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King's Heralds

1)  I hear that The King's Heralds are celebrating their 80Th year.  When and how was the group founded?

The King's Heralds was founded in 1927 in Keene, Texas by four college students. They called the quartet 'The Lone Star Four' and sang under that name until 1937.  In 1936 we joined the radio broadcast The Voice of Prophecy and was renamed 'The King's Heralds'.  We sang for them until 1982 when we went independent and continued until 2001 as 'The Heralds'.  In 2001 we regained the name 'The King's Heralds' and continue to this day.

 

2)  Could you give me a brief biography about the current group members?

Don and Joel are opera trained as singers, Russell is a jazz man.  Jeff, of course, is in a class of his own as a world-class bass.  Three of us are married and have children, Jeff has a lady friend that is a lovely person and a delight to know.

 

3) What is your spiritual mission?

Our spiritual mission is simply the Gospel Commission.  We follow the example of the early apostles in that we travel from church to church, country to country bringing the good news of the soon return of Jesus to any who will hear.  We do our best to reach those who do not know Jesus, encourage the believer, and show everyone that hears us that there is real joy in serving Jesus.

 

4)  How many languages is your music translated in?

We have sung at least one song over the last 80 years in 32 languages.  When we travel to another country, we try to do a few songs in the local language as part of our concert.  We seek out language coaches to help with pronunciation, and are generally received well when we do this.

5)  Among all the audiences you have had, which one was your most memorable and why?

With this combination, it would be between this years NQC and our recent trip to Johannesburg, South Africa.  With the NQC, we enjoyed folks enthusiastic response to us, which we really did not expect.  We did not know how they would react to us as we are very different from most performers there.  As one lady said to us, "I didn't know you were a Southern Gospel Quartet!"  We replied that we were not totally a 'Southern Gospel Quartet' but rather a gospel quartet that also sang Southern Gospel music.  In truth, we sing 5 or 6 distinct musical styles that also include high church and jazz, either a cappella or with instruments.
 

6)  I hear you were the first gospel group from the West to tour the People's Republic of China.  How do you feel you were received in that country? 

In 1984 we were invited to attend the first  symposium on the Christian church in China.  To say that we were excited and honored would be an understatement.  The people there  were very kind  and received us very well.  We could tell that they enjoyed the music that we presented, and appreciated what we had to offer.
 

7)  Have you faced any challenges through the years and if so what are they?  What particular scriptures benefited you through those challenges?

Especially since going independent, we have had to rely on God to motivate folks to come out to our concerts and to support us in donations and cd sales.  There are still times when we don't know how all the bills are going to be paid, but God always comes through to make things happen.  I think His promise that He will never forsake us, that He will always take care of us as He knows our needs, this is what we depend upon.  His promise to be with us is repeated so many times throughout Scripture and yet as humans we forget.  We try to be mindful of this every day and to trust in Him with everything.
 

8)  How do you think your music relates to today's youth and what do you think is the greatest obstacle facing today's society?

We sing a little differently from our predecessors, a little more of the smooth jazz, or new arrangements of up-tempo spirituals, with a little high church and southern gospel thrown in for good measure.  We hope that whatever style of music, people of all ages will hear the message of the incomparable love of Jesus in the songs that we sing.  One of the biggest obstacles facing society today is the lack of trust in God and HIs word.  Everything seems to be twisted to justify a self-absorbed attitude, and the thought that each of us defines our own morality according to our own wishes, and not according to His Word.  Scripture prophesied that men would become 'lovers of self' not lovers of God, and we seem to be at that point in a lot of ways.  To 'love your neighbor as yourself' doesn't seem to be too popular.
 

9)  Do you have any involvement in choosing the songs and doing the arrangements?

We do choose the songs that we sing, and our baritone, Russell, is involved with a lot of the voice arrangements that we do.  We also have some writers in our group that have contributed over the years to the repertoire that we sing.
 

10)  I loved the way that you sang the Lord's prayer at the 2007 National Quartet Convention. There was a lot of talent at the convention, but honestly I was especially moved by that piece.  Was that the first time you sang that?

This song, 'The Prayer of our Lord Jesus' by Keith Knoche, is a song that the King's Heralds have sung for several years.  We even recorded it on our CD entitled 'Encores'.  It is such a beautiful rendition of the Lord's Prayer, and we enjoy singing it.
 

11)  You all have amazing talent.  Where did you learn to sustain that kind of vocal power?  Did you have vocal training or were you raised in the church singing?  How you you maintain your voices?

All of us have had a substantial amount of voice training.  As previously noted, Don and Joel are Opera trained as singers, and Russell and Jeff have both had a lot of proper voice training as well.  As far as maintaining our voices is concerned, we drink a lot of water and try to get enough rest as well as walk when we are on tour.  Truthfully, the walking part we often don't do as we should, but we do benefit from it when we manage to actually get it done.
 

12)  Tell me one particular event in your ministry, which you know was miraculous, where only God's hand could have been in it. 

NQC 2006 and 2007.  The quartet had not been to Convention since 1967.  When we went last year, we planned on only having a booth and just meeting and greeting people.  We ended up singing in two showcases, representing the NQC on an early morning remote broadcast on one of the local morning TV news shows, were a featured quartet on the main stage in a tribute to Mosie Lister, and were interviewed on two of Southern Gospels' biggest radio programs.  We could not have imagined any of this would happen.  This year we did showcases, radio, and were featured in the main arena with one song five of the six nights off-stage as a change from the MC as other groups left and took the stage and got ready.  The reception was more than we could have predicted or even imagined!  We look forward to where God takes us next, and what He has for us to do when we get there. With the warm reception we got at NQC, we will continue to add to our Southern Gospel repertoire in years to come.

 

The King's Heralds have received twenty-three Silver Angel Awards© for "Excellence in Media", including six for "Best Male Vocal Group", fourteen for "Best Album" and a "Best International Broadcast" award for their own radio program, "Sounds of Praise". The group also received a "Gold" Angel Award© for being the oldest continuous Gospel Quartet in America.