has good energy and can play a lot of different sounds. He can go really soft, but he can also jam out so there’s a lot of variety,” Smith said, “It’s gonna be a good time and everybody should go.”
Kim Northcott, an event coordinator at Oklahoma Christian, said the process of choosing Renzema was “easy.”
“We contacted an agent and asked for artist recommendations within our price range which would be appropriate for a Christian campus,” Northcott said, “When he mentioned Chris, I asked several students and they knew who he was and thought it would be a good fit.”
Renzema’s music label, Centricity Music, describes him as “immediately warm and friendly, at ease in himself in a quiet way. Many artists have to work at giving off the same affable vibe, Renzema comes by it honest.”
In high school, Renzema taught himself to play guitar and write songs. His professional career began when he had the opportunity to record with a label in his hometown, Grand Rapids, Michigan. After a feature in Worship Leader Magazine showcased his debut EP, he produced his first full album, I’ll Be the Branches, in 2018.
Renzema now holds 646,846 monthly listeners on Spotify, with “fans flocking to his unwavering authenticity.” His top song on Spotify with 26,000,666 streams is “Springtime” from his 2020 album Let the Ground Rest.
“Renzema’s songs are acoustic at heart, shifting seamlessly from indie rock to folk worship to Americana; gritty but accessible,” Centricity wrote, “Profound but infinitely listenable with a voice that yearns like a desert island man singing for a cup of water. It’s bone deep, an echoing of the universality of pain and praise.”
Renzema collaborated with Ellie Holcomb on his 2021 album Get Out of the Way of Your Own Heart to produce the song “Just As Good.”
North Carolina native and Renzema’s opener, Campbell, “started writing songs as a kid and hasn’t stopped yet,” his website writes. He has 581,324 monthly listeners on Spotify with his top song, “Teach Me to Dance,” peaking at 10,494,654 streams.
After graduating from the University of North Carolina with a degree from Kenan-Flagler Business School, Campbell moved to Nashville to pursue “his passion for music.” In Nashville he met his wife, Nancy Daines, who is also a musician . The two now share a love of music and Jesus as they tour and create music together.
Campbell’s songs are prayers turned to music. He hopes his work will help his audience through life like it has helped him.
“Jervis’s songs combine both the southern rock and gospel music of his upbringing with a modern R&B pop sound,” Hayley Lundberg wrote.
Northcott would love to do a concert each fall and said the events center is open to suggestions as to who they should bring in next year.
The concert is free to all students. Students can pick up a ticket in the Events Office with their student IDs. Members of the community can purchase tickets here. The concert will take place in the forum. Dessert trucks will be paid for by the Student Government Association for the first 400 students.
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