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MercyMe To Perform At Northwest Arena Friday

Christian rock band MercyMe will perform at Northwest Arena on Friday beginning at 7 p.m. The concert will mark the nationally touring band’s first visit to Jamestown. Submitted photo

For local MercyMe fans who could previously only imagine what it would be like to have their band play in Jamestown, their wish is about to become reality.

MercyMe, one of Christian music’s most-awarded and longest-running bands, is set to make its first ever appearance in Jamestown for a Friday concert at Northwest Arena at 7 p.m.

With more than 9 million units in cumulative sales, MercyMe has seen 27 of their songs reach No. 1 across multiple Christian radio formats, in addition to garnering four mainstream radio hits. Their landmark song, “I Can Only Imagine,” was the first digital single in Christian music history to be certified platinum and double-platinum.

Now, the band is embarking on the second leg of its 2017 nationwide tour in support of its newest album, “Lifer,” which was released earlier this year. The group recorded the album in three different studios in and around Nashville, including Zac Brown Band’s Southern Ground Studios and an old barn-turned-studio near College Grove, Tenn.

While the most intensive part of the recording process occurred in the final quarter of 2016, the band wrote one of the album’s standouts early on, “We Win.” The song was written and recorded in record time and essentially became the cornerstone track for the entire album. Other tracks represent some new sonic territory, a feat for a band that has been performing together for 23 years.

“I’m kind of overwhelmed with gratefulness that we could make this many albums,” said Mike Scheuchzer, guitarist. “That’s kind of where the title for this album came from. Sometimes I get this feeling that this band is a life sentence, but, in a more serious sense, it’s kind of emblematic of where our relationship with Christ is. He doesn’t give up on you and leave you, even at your lowest point, and that’s where we are now as a band.”

Scheuchzer added that, as in life, the band has experienced several ups and downs and wanted to acknowledge the struggles of humanity within the lyrical content of “Lifer.”

“I know the power of music and the power of God, and to hear from people how much our songs mean to them is one of the greatest things I’ve ever been blessed with,” he said. “We want our audiences to have a good time. Our shows aren’t rocket science or a therapy session, but in that we also want to use our shows to point to God and remind people that no matter where they are in life we don’t go through it alone. Sometimes, the simple truth that Jesus loves you just kind of gets lost in all of that, so our music helps us to remind ourselves of the same thing we’re trying to remind everyone else of.”

The Friday concert concert will also feature opening performances by Unspoken and Ryan Stevenson. Tickets are $75 for artist circle, $45 for floor seating and $35 for general admission. General admission tickets for groups of 10 or more are $25.

Tickets can be purchased at mercyme.org or by finding the event on Facebook.

For more information, contact Northwest Arena at 484-2624 or jamestownarena.com.

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