Singer, songwriter and producer Natalie Layne desires to radiate joy through her original music. With a master’s in commercial piano, Layne won Belmont’s Christian Showcase at her alma mater in 2019, leading her to sign
an exclusive recording and publishing contract with Centricity Music. Prior to landing a record deal, Layne charted a successful path as an independent artist for six years during which she cultivated an impressive social
following simply by inviting listeners into her songwriting process online.

Moreover, she studied under GRAMMY® award-winning songwriter and producer Bernie Herms (Natalie Grant, Josh Groban, Barbra Streisand) through an apprenticeship that allowed her to shadow him for a semester.
She’s sung background vocals for Natalie Grant on the Dove Awards stage and also lent BGVs to labelmate Jason Gray’s upcoming album. Additionally, she’s opened shows for Jeremy Camp, Chris Tomlin and We The
Kingdom, among others, as well as headlined full band sets at Bonnaroo — twice. Leading worship since she was 12 under the mentorship of respected worship pastors such as Cory Asbury, Jon Egan and Jared Anderson,
the Colorado Springs native now resides in Nashville where she continues to lead worship at her local church. Her introductory EP, Amen, builds on her growing momentum, serving up six original songs — all co-penned
by Layne.

For singer-songwriter Luke Bower, music began as a closely held secret. Growing up in South Texas, his father a doctor and his mother a lawyer, Bower believed pursuing a successful career should be his priority. Since becoming a full-time musician seemed like a longshot, he decided music would be his own private thing. “No one really knew I was into music, even though I wrote my first song when I was five years old,” Bower says. “Growing up, I’d practice and write songs in secret, just me and God.”

After high school, Bower enrolled at Baylor University to study finance. But his dream of being a musician was always at the front of his mind. “In the fall of 2021, I knew I was letting my dream get away. I said, ‘God, if you let me do music, I’ll do it for You.’” The next morning, Bower woke up to a text from a talent scout who’d found a YouTube video Bower had posted. “It was an audition video for a songwriting program. I thought I’d posted it as a private video, but I guess it wasn’t.” When Bower got on a call with the scout, the conversation was providential. “He told me he thought I should be a Christian artist, went into detail about my life, things he shouldn’t have known. I thought maybe it was a scam,” Bower jokes.

That first call led to a trip to Nashville where he met with Jason Davis, who would later become his manager. Once paperwork came into the equation, Bower knew he had to come clean to his family. “I was really surprised by their excitement once they knew,” Bower says. “All that pressure – I realized I’d been putting it on myself. The judgement I was so afraid I would face was all coming from me. My family couldn’t have been more supportive.”

With his family behind him, Bower left Baylor and moved back home to work on his songwriting. But being home without his friends, without his brothers (he’s a triplet), left him feeling alone and isolated. “I was by myself every day working on songs. Loneliness led me to start second-guessing myself, start believing I’d thrown my life in the trash. One night, I was in my room, lower than I’d ever been. I was hopeless and fed up with not achieving what I wanted to do and what I felt like I should do. But God really revealed himself to me that night. I prayed and said, ‘I can’t save myself. Only You can. Please save me.’ At that exact moment, there was a knock on my door. It was my dad, at 2am, asking me to go on a walk. In that moment, I saw how God is there and actually cares about me. He saved me.”

Since that dark moment, Bower’s been on a journey of fully trusting in God. He’s chosen to ignore the nagging inner-critic and do what he’s been called to do. “Considering my musical background, I shouldn’t be at a record label right now. It doesn’t make sense. I know God wants me here.”

While he works on creating his debut project with FairTrade Services, Bower’s built a healthy following on TikTok where he posts original songs and mini-messages about God’s unfailing love. His rootsy, folk-leaning storyteller style is connecting, his audience growing larger every day. With a raw, captivating voice and a natural charisma that draws the listener in, Bower’s soul-deep songs evoke an emotional catharsis earned through his years of writing songs in secret. Teaching himself songwriting by writing songs that were only ever meant for God shaped Bower into a door-flung-open truth-teller, his lyrics crafted specifically for the everyman.

At twenty, Luke Bower still has far to go, but isn’t intimidated by the days ahead. Instead, he’s living in the moment, happily sharing the things God’s given him. “I want my music to be different and raw, music that can touch the heart. I just want to make stuff that can resonate with souls.”

MacKenzie is a new artist with Gotee Records. https://www.gotee.com/artists#mackenzie-phillips