Sanctus Real's Matt Hammitt Announces Departure From Band

Band to Launch "Farewell To A Friend Tour" 
and Release Greatest Hits Project This Fall 

Nashville, Tenn. (July 1, 2015) - After a 20 year history together, GRAMMY nominations, Dove Awards, seven albums and six No. 1 singles, Matt Hammitt, the lead singer of Sanctus Real, has announced he will be leaving the band this December. Both Matt and his fellow band members have taken time to draft personal statements so that their fans can hear from them first hand and in their own words.

The band has announced their “Farewell To A Friend” tour this fall, which will be Hammitt’s final tour with the band. Sparrow Records will release a Greatest Hits project from Sanctus Real this October, featuring the band’s top hits over their 20 year career and a new single, which will release in the fall as well.

Matt Hammitt (read statement in full here): 
There isn't nearly enough space to recount or describe what I've experienced with my friends in Sanctus Real over the past twenty years. I'm so grateful for what God has allowed a few guys from Toledo, Ohio to experience together. I don't take it lightly, the ability that songs have to impact the hearts and lives of those who hear them. Experiencing this God-given mystery with my friends in the band has been one of the greatest joys of my life.

I want to thank my band mates, current and former, but especially Mark and Chris for allowing me to share in this incredible season of life with them. And of course, to our families, you are the backbone God has blessed us with. Thank you for holding down the fort. I love and appreciate you.

Over the past few months, I've felt the Lord calling me into a new mission field, into a new season of life. If you want to hear the intricate details about my decision to leave Sanctus Real, I've discussed it at length in the first two episodes of my new podcast "The Lead Me Lifecast." I open each episode by saying that, "I've been traveling far and wide singing the song 'Lead Me', but now I want to sing it less and live it more." I mean that genuinely, with all of my heart. I've always struggled to reconcile my life on the road away from Sarah and the kids, but after all these years I'm now confident that my calling is to be at home more, consistently making God and family my ultimate priority. My primary gifting as a communicator is simply sharing my life and heart with people, and they're going to get the best of that.

Your support has meant so much to me, and I'm inviting you to join my mission moving forward  - click here to read more about this decision and how you can join me.

- Matt


Chris Rohman also wanted to share thoughts on behalf of he and the rest of the band on Matt's departure and the future of Sanctus Real (read statement in full here);
Many incredible people have given their talents to this band and without their support and sacrifice we would never have made it out of my parent’s basement, out of Ohio, or maybe more importantly to me, out of my own head. You see to have a dream requires a belief that you can achieve something bigger than anything you could hope for by yourself. And for Mark and I we could have never had this dream of Sanctus Real without Matt. We were three wide-eyed kids with hopes of blazing a trail and reaching people with the Gospel when we signed a record deal fourteen years ago. And now we’re three men blessed to see the impact all these years of writing songs and traveling the country have made. We’re husbands and fathers with a responsibility to sow into our families the same love and faith that caused us to come together as a band of believers in the first place. 

It is with this responsibility in mind that Matt first came to us distressed by the balance of life lived out on the road and a life being played out at home while being gone. For each of us this balance has been a delicate lesson to learn over years of touring and countless goodbyes to our loved ones. Add to this the fact that Matt and his wife Sarah have a son with congenital heart disease and the balance can become nearly impossible. 

So you can imagine after almost 20 years of experiencing God move within our tight-knit little world how difficult it might be to watch one of us being called out of it. And after many deep conversations, though I know this conclusion did not come easy, all of us as brothers feel it is the right decision for Matt and his family. 

As for the rest of the band… This is a time for us to ask you to pray for us. We have a passion to use the platform of Sanctus Real to write new music that will continue to influence not just the church world, but reach well beyond anything we could imagine and offer hope to the lost and weary wherever they are. Some may say it’s just music. But to me it couldn’t be anything more. Music filled with the Holy Spirit speaks to my soul, it’s what moves me and it’s a gift God uses to bring incredible life-change to those that hear it. 

- Chris

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Six-Time GRAMMY® Winner TobyMac Announces THIS IS NOT A TEST ALBUM and TOUR

Six-Time GRAMMY® Winner TobyMac Announces 

THIS IS NOT A TEST ALBUM and TOUR  

iTunes® Pre-Order Launches Today With Two Advance Songs

Tour to Excite 36 Cities this Fall

Nashville, Tenn. (June 9, 2015) — With an accumulation of over 11 million units in career sales, six-time GRAMMY® winner TobyMac has announced the release of his sixth studio project, THIS IS NOT A TEST.   Produced by TobyMac, David Garcia and Chris Stephens, the 11 track project is the follow up to his No. 1 Billboard debut, Eye On It, and is available for pre-order on iTunes® today, June 9, with a worldwide street date of August 7.  To pre-order the album and receive two advance song downloads, click here.

The title of the album comes as a reminder to “make every moment count, and make every second count,” explains TobyMac.  “I started collecting concepts as soon as I turned in the last record three years ago, and started working on this album a year and a half ago. The concepts are all based on my life experiences.”  An album that he feels reflects important themes like loving each other well and the richness of diversity.

THIS IS NOT A TEST finds the American Music Award winner collaborating with a diverse group of artists, including for the first time in a decade, his dcTalk bandmates Kevin Max and Michael Tait, and newer artist like Capital Kings, Ryan Stevenson and Hollyn.  The song “Undeniable” adds the vocal stylings of young students from New Hope Academy.  A long-time supporter of the non-profit school based in Franklin, Tenn., New Hope Academy brings together socio-economic status and races, and provides scholarships to low-income families for high-quality education.  “Collaborating allows us to appreciate our differences and makes us more receptive to each other,” explains the artist and record label founder (Gotee).  “ I’m honored to collaborate with my songwriters, produce with my co-producers and I am honored to take the stage with my band. There  is a richness to what humans do when they come together and collaborate.”  The track listing for the new album debuted last week with the help of his three million social media followers. 

TobyMac’s first single from THIS IS NOT A TEST,  “Beyond Me” received 80 adds its first week out, and hit no. 1 at CHR.  He performed the track on NBC.com’s Beyond A.D. Digital Talk Show hosted by E! News co-host Jason Kennedy last month. 

THIS IS NOT A TEST will be available as a deluxe version and will have four extra tracks, two new songs and two remixes, including "Lift You Up," "Fall,"  “Beyond Me (PHENOMENON Remix by Soul Glow Activatur) and “Like A Match (Garcia Remix)."  

The Billboard Music Award winner will be bringing his dynamic live performances, including the  popular Diverse City Band, to 36 markets this fall.  For a list of tour dates please visit TobyMac’s website

TobyMac will headline several summer festivals leading up to the fall tour, including Creation East and West, Alive, FishFest, Spirit West Coast and Disney’s Night of Joy.  

 

About TobyMac:
With more than 11 million units in career sales and a whopping six GRAMMY ® Awards, TobyMac's career continues on the fast track. His most recent studio album, EYE ON IT, garnered him the GRAMMY® Award for Best Contemporary Christian Music Album and the highest chart debut of his solo career landing at No. 1 on the Billboard 200. The project made TobyMac only the third artist ever to debut atop the Billboard 200 with a Christian music album. Recently receiving RIAA Gold Certification, EYE ON IT follows the success of his previous four solo projects, which have also received RIAA Gold Certifications and thus represents a first for an artist in the history of his label, Capitol Christian Music Group, with each one of his five studio solo projects achieving Gold certification.  His live DVD, Alive & Transported, is RIAA Certified platinum and received a GRAMMY® award. His latest remix project EYE'M ALL MIXED UP (REMIXES) was released last fall, and he’ll release his sixth solo studio project, THIS IS NOT A TEST on August 7, 2015. 

# # #

THIS IS NOT A TEST  Track Listing:

STANDARD

  1. Like A Match
  2. Backseat Driver (feat. Hollyn & Tru)
  3. This Is Not A Test (feat. Capital Kings)
  4. Lights Shine Bright (feat. Hollyn)
  5. Til The Day I Die (feat. NF)
  6. Feel It (feat. Mr. TalkBox)
  7. Move (Keep Walkin’)
  8. Love Broke Thru
  9. Beyond Me
  10. Love Feels Like (feat. DCTALK)
  11. Undeniable 

DELUXE

  1. Lift You Up (feat. Ryan Stevenson)
  2. Fall
  3. Beyond Me (PHENOMENON Remix by Soul Glow Activatur)
  4. Like A Match (Garcia Remix)


Stay Connected with TobyMac:

Website // www.tobymac.com
Facebook // www.facebook.com/tobymac
Twitter // www.twitter.com/officialtobymac
Instagram // www.instagram.com/officialtobymac
YouTube // www.youtube.com/tobymacmusic

 

Media Contact

Velvet Kelm & Courtney Hyder 

the media collective

velvet@themcollective.com

courtney@themcollective.com

(615) 591-7989

www.themcollective.com

@themcollective