FRONT OF HOUSE AUDIO Lee Fields
[ WM ] Tell us about how you got started in the audio side of church?
[ Lee Fields ] I was a youth group rat. Home wasn’ t the best place to be, but I could play music at church— so most days after school, I’ d just hang out there. A guy in the church, a hobbyist guitar player who owned a small business, gave me my first PA: an old analog Peavey mixer, an EAW crossover, and a Behringer stereo parametric EQ. I probably used that EQ for two years before I had any clue what it did— but that gift lit the fire.
The church was small, maybe 250 people. We didn’ t even mic the drums or the band— just the piano. I was a musician in the youth band, but someone had to power up the PA and dial in the mix … then leave the booth empty for the next hour. So that someone became me. The youth pastor and his wife were the real magnets— they had the vision to build something, and I just jumped in wherever I could.
That led to touring. From 18 to 22, I was on the road nearly 200 days a year, mixing and playing. But life happened— I started a family and needed to be home more. Around that time, my cousin, who was a pastor back in Knoxville, mentioned their church had grown to about 900 people and they’ d never had a full-time production director. I took the job, and that’ s what really pulled me into the church production world full-time.
[ WM ] Who were your main sound mentors?
[ Lee ] There are so many. I’ ve been fortunate enough to have friendships and mentorship from guys like Phil Bledsoe, Zito, Robert Scovill, and Chris Rabold. I’ m definitely leaving people out, but those relationships have had a big impact. I learned from watching, listening, asking questions, and doing a ton of reps. That combination of community and experience shaped how I think about sound.
[ WM ] Have you attended training conferences? If so, tell us about them.
[ Lee ] Yeah, I’ ve been to plenty. But honestly, I started MXU because I felt like most conferences weren’ t doing a great job with real, hands-on training. Most of them felt like big
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