A touring legend and Christian radio hit-maker, NewSong is a Dove Award winner and GRAMMY nominee. The group has garnered 20 No. 1 singles, seven Dove Award nominations, numerous songwriting awards, and five of the Top 100 Christian radio singles of the past decade.

In 1994, they launched the first-of-its-kind “Winter Jam” concert series – multi-artist, ticket-less concerts that give thousands the opportunity not only to hear incredible music but to also hear the gospel message. Over 275,000 fans attended the 33 dates of the 2007 Winter Jam Tour Spectacular. Of the quarter of a million fans over 38,000 people made decisions for Christ and over 4,700 orphans were sponsored through Holt International’s (www.holtintl.org) Children’s Services “Waiting Child Program,” a monthly sponsorship program that brings sustaining hope and support to orphaned, abandoned or vulnerable children awaiting full-time adoptions.

NewSong has hosted some of Christian music’s all time greats on past Winter Jam Spectaculars, including the Steven Curtis Chapman, Newsboys, tobyMac, Jeremy Camp, Audio Adrenaline, Relient K, Tait & Sonic Flood and helped break such new artists as Todd Agnew, Building 429, Matthew West, and Hawk Nelson.

Their holiday anthem, “The Christmas Shoes,” became a #1 mainstream radio hit and inspired a New York Times-bestselling book by Donna VanLiere and CBS Movie of the Week. The album of the same name was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Pop/Contemporary Gospel Album in 2003.

The Christmas Hope, the third book in the Christmas series written by Donna VanLiere, inspired the new NewSong album and its title track. Produced by Bernie Herms for SoulFuel Productions (Natalie Grant, Nate Sallie, Avalon) and additional tracks produced by NewSong members Drew Cline, Matt Butler, Rico Thomas and former member Michael O’Brien, The Christmas Hope features 13 tracks, including six original Christmas songs and a remake of “The Christmas Shoes.” Both the classic holiday songs and treasured sacred carols on The Christmas Hope showcase NewSong’s trademark powerhouse vocals along with lush string and jazz arrangements and several guest artists and musicians.

The Christmas Hope’s opening anthem, “The Song of Christmas,” “Bethlehem Calls,” and the timeless “What a Wonderful World” are all embellished with the talents of The Nashville String Machine. Other noteworthy contributions on the Christmas album include Matthew West, who co-wrote the album’s title track with Carswell; a duet with Rachel Lampa on “The Christmas Blessing” (which also features the Prague Orchestra); and Anointed, who provides guest vocals for the sacred spiritual “Jesus What a Wonderful Child.”