“Many of us are currently facing an immediate, dire need for God to come through in a big way,” says McClarney. “The truth: God has not forgotten you, He is closer than you could ever imagine, He is still the same today as yesterday, and His ultimate goal is ‘that you might have life, and life abundantly.’”

A worshipper dedicated to drawing the eyes, hearts and minds of the church toward its heavenly Father, McClarney’s music drew acclaim after his Introducing Chris McClarney 6-song EP released in January. Sparking a Top 10 iTunes hit, the EP prepared the way for McClarney’s Defender, featuring 16-tracks and nearly 70-minutes of music, including the current radio single and McClarney penned song that the Jesus Culture movement popularized, “Your Love Never Fails.” The song is sung weekly in church services and concert settings worldwide, and is a ‘simple song of gratitude’ and a powerful message of God’s unwavering faithfulness.

“That whole Job story is often misunderstood,” McClarney shares in relation to the song and just a few short days after flood waters ravaged thousands of homes in Nashville. “God didn’t do bad things to Job. All the horrible things: floods, Katrina, earthquakes, economic fallout, oil spills... God has not forgotten us. He’s not mad at us. He’s got great plans for us. His love and grace are endless.”

Produced by John Hartley (Matt Redman, Rebecca St. James, Miriam Webster), engineered and mixed by Derri Daugherty (The Choir, Jeremy Camp, Leeland), Defender’s title track was inspired by a difficult ‘he-said-she-said’ situation that sent McClarney to the Bible, looking for answers. He landed in the story of Jehosophat. “He’s surrounded in battle,” McClarney says, “and he puts the singers at the front of the army, the marching band – of all people! – which would’ve been completely ridiculous in real life, but God wanted it that way. And God fought that battle for them. He was their Defender, just as He is ours.”

“The song says, ‘We don’t know what to do, but our eyes are fixed on You.’ There’s just something about saying ‘God is our defense.’ When we say, ‘The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run into it and are saved,’ it takes a lot of pressure off. We need to say it, to proclaim the truth of who God is, not just because we need to hear it, but because times are tough and because God’s promises are real.”

The full Defender track listing follows:

1) Your Love Never Fails
2) Still Saving Me
3) Who Is This Love Amazing
4) Defender
5) Immortal Invisible
6) Who Is This Love Amazing (reprise)
7) Across The Universe
8) Your Love Is Everything
9) Waste It All
10) Celebrate The Beauty
11) Shine (We Wait)
12) Blessed Assurance
13) In Your Presence
14) God Of Our Yesterdays
15) Rescuer

The authentic, bluesy-voiced modern worship of Chris McClarney continues to gather acclaim as this unassuming lead worshipper’s music travels to the far reaches of Christian church worldwide. An “overnight” sensation after having led worship for 15-years, McClarney has spent the last six years at Grace Center church (www.gracecenter.us) in Franklin, TN. He resides in nearby Nashville, TN with his wife Jasmine, and two young daughters.

For more information on Chris McClarney, visit www.chrismcclarney.com or www.kingsway.co.uk.

About Kingsway Music:
Tracing its music heritage to 1969, Kingsway today is known as a leader in Worship Music. As the creator of Thank You Music, and later in partnership with EMI, its catalogue includes songs such as “Here I Am to Worship,” “In Christ Alone,” “Everlasting God” and “Blessed Be Your Name” to name a few.

Kingsway’s songs are sung in more than 300,000 churches worldwide accounting for over 30% of CCLI’s (Church Copyright Licensing International) bestseller list. With writers and artists like Tim Hughes, Matt Redman, Delirious?, Graham Kendrick and Stuart Townend, Kingsway is dedicated to feeding the Church with songs that will change the world. As the music arm of David C Cook, a non-profit organization located in Colorado Springs, CO, a significant portion of the profits that Kingsway and David C Cook generate are used to provide discipleship and music materials free of charge to church leaders in developing parts of the world who wouldn’t be able to get them any other way.