Hope in Front of Me

Hope in Front of Me is the second studio album from the Christian musician Danny Gokey. It was released on June 23, 2014 by BMG Records. The album was produced by Josh Crosby, Bernie Herms, Aaron Sprinkle, Keith Thomas.

Hope in Front of Me
Studio album by
Danny Gokey
ReleasedJune 23, 2014 (2014-06-23)
GenreBlue-eyed soul, Christian pop
Length41:47
LabelBMG
ProducerJosh Crosby, Bernie Herms, Aaron Sprinkle, Keith Thomas
Danny Gokey chronology
My Best Days
(2010)		 Hope in Front of Me
(2014)		 Christmas Is Here
(2015)
Singles from Hope in Front of Me
  1. "Hope in Front of Me"
    Released: January 24, 2014
  2. "More Than You Think I Am"
    Released: January 9, 2015
  3. "Tell Your Heart to Beat Again"
    Released: January 8, 2016

The lead single from the album is "Hope in Front of Me", released on February 18, 2014. In August, it peaked at No. 4 on the Hot Christian Songs chart, No. 1 on the Christian Airplay chart (lasted 3 weeks) and No. 27 on the Adult Contemporary chart of Billboard. "More Than You Think I Am" and "Tell Your Heart to Beat Again" were subsequently released as singles, both placing in the top 20 on the Christian Songs chart and with the latter earning Gokey's highest chart peak to date (No. 2).

Background

Gokey rose to national attention when he competed on American Idol, where he advanced to the final three before being eliminated.[1] Shortly before competing, his wife died unexpectedly.[2] After his Idol appearance, he released the country music album My Best Days. Hope In Front of Me, his second album, is his first one in the Christian music market. The album was produced by Josh Crosby, Bernie Herms, Aaron Sprinkle and Keith Thomas.[3]

Music and lyrics

Gokey co-wrote nine of the eleven songs and his lyric has been referred to as being akin to Phil Collins.[4] The music is similar to the likes of Mark Schultz, Jonathan Thulin, Phil Stacey and Colton Dixon,[5][6] and is in the vein of blue-eyed soul and dance-pop,[5][7] with some elements of praise & worship.[5] It also features "a country-pop sound that showcases his vocal range and tone".[8]

Singles

The lead single from the release is "Hope in Front of Me". On January 23, its official lyric video was released and the next day it was released to Christian radio airwaves. The single was available on digital retailers on February 18. As of the charting week of June 21, it charted on various Billboard Christian genre charts, including a Hot Christian Songs placement at No. 14.[9] On June 24, its official music video was premiered during special live stream concert celebrating album release at Gokey's official website and right after released at Gokey's YouTube channel. In late August, it reached No. 1 on Billboard Christian Airplay chart.[10] It also topped Billboard Christian AC Songs chart for the week ending of September 20.[11]

The second single, "More Than You Think I Am" had its official lyric video released on December 5, and officially released to Christian radio airwaves on January 9, 2015.[12] It peaked at No. 6 on the Billboard Christian Airplay chart[13] in July.

"Tell Your Heart to Beat Again" was released on January 8, 2016 as the album's third and final single.[14] An extended play featuring five versions of the song was released in May 2016.[15] The song reached number 2 on the Hot Christian Songs, earning Gokey his highest-charting single to date, and was his second chart-topper on Christian Airplay.

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
365 Days of Inspiring Media[5]
Alpha Omega NewsA-[16]
CCM Magazine[8]
Christian Music Review4.8/5[4]
Cross Rhythms[17]
Jesus Wired[6]
New Release Tuesday[18]

Hope in Front of Me was met with a generally positive reception from critics. Grace S. Aspinwall of CCM Magazine rated the album four stars out of five, commenting how "Gokey shines on his second full-length album".[8] At New Release Tuesday, Caitlin Elizabeth Lassiter rated the album four-and-a-half stars out of five, noting the lyricism for being "well written and thought provoking" and the vocals are "strong and impressive" on a "solid project" that's "a very enjoyable listen."[18] Piet Levy of Milwaukee Journal Sentinel gave a moderately positive review of the album remarking how Gokey "does get sappy" and said while "if you wanted to be mean, you could call him 'Hokey Gokey' and you wouldn't exactly be off-base", yet "there's no denying Gokey's comfort level with this kind of material".[7] Levy opined in reference to Gokey's previous, country-themed album that Gokey as a country artist was a concept destined to fail, "But five years later on 'Hope in Front of Me,' he's finally returning to the inspirational blue-eyed soul style that took him to third place. It's the album he should have made all along."[7]

At Christian Music Review, Amanda Brogan rated the album a 4.8 out of five, indicating how the release "has a beautifully optimistic tone throughout."[4] Rob Snyder of Alpha Omega News graded the album an A-, saying that "A couple of the tracks have an interesting retro-70s sound."[16] At 365 Days of Inspiring Media, Jonathan Andre rated the album four out of five stars, calling it "a poignant, powerful and prolific album".[5] Jessica Morris of Jesus Wired rated the album seven-and-a-half stars out of ten, highlighting how "the powerful vocalist delivers a solid and encouraging album in this highly anticipated release."[6] Indicating in an eight out of ten review from Cross Rhythms, Tony Cummings recognizes, "Maybe Danny covers too many musical bases for some people's tastes but there's no doubting that he is a fine singer and possibly could even crossover to the pop scene with the right song."[17] Felicia Abraham, reviewing the album at Charisma, writes, "Known for his soulful sound, Gokey pushes his vocal boundaries and collaborates with an impressive group of singers and producers [on Hope in Front of Me]".[19]

Track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Hope in Front of Me"Danny Gokey, Bernie Herms, Brett James3:37
2."More Than You Think I Am"Gokey, Herms, Tim Nichols4:04
3."Tell Your Heart to Beat Again"Herms, Randy Phillips, Matthew West3:53
4."Better Than Gold"Gokey, Herms, Drew Ramsey4:17
5."One Life"Gokey, Marcus Hummon, Keith Thomas3:36
6."This Is What It Means"Gokey, Stephanie Lewis, Thomas4:15
7."Love Will Take You Places"Gokey, Blake Bollinger, Ben Stennis3:36
8."Take It to the Limit"Gokey, Josh Crosby, Aaron Sprinkle3:44
9."Pretty Beautiful"Ben Caver, Megan Connor, Brian White3:07
10."Because of You"Gokey, Jeff Pardo, Molly Reed3:17
11."It's Not Over"Gokey, Lewis, Thomas4:21
Total length:41:47

Chart performance

The album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Christian Albums chart, which makes this Gokey's first chart-topper. It also debuted at No. 40 on the Billboard 200.[20] It sold 7,000 copies in the US in its debut week.

Weekly charts
Chart (2014) Peak
position
US Billboard 200[21] 40
US Christian Albums (Billboard)[22] 1
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[23] 10

Year-end charts
Chart (2015) Peak
position
US Christian Albums (Billboard)[24] 43
Chart (2016) Peak
position
US Christian Albums (Billboard)[25] 25
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[26] 31

References
  1. Cuprisin, Tim (May 13, 2009). "'Idol' road ends for Milwaukee's Danny Gokey". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Journal Communications. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
  2. "Milwaukee man says he's prepared to give his all to make 'Idol' finals" by Tim Cuprisin, Feb. 13, 2009, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
  3. "Hope in Front of Me – Danny Gokey | Credits". AllMusic. All Music Guide. Retrieved June 25, 2014.
  4. Brogan, Amanda (June 24, 2014). "Danny Gokey 'Hope In Front Of Me'". Christian Music Review. Retrieved June 25, 2014.
  5. Andre, Jonathan (June 25, 2014). "Danny Gokey – Hope In Front of Me". 365 Days of Inspiring Media. Retrieved June 25, 2014.
  6. Morris, Jessica (June 24, 2014). "Danny Gokey Makes His Mark With New 'Hope In Front Of Me' Album". Jesus Wired. Retrieved June 25, 2014.
  7. Levy, Piet (June 17, 2014). "CD Reviews: Lana Del Rey; Jennifer Lopez; Willie Nelson; Sam Smith; Danny Gokey; the Felice Brothers". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved June 25, 2014.
  8. Aspinwall, Grace S. (July 1, 2014). "Danny Gokey: Hope In Front Of Me (Danny Gokey/BMG Rights Management)" (PDF). CCM Magazine. Salem Publishing. p. 36. ISSN 1524-7848. Retrieved June 27, 2014.
  9. Billboard.biz (June 21, 2014). "Hot Christian Songs : June 21, 2014". Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved June 25, 2014.
  10. "Chart Highlights: Sam Smith's 'Stay' Hits No. 1 On Pop Songs". Billboard.com. 2014-08-18. Retrieved 2015-05-16.
  11. "2015 Billboard Music Awards". Billboard.com. Retrieved 2015-05-16.
  12. "Danny Gokey – More Than You Think I Am (album version)". PlayMPE. Retrieved November 17, 2016.
  13. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2016-01-27. Retrieved 2015-11-17.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  14. "Danny Gokey – Tell Your Heart to Beat Again (album version)". Play MPE. Retrieved November 12, 2016.
  15. "Amazon.com: Tell Your Heart to Beat Again – EP: Danny Gokey: MP3 Downloads". Amazon Music. Amazon.com. Retrieved November 12, 2016.
  16. Snyder, Rob (June 15, 2014). "Danny Gokey – "Hope in Front of Me"". Alpha Omega News. Archived from the original on 2014-10-08. Retrieved June 25, 2014.
  17. Cummings, Tony (August 5, 2015). "Review: Hope in Front of Me – Danny Gokey". Cross Rhythms. Retrieved August 7, 2015.
  18. Lassiter, Caitlin Elizabeth (June 12, 2014). "Hope On Display". New Release Tuesday. Retrieved June 25, 2014.
  19. Abraham, Felicia (June 1, 2014). Yoars, Marcus (ed.). "Music: Hope in Front of Me – Danny Gokey (BMG)". Charisma. Vol. 39 no. 11. Lake Mary, Florida: Stephen Strang and Joy Strang. p. 64. ISSN 0895-156X. Retrieved March 17, 2016.
  20. Fred Bronson (July 4, 2014). "'American Idol' on the Charts: New Album 'Hope' Brings Danny Gokey First Billboard No. 1". The Hollywood Reporter.
  21. "Danny Gokey Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard.
  22. "Danny Gokey Chart History (Christian Albums)". Billboard.
  23. "Danny Gokey Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard.
  24. "Christian Albums: Year End 2015". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved November 10, 2016.
  25. "Christian Albums: Year End 2016". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved December 9, 2016.
  26. "Independent Albums : Year End 2016". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved December 9, 2016.
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