Tag: 11th Hour

11th Hour’s Amber Eppinette Saunders embarks on solo recording career

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JEFF TURNER

Amber Eppinette Saunders, known for her work with 11th Hour, is launching a solo music career under the stage name Amber Lynn, Sonlite Records announced this week. The new venture will showcase more personal songwriting while she continues her involvement with 11th Hour.

“While still looking forward to everything that’s coming with 11th Hour, I’ve been working quietly on so much new music, waiting for the moment that felt right…and that moment is finally here,” Saunders said. “I can’t wait to share more of my heart and story with you through my first ever solo release.”

The Sterlington, Louisiana native’s solo work will feature an inspirational approach that builds upon her southern gospel foundation. Her debut single, “Yahweh (Your Will Your Way),” is scheduled for release on 23 January. The track is intended to establish the direction for subsequent releases that will give Saunders opportunity to expand her artistic expression.

“This next chapter means a lot to me,” she said. “Time to share my heart with you all.”

Raised as a pastor’s child, Saunders grew up immersed in both music and Christian ministry. Over the years, she has contributed to more than 200 compositions, many recorded by 11th Hour alongside other artists including The Martins, The Whisnants, and The Bowling Sisters. She has also earned multiple fan award nominations for Soprano of the Year, and she recently received a Songwriter of the Year nomination.

Listen for music from her solo project soon on Texas Gospel Canada!

Victoria Bowlin’s Baby Gender Reveal!

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JEFF TURNER

We told you a few weeks back that Victoria Bowlin of 11th Hour was expecting her second child. Well, the family just had the big gender reveal!

Friends and family gathered for the announcement. There were lots of cheers from Team Girl…. but… It’s another boy!

Victoria and Aaron’s son will be named Jedediah Asher. The couple says they are very excited!

11th Hour’s new album,That’s Who He Is, out now

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SPECIAL: CROSSROADS RECORDS

Arden, North Carolina (May 17, 2024) — “This album!!! Wow, what can I say??” enthuses Amber Eppinette Saunders, powerhouse vocalist with Sonlite Records’ 11th Hour. “We have literally watched God do miracles and wonders from the beginning process of this project to even now! This is probably the most personal project we have ever done, and we can’t wait for you to hear our hearts through these songs!” 

Sure enough, one listen to the trio’s new collection is enough to justify the enthusiasm. With their first new music in more than two years, That’s Who He Is builds on the decade of successes embodied in last year’s A Collection of Hits to offer an album that blends full-throated proclamations of God’s strength and intimate meditations on doubt and faith, presented in a set of arrangements that range across equally broad musical ground. Yet each song, whether it’s given a straightforward Southern Gospel treatment or a more contemporary setting, is a vivid example of the inspired creativity and abundant talent for which 11th Hour has been known since their earliest days.

That deep craft and spirit is evident from the opening “Rock Bottom,” with a lyric that uses the title’s image in a clever, yet meaningful twist in its memorable chorus:

There’s a rock at the bottom 
And it’s Jesus, the Rock of Ages
So stand up, the ground is solid
There’s a rock at the bottom 
When you hit rock bottom

and a gripping lead vocal from Amber that soars over an expansive musical texture that has room for keyboards and banjo, too.

Similarly, the title track underpins emotive leads from Garrett Saunders and Amber with deft touches that include a soulful choir lifting up its message of a loving God who can supply everything the believer needs. Garrett leads on the album’s first single, too, delivering a prayerful “Dear Heavenly Father” that builds from a restrained, intimate opening to a triumphantly full texture over the course of its three and a half minutes, while Victoria Bowlin is well represented with featured numbers that include the pointed “You Can’t Tell Me That Ain’t God” and the serenely confident “Still Faithful.” There’s even a nod to sounds from beyond the Gospel music realm in the boldly contemporary, hopeful sound of “This Is Not The End.”

Adding to the excitement of the release, the entirety of That’s Who He Is will be available in immersive audio on platforms supporting Dolby Atmos, including Apple Music, Amazon Music and TIDAL. “It sounds like you’re sitting in the middle of a recording session hearing all these wonderful sounds,” says producer Roger Talley, who adds, “I thoroughly enjoyed working with 11th Hour on this, my first time producing a project for them. They did such a wonderful job on this project and I am so excited for you to hear it.”Listen to That’s Who He Is on Texas Gospel Canada!

11th Hour’s “Dear Heavenly Father” is a vulnerable prayer

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SPECIAL CROSSROADS MUSIC

Arden, North Carolina (February 2, 2024) — As the title track of their last all-new album, 2021’s Anthem Of The Ages, makes its way up the charts, contemporary Southern Gospel trio 11th Hour is looking ahead with the release of “Dear Heavenly Father,” the first single to feature the most recent addition to the group, Garrett Saunders.  

Says founding member and acclaimed singer Amber Eppinette Saunders, “This song was written by Garrett and Nathan Woodard, and it is an actual prayer. Many times people wake in the middle of the night with a burden so heavy, but we can remember there is always someone listening and always someone who cares, no matter the time of night.”

Fittingly, the song’s first verse is delivered over hushed guitar and a steady percussive beat that echoes the ticking of a clock marking the passage of time in a troubled night:

Dear Heavenly Father, it’s 2 a.m.
I know we talked a while ago, but here I am again 
I hope I’m no bother but I’m wide awake
I’ve got a lot on my mind and all I know is You’re the only one up this late
I hope You don’t mind listening for a little while
Dear Heavenly Father 

And though the second verse deepens the texture and leads to two powerful choruses that frame Garrett’s voice with harmonies from Amber and Victoria Bowlin, the performance ultimately circles back at the closing, as his lone voice recaps the vulnerability of the song’s opening. With a message made all the more compelling by its frank depiction of a soul in need, “Dear Heavenly Father” shows once again 11th Hour’s ability to place bold, yet sensitive creativity in the service of bedrock faith.  

Listen for music from 11th Hour on Texas Gospel Canada!

11th Hour releases “Letters To Heaven”music video

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SPECIAL CROSSROADS RECORDS

Arden, North Carolina (June 21, 2022) — Southern Gospel trio 11th Hour has released a music video for “Letters To Heaven,” the current single from their latest album, Anthem Of The Ages. 

The moving, emotional song tells of connecting with those we’ve lost.

“‘Letters to Heaven’ came from the pen of three people (me, my husband, Garrett, and our buddy, Nathan Woodard) that were reminiscing about loved ones that have passed on,” says Amber Eppinette Saunders.

“Garrett and I had our grandparents in mind at the time of writing the song but had no idea we’d end up losing a baby before recording it. It now has a brand new meaning to it. Just remember, the very one that your loved ones are in the presence of is the very one that’s holding you right now! We have hope, and we will see them again!”


Listen for Letters to Heaven on Texas Gospel Canada!