As far as music industry award ceremonies go, none are bigger or more prestigious than The Grammy Awards. The Grammy’s, as they are affectionately known, take place annually in cities…
Tenth Avenue North
559
Image Courtesy of: Tenth Avenue North Instagram
Tenth Avenue North - Control
Quick facts about Tenth Avenue North
CAREER
Tenth Avenue North is a contemporary Christian music band from America. The band was active until 2021 and have since broken up to spend more time with their families and pursue other careers.
ACTIVE FROM
2000–2021
CAREER ACHIEVEMENTS
3 GMA Dove Awards and 5 other GMA Dove Award nominations, 2 Gold RIAA Single Certifications, 1 Gold RIAA Album Certification, 1 Platinum RIAA certification
GENRE
Contemporary Christian music, Christian rock, power pop, pop-rock, acoustic rock, and indie rock.
PLACE OF ORIGIN
West Palm Beach, Florida, U.S.
ALBUMS
8 studio albums, 1 live album, 3 EPs, 22 singles
Tenth Avenue North - Early Days of the Band
Tenth Avenue North was founded by Mike Donehey (vocals) and Jason Jamison (drums), with Bryan Homan as their bassist while they were attending Palm Beach Atlantic University together. The band’s name was meant to be temporary and came from a road in Palm Beach County; however, they never ended up changing it.
Between 2002 and 2006, the band released 3 independent albums and an EP before being discovered by the producers Jason Ingram and Phillip LaRue. At this point, the band members consisted of Mike and Jason, who were joined by Jeff Owen (guitar) and Scott Sanders (bass). In 2008, Tenth Avenue North released their debut studio album, ‘Over and Underneath’ with Reunion Records. The band went on tour, and they achieved several early successes that included charting well on several Christian music charts.
Tenth Avenue North's Career as a Christian Band
After the release of their first studio album, the band steadily grew in popularity. Towards the end of 2008, they released the single “By Your Side” which reached No. 1 on Christian contemporary hit radio and held that position for several weeks. It also won the band their first GMA Dove Award for Song of the Year in 2010.
In 2009, Sanders was replaced by Ruben Juarez III on bass and the band was joined by Brendon Shirley (keys). This line-up was considered the height of Tenth Avenue North’s career and did not change much. In 2010, the band released their second major album, ‘The Light Meets the Dark.’ The following year, they also released a live album that contained concert footage, video journals, and live recordings of some of the band’s major hits.
However, in 2012 Tenth Avenue North released what would become their most commercially successful album titled, “The Struggle” with its lead single, “Losing.” The album debuted at No. 1 on Billboard‘s Top Rock and Christian albums chart, as well as peaking at No. 9 on Billboard’s Top 200 chart. Through the album, the band wanted to convey the message that it was okay for Christians to struggle and fail because Christ’s grace will heal and forgive them. They felt that it was an important message that kept coming up in their discussions and they eventually created an album stemming from this idea.
The Christian rock band continued to release albums including 2014’s “Cathedrals”, 2016’s “Followers”, and 2017’s “Decade the Halls, Vol. 1″. Around this time, Jamison and Shirley parted ways from the band in order to pursue individual interests. After their departure, the remaining band members decided to cut back the number of performances.
In 2019, the band released their sixth studio album, “No Shame”. It was preceded by a couple of singles, including “Greater than All My Regrets”, which was inspired by personal struggles Donehey had been facing. Mike admitted that one of his biggest regrets in life was leaving it so late to take on fewer shows, as he had missed so many important family events such as birthdays and recitals. He had been concerned about the financial loss and lost sight of what was truly important. However, God was able to comfort him by explaining that He was greater than any regret Donehey could have, and Mike was able to forgive himself.
"I don't think God is impressed with my resumé, He's calling for my heart, not my career." - Mike Donehey.
Relationship with God
The band members of Tenth Avenue North saw God as a consistent guide and friend throughout life. In terms of their careers, the band felt very thankful that He had given them the opportunity to become Christian musicians. The band also felt like one of the struggles they (and many other Christians) faced with God is trying to figure out God’s path for them. In an interview, Donehey explained that for him, God wasn’t fussed on the particulars of what a person’s job is, so long as they weren’t manipulating others and were serving and blessing them instead. He also explained he was able to find inner satisfaction by developing a deeper relationship with God. The rest of the band shared these views of God.
Image Courtesy of: Tenth Avenue Instagram
Most Recent (and Final) Release
By 2020, the band’s members wanted to focus more on their families and follow their dreams of other career paths. The Covid-19 pandemic canceled the band’s “Finally Living Tour” that had been announced at the start of the year and the band members figured it was the right time for them to part ways. The band’s final release was an album called “Unplugged for the People” in 2020, which was a collection of the acoustic versions of some of their greatest hits.
In 2021 Donehey, Owen, Juarez, Shirley, and Jamison reunited for two final shows before officially disbanding after 21 years in the Christian music industry. Donehey pursued a solo career. Owen started a career as a producer. Juarez went into real estate. Shirley went into business with his wife. Jamison continued working with the charity, Compassion International, which the band had previously partnered with.
I Have This Hope
Worn
By Your Side
Times
Beloved
Hold My Heart
You Are More
Greater Than All My Regrets
Love Is Here
Strong Enough to Save
Arguably the biggest award ceremony in the music community, the Grammy Awards take place annually in cities across America with the iconic golden gramophone, which the awards are named after,…
As is the case with their United States counterpart, the Latin Grammy Awards are regarded as the pinnacle of artistic achievement within the industry. For a musician, the words “Grammy…
The Juno Awards ceremony, more commonly known as the Junos, is Canada’s premiere Music Awards ceremony and the showpiece event of the Canadian Music Industry. The awards recognise the outstanding…
Christian Music Awards – Accolades for Christian Musicians Christian music is a rapidly growing genre that encompasses multiple, hugely popular sub-genres such as gospel, contemporary, Christian and Inspirational. The overarching…
The Covenant Awards are Canada’s leading Christian music award ceremony, held annually in cities throughout Canada. Run by the Gospel Music Association of Canada, the Covenant Awards are the sister…
The GMA Dove Awards are accolades given to Christian music artists by the Gospel Music Association to recognize significant achievements in the Christian music industry. Established in 1969 and presented…
Gospel Music Awards : Gospel music is a genre that is widely popular in the Christian music market and encompasses many genres in and of itself. It is recognizable by its…
American Music Awards : Approaching its semicentennial anniversary in 2022, the American Music Awards, also known as the AMAs, represents the finest achievements in music, as determined by the fans.…
Christian Rap Bands – The cutting edge of Christian music Christian rap, sometimes called Gospel rap, has had a significant revival over the past decade or so. Similar to Christian…