Tauren Wells’ Joy in The Morning Tour Review | Abundant TV Exclusive
By Carrie Hofmeister
I have the best job in the world. I literally get to review shows of some of my favorite
artists and Tauren Wells is one of them. Ever since I heard his song, “Hills and Valleys”, I have
been hooked to his music.
His team was so gracious to allow me to attend the show but also to take part in the VIP
experience. So, I got to attend his “Joy in The Morning” show that was in Holland, Michigan at
Ridge Point Community Church.
I arrived just before 5 pm which was when The VIP Experience started. With this
experience, you start by being able to shop the merchandise early before anyone else so that
there is no crowd, and you get the good stuff before it’s gone! After about 30 minutes, you take
your seat where the concert is being held and Tauren comes out for a question-and-answer
segment. There is a phone number that you get when your first come in that you send a
question to, and Tauren reads them off his phone. I thought Tauren did a really good job of
being personable and lengthy with his answers. He started to preach at one point, and I
thought, “Oh! We just went to church!” He knows his Bible and he is passionate about the Lord.
He won my husband over just in that segment. I was already a huge fan. He was humble,
gracious, and always reverted to scripture.
After about 30 minutes of the question-and-answer segment, you then head backstage
for the meet-and-greet. You stand in line waiting for your turn to take a picture with Tauren.
Now, I have been to other shows before where you meet artists and one thing, I didn’t like was
how rushed you were with them. This wasn’t like that. Tauren talked for as long as you wanted
to within reason, of course. I do have to give a big shout out to Spencer, who is the VIP tour
guide. Spencer killed it. He was so kind and knowledgeable and made you feel like you were
somebody. Spencer, I am so glad that we got to meet you and your parents. We will always be
friends now.
After the meet-and-greet with Tauren, you then get to take a backstage tour with
Spencer. This venue was a little bit different, so we got to go on the stage and get an up-close
look at the equipment. We also got to use this time to ask any questions about the tour.
I would recommend anyone that is a fan of Tauren and who wants a more intimate
setting, to purchase the VIP Experience. You get to be a part of something that most people
don’t, and it makes you feel like you get to know Tauren on a more personal level. The whole
team was so friendly and really made you feel like you were VIP.
Now, onto the show! My favorite part! I love Christian concerts to begin with, so this
was just plain fun for me.
The first opener was Lakewood Music. Let me just tell you, they killed it! Their harmony
was impeccable, and their sweet spirits shined on stage. They did a small set of a few songs but
just in that moment, they were able to capture the audience. I had the opportunity of meeting
them during intermission and they were just as they seem to be on stage. Kind, humble, and
thankful that they are being used by God. I got to talk to them for just a few minutes but was
able to find out that they are the worship team at their church and have been singing together
for quite some time. How awesome is it that just by serving at their church, God opened doors
for them to reach even more people?
Next up was Aaron Cole. If you look him up on Google, it says that he is a hip hop artist,
but I would have said Christian rapper. What do I know? To be honest, I wasn’t familiar with
him or his music before this show, but what I can tell you is that he rocked that crowd. Some of
you probably just gasped right now at the thought of rocking out a crowd as a Christian artist.
CHRISTIANS ARE ALLOWED TO HAVE FUN TOO YOU KNOW! He first came out in this lighted up
frame type thing. Wow, I am horrible at painting a picture here, but if I would have said box,
that picture is just hilarious. It kind of looked like metal poles in the shape of a rectangle that lit
up. Well, now that I just took a fourth of my article trying to explain that we can move one.
Aaron’s set was a mixture of hype and raw. He is an entertainer and knows how to work the
crowd, but he also knew how to take it down and relate to the audience. He was having fun
rapping for Jesus but his love for Him shined through as well. Sorry Aaron, to me you are a
rapper. So, either google is wrong or I am about to lose my job. I also got to meet him after the
show, and we had fun trying to get a good picture. He was fun, personable, didn’t make you
feel rushed and humble.
Now, to the headliner. I am just going to make one statement right here. Tauren Wells is
changing Christian music. I’m going to let you sit on that for a second. I mean that in the best
possible way. First, I MUST make a shout out to his band and his two backup singers. Robert
and DA, you two were amazing. You could have your own show. Jesus shined through both of
you and your angelic voices helped make this experience what it was. I could seriously rave
about you two forever, but I can’t talk more about you then Tauren, ok?
Tauren comes out opening with Come Home and the crowd was already on their feet
singing along to every word. I looked around several times during the show to see the crowd.
There was an undeniable presence of the Holy Spirit in that room for the whole 90-minute
show. I have been to a lot of concerts before, and I never had experienced anything like this.
People were joyful, having fun, and kind to everyone around them. It kind of seemed like for
that one night that everybody was family. The whole atmosphere was overwhelmingly
peaceful. One of my favorite performances was one when Tauren and his two backup singers
sang “Until Grace.” That harmony was like angel birds singing. I have no idea what that sounds
like, but that’s the only thing that comes to mind when trying to explain it.
The whole show was outstanding. From the vocals to the dancing. Yes, there was
dancing and it’s going to be ok. The choreography was done well, and they even try to teach
you a little bit in the end, which I am still trying to figure out. I will have it down by the time I
get to interview you, Tauren.
One thing that I really want to shed some light on is that yes, there are some artists out
there that use this platform for fame and money, but I can assure you that Tauren Wells isn’t
one of them. If there is only one thing that you take away from leaving one of his shows is that
he loves God and he lives by it. About three fourths into the show, Tauren’s band steps out
while he takes a seat and gives a heartfelt testimony of how “Joy in The Morning” came about.
While I don’t have time to preach the way he did in this article, the moral of the story is that
you can choose to live in the evening, or you can choose to have joy in the morning. It’s a
choice. I really held onto those words because it is such an important reminder especially in the
times we live in, that how we choose to live, is a choice. Joy doesn’t naturally come to any of us.
Our flesh wants to be miserable. But with God, we can have joy and we can choose joy.
If you read this article in hopes that I was going to criticize this show, you came to the
wrong place. I do not have one bad thing to say about this tour. In fact, I strongly encourage
any of you that are set in their thinking that anybody who dances, and sings “contemporary”
music is just seeking attention, to attend a show. If you can for just one moment, look at the
heart. Every single artist in that show had their hearts right on their sleeve and it said Jesus. You
may even actually see that you indeed can have fun and love the Lord at the same time!
I want to give a special shout out to Tauren’s management, Maximum Artist and to his
tour manager, Devin for allowing me to take part in this experience. You all were so very kind
and patient to the number of emails that I sent to you. Hopefully now you know that I am real.
Still crazy, but indeed real.
Everyone, head to Taurenwells.com right now and grab your tickets to a show near you
and tell them this article sent you! Until next time, Carrie On!
