From a youth group, to a conference, to a
band, to a movement, and to a church, Jesus
Culture has influenced the church for the past
20+ years. Their new radio single, “More Than
Enough” is but one of many great new song
offerings from their new projects, Church:
Volumes One and Two. With a heart to see a
generation impacted, Jesus Culture truly now
has become “a global movement awakening
hearts to worship and serve God”.
[WM] It’s great to visit with you both! I’ve
interviewed your Jesus Culture bandmates
Bryan and Katie Torwalt, Chris McClarney, and
Mack Brock, all within the past year for [WM],
so this is a treat for me to talk with you.
[Kim Walker Smith] Yeah.
[Chris Quilala] It’s my privilege.
[WM] The two of you have been leading
worship together since the inception of Jesus
Culture at Bethel Church twenty-one years
ago. What was that initial meeting and coleading
opportunity like for you?
[Kim] It’s kind of funny, the very first Jesus
Culture Conference is where we started as a
summer youth conference. I was a freshman
year college student and was just there at the
conference. It was the second conference
actually that I was at it and got involved helping
with the youth group. I was the social events
director and I planned all of our parties and
special outings, and Chris had been a kid
in youth group and grew up in that. Banning
became the one running the worship for the
youth and for the Jesus Culture Conference. At
one point a few years in, I had been doing a
lot of work with the youth but not in worship,
and Chris knew that I could sing and asked
me if I would help to train the teenage girls to
sing backup vocals and things like that. He
asked me to help out with some of the girls
who wanted to be on the youth worship team
and wanted to sing, and I said I’d be glad to.
And then Banning asked me if I would help
lead the worship, and so I did, and the rest is
kind of “history”. Chris and I were friends and
More Than Enough
working together in the
we started leading toge
comfortable and easy. I
my brother. We’ve been
now, we know each o
through a lot as a tea
together. I lost my dad
within about five month
were both grieving and
things and we could u
each other.
But leading together is f
my brother. We’ve defin
I’ll be honest, there hav
disagree or don’t get a
worked through that, th
[Chris] It seems so lo
but we were just kids fi
just a youth group goi
were having these mom
we were encountering
So, we had no intentio
or even to make an a
just seeking the Lord. K
prophetic anointing on
having these youth gro
started doing conferenc
our youth pastor, but he
in Sacramento. Bannin
an album, maybe we’ll
mainly we just want to
they have something to
at home or wherever jus
worship with on their ow
is, someone put one of
Loves” on YouTube and
from there. But back in
just us going after Go
June 2020