Q&A: Anne Wilson to bring 'REBEL' spirit to Kingdom Bound

By Joshua Maloni

GM/Managing Editor

@joshuamaloni

Everything you need to know about Anne Wilson can be found in “Songs About Whiskey.”

As the Kentucky singer proclaims on her new single, it was the Bible – and not the bottle – that brought Wilson solace in the wake of her big brother Jacob’s passing.

She sings, “Turned the radio on my drive today/Heard a whole lot of songs ‘bout a whole bunch of things/I knew all the words but I couldn’t relate/‘Cause my three chords and the truth is/I ain’t no preacher and I ain’t no judge/My straight and narrow’s been a little bit rough/Ain’t trying to bible belt kill the buzz/‘Cause God loves country music/I’ve heard songs about Jack Daniels/Songs about Jim Beam/Heard songs about one night regrets/Neon and nicotine/I guess I’m just kinda fixed on/The only thing that's ever fixed me/That’s why I sing songs about Jesus/Instead of singing songs about whiskey.”

On her Universal Music Group Nashville debut, “REBEL,” Wilson declares she is a little bit country, and a little bit (on this rock) ’n’ roll.

The 22-year-old songster pairs her other-worldly vocals with creative lyrics, catchy beats and a message that makes fans move – whether two-stepping or raising their hands in praise.

Of the album, Wilson stated, “For me, I think it started when I sent a song to Christian radio that was very like faith-based, but it got a lot of pushback because it sounded too country, and so it kind of lit a fire in me to go, ‘Well, I’m not going to fit in anymore. I wanna be who I am authentically,’ and I want that to be my message. So, that’s where it really came in.

“But on the other end, just being a person of faith in the world that we live in today, it feels like you’re an outsider if you have faith, especially for my generation. You know, my generation struggles a lot with feeling like we have permission to talk about our faith. We can come out and say it without being judged, you know? So, I think for me, I’m gonna be a rebel. I’m gonna stand up for what I believe in. I’m gonna love my country. I’m gonna love God. I’m gonna stand up for the things that I believe in. I’m not gonna follow the world or the ways of the world, but I’m gonna follow Jesus and my faith, and that’s what makes me a rebel.”

Upon its release, “REBEL” secured the No. 1, No. 2 and No. 3 spots on the Christian, country and all-genre charts, respectively – a rare feat accomplished by the likes of Carrie Underwood, Chris Tomlin and Hillary Scott.

The record is the follow-up to Wilson’s 2022 debut, “My Jesus,” which made her an instant superstar in contemporary Christian music – and someone the country industry was eager to lasso.

That album, and the title track, racked up accolades including ASCAP’s 2022 Christian Music Awards Song of the Year, Spotify “Viral 50,” Shazam Top 200, Rolling Stone’s Top 25 trending, RIAA’s “Class of 2022,” Pandora’s 2023 “Artist to Watch: Christian/Gospel,” No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Christian & Gospel Albums, and Platinum certification. She performed on the iconic Grand Ole Opry stage in Nashville after being named one of the venue’s 2024 NextStage Artists to Watch. Wilson was nominated for the K-LOVE Fan Awards’ Best New Female Artist and has claimed its Breakout Single of the Year and Female Artist of the Year honors. She also scored nominations from the Grammys and American Music Awards. To date, Wilson has more than 1 billion global streams.

“Anne Wilson is a boundary-pushing artist who belongs in both Christian and country music formats and cultures,” UMG Nashville Chair and CEO Cindy Mabe said. “She’s here to take her story and the power of her music to new audiences, while continuing to be an ambassador of faith in youth culture and beyond within the Christian music audience. She’s unique and dynamic in sound, purpose and spirit.”

“From the moment we first met Anne, it was clear she had a special talent and an incredible story and message,” Capitol CMG’s Brad O’Donnell and Hudson Plachy said. “It’s been so rewarding to be a part of the success she’s had with her debut project, and we are thrilled to have UMG Nashville and Cindy Mabe as partners for this next chapter. We believe there’s no ceiling for what Anne can achieve.”

Wilson will perform at Darien Lake on Tuesday, July 30, as part of the Kingdom Bound Festival. She shared more in this edited Q&A.

Anne Wilson (Photo by Robby Klein // courtesy of Universal Music Group Nashville)

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Q: I understand you recently performed a sold-out show at the Lexington Opera House – where you used to actually perform ballet as a child. What was that experience like for you?

Anne Wilson: It was probably one of my favorite shows I've ever done in my whole life. It was really fun. Just a lot of emotions to try to put in words, because a lot of memories growing up there. And then it happened to be on the anniversary of my brother's funeral, which was the first time I ever sang in front of anyone. It was just so many emotions to it, and layers of emotions to it. But it was seriously one of the most incredible days of my life, and one of my favorite shows of my whole career, and a really special time.

Q: There are many things about you as a performer, about your music, that really impress me. One of the first things I first noticed is that your voice is absolutely impeccable. I'm wondering if you could sort of take me through the timeline of, “This might be something I want to do,” and “You know what? I'm actually pretty good at this, and I can make it work.”

Anne Wilson: I was 15 when I sang for the first time ever, in front of people, at my brother's funeral. And then, for about six months after that, I just was kind of leading worship at church here and there, kind of just figuring out if I loved music or not. And I felt like I was maybe supposed to do it for a career, but I thought maybe like a worship leader at a church or something like that. I didn't know it'd be like, you know, Nashville music industry. I had no idea it would be that.

So, then my previous manager discovered me on YouTube and found me and messaged me on Instagram and was like, “Hey, we would love to work with you. Would you come to Nashville and meet with us?” So, I came to Nashville, met with them, and then started taking voice lessons when I was 16. And then in a year and a half, signed a record deal, with Capitol Christian, and started writing songs; and then released my first song when I was 19.

So, from the moment I sang for the first time to the moment “My Jesus” came out was four years.

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Q: And I mean, just astounding success with “My Jesus.” I think when I looked today, it's had like 45 million views on YouTube; just unbelievable. Obviously, the song has given fans a chance to consider who Jesus is to them. Who is “My Jesus” to you?

Anne Wilson: I think, in this song, in what it's talking about, and really what we wrote that song about, was my brother dying and how God made a way when there really was no way. How he brought something really good out of something really horrible; and watching how he took the tragedy of my brother dying and turned it into this platform he's given me to travel and to share my story, to talk about him, has been more than I could have ever dreamed.

And so, my Jesus is everything to me, and getting to see firsthand – like, you read the Bible and you hear stories of people with these crazy miracle stories, but getting to actually see that firsthand happen in my life – to be a witness of that – has been just really amazing, and just proves his goodness and how incredibly good he is to us.

Q: I want to ask you about a couple of other “older songs,” if you will. Songs like “Seventh of June” and “No Place Like Home,” they're so touching. They're inspiring. I would say they're downright brave gifts of song. I guess the question is, how do you do it? How do you repurpose your emotions into such a brave and positive way?

Anne Wilson: I think those songs were really honest and vulnerable songs of really writing about my brother and our memories together. And so, it's really just about me being willing to be vulnerable, in the writing room, when I'm writing with people, because, if I'm willing to be vulnerable and willing to share what I'm going through, then those are always the most special songs. Versus us trying to write something that's just kind of out of nowhere or that's not really authentic to me.

So, I feel like “Seventh of June” and “No Place Like Home” are very authentic to my story, and about my brother, and our memories; and it just was something that, when we wrote them that day, that I was just very vulnerable in those rooms.

Anne Wilson (Photo by Robby Klein // courtesy of Universal Music Group Nashville)

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Q: There’s a line in the song “Seventh of June” where you wonder if Jacob would be proud of you. Clearly, he would be. What would he say to you, knowing how you've healed the hearts of so many people in his honor?

Anne Wilson: I don't know. I mean, I think he would be proud. I think he would be blown away of what's happened with my life.

Jacob really never liked attention on himself. He was always very humble. So, I feel like he would probably be like, “This is crazy how many people have heard of my story, and my life, and the legacy that I left.” You know, I think he would be blown away by it.

Q: I want to shift over to the country music side of things. When you joined up with Universal Music Group Nashville, you tweeted, “I have watched God open doors for my music that I could never open for myself. I see these new partnerships as another open door to share the message of hope, faith and the love of my Jesus to an even broader audience.” So far, have you seen that happen? How has this new opportunity helped you to achieve those goals?

Anne Wilson: It has helped a lot. I have seen it happen. I've seen how getting to reach this new audience and to have a song at country radio has been absolutely amazing. And getting to work with Universal has been such an incredible opportunity. They are just incredible people.

But getting to work on just this whole album together, and to see the audiences that we've reached – I mean, it's really incredible to see how far we've come in just a short year of working together. And, from getting me opportunities on stages and country festivals, and all the things, it's been amazing.

Q: We are a surprisingly big country music market out in the Buffalo area. And so, there's a lot of talk about what country music is, what country music isn't, what it could be, what it should be. For me, I see country music as sort of like the host of the backyard barbecue, where it’s welcoming all genres of music to come and have a good time. What is your definition of country music, and what do you like about country music, in particular?

Anne Wilson: I love country music. I love how it's always very storytelling. I love how all the music, especially like Johnny Cash or Dolly Parton, it always had such a story element to it, that I feel like music nowadays lacks a lot of. I love just the heart behind the simple life, you know, in country music, of the simple things like your family and your dogs and your truck, and like all the little things that are so simple, but that's what makes a great life.

So, I love country music. It makes me feel like home – like brings me back to growing up in Kentucky and listening to it.

Anne Wilson will bring Christian and country hits to the Darien Lake stage. (Photo by Laney Oakes Photography // courtesy of Oh Creative)

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Q: As I mentioned, we are excited to have you at Kingdom Bound. What can you share with us about your live show?

Anne Wilson: It's going to be so much fun. A lot of brand-new songs we're playing off of the new album.

Q: Tell me about “REBEL.” I mean, I love the title, first of all, in addition to some terrific music and some fantastic songs. Tell me about the heart behind it.

Anne Wilson: Yeah, “REBEL,” I wrote the album around this idea of what it means to really stand up for your faith in the world that we live in; and just how it can be so hard to be bold in your faith, because everybody around is telling you to just not share your opinions, and just to kind of go along with what the world is doing and saying.

And so, I started writing the album out of that whole idea, but also in studying in the Bible different scriptures on how Jesus was really bold in his faith, and how he would just go against the crowd and do things differently. And so, that's the heart behind it.

And as we were writing it, starting to see different colors of how, “This song is a rebel in this way.” And so, each song has a line behind it of like, for example, one of the songs is “Songs About Whiskey,” and it's (based on) “A rebel knows there's only one that can truly satisfy” (Ephesians 3:19). And every single song on the album has a line that connects back to this overarching idea of being a rebel.

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Q: You just alluded to it a little bit, but “Songs About Whiskey” is so clever. It's so imaginative. It's so much fun. Can you tell me a little bit more? Obviously, like you said, there's that connecting thread to it. But shooting that video, and singing that song, how much fun was that for you?

Anne Wilson: It was so much fun. I loved it. We got to shoot it in a bar, actually, which was so much fun; and just got to hang out with a ton of friends that day.

The whole song and the idea is just what it means to go out into the world and to spread the gospel. Also, I feel like it shows a different part of my personality, and a different part of, really, my artistry; and that was really cool to see that come to life, too.

Anne Wilson is online at www.annewilsonofficial.com and on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube.

Image courtesy of Kingdom Bound

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Kingdom Bound Festival returns to Six Flags Darien Lake

The Kingdom Bound Festival, one of the largest and longest-running Christian music festivals in North America, is set to return to Six Flags Darien Lake from July 29-31 for its annual three-day residency. Tickets and accommodations packages are available at www.KingdomBound.org.

Kingdom Bound 2024 will feature over 40 artists and speakers, including gospel music legend CeCe Winans, rising country music star Anne Wilson, Casting Crowns, Matt Maher, We The Kingdom, Mac Powell of Third Day, and more across four stages.

Making their festival debut this year are new artists Roman Collins from “American Idol” season 22, Josiah Queen and Cade Thompson.

Every ticket to the festival also includes access to the rides and waterpark attractions of Six Flags Darien Lake. Special ticket discounts are available for Six Flags Darien Lake season-passholders.

“We are so excited to gather once again with friends from across the United States and Canada,” Festival Director Donna Russo said. “This year we are looking forward to gospel legend CeCe Winans joining us for her first appearance at the festival, while artists Casting Crowns, Matt Maher, Mac Powell, We The Kingdom and CAIN make return visits. Kingdom Bound continues to bring families and friends together for three days filled with praise, teaching, fun, camping and Christ-centered community.”

The festival will also feature special events and activities for guests who stay on grounds, including bonfires, movies, and late-night events. Limited accommodations packages are still available.

More information about Kingdom Bound 2024, including the full lineup, tickets and accommodations, can be found at www.KingdomBound.org.

Kingdom Bound 2024 is presented by Houghton University.

Images courtesy of Kingdom Bound