Fresh from recording a new album in Hendersonville, Tenn., this spring, and enthusiastic about being able to entertain and uplift crowds in person again, the locally-based trio Majesty is preparing for a concert this weekend, also featuring two of their longtime friends who are top names in the gospel music industry.
“A Night of Faith and Friends” is slated for 6 p.m. Saturday, July 23, at the Bellefontaine First Church of God, 1000 E. Brown Ave., where trio members Tim Walls, Ward McBrien and Rob Kilgore will be joined by Dove Award winner Doug Anderson and Southern gospel pianist Roy Webb. Doors open at 5 p.m.
Tickets are $15 general admission and can be purchased at the door. No presale tickets will be offered.
In the years prior to 2020, the group, formerly Majesty Quartet and Unto Him, had started this beloved tradition. In addition to their regular touring schedule, they enjoyed hosting the larger style concert once a year, performing on stage with Webb and Anderson at area churches and other sites in Logan County.
“It was always a fun night that we would look forward to it every year,” said Walls, a retired Riverside Schools administrator and teacher.
“This will be our first big return concert since the pandemic and we’re very eager to be back in front of a live audience again. It’s going to be a homecoming type show of sorts.
“COVID was rough on us all; we’re happy to have everyone healthy again. We’ve felt a little like baseball team who hasn’t gotten to play.”
Walls and Kilgore said the “faith and friends” title for their concert expresses their gratitude to Webb and Anderson for their friendship and serving as their mentors over the years.
“We also hope that by the end of the night, the audience feels that friendship connection with us, too, as we can share about ourselves and our faith through the music,” Kilgore said.
The trio will perform songs from their new album, “Going There,” recorded at Daywind Studios, including a song with the same title.
“I think the people who come will notice a different sound from us, a little more contemporary and up-tempo,” Walls said.
“We’ve always been a traditional Southern gospel group, and will play some of their old favorites, too.”
Throughout the evening, Webb and Anderson will join the trio for a number of their sets on stage.
“Roy is a comedian in addition to being a pianist. The audience will definitely be entertained, as you never know what he’s going to say,” Walls said of the group’s former producer.
Anderson, who hails from Lapel, Ind., is a longtime member of Ernie Haase & Signature Sound, who recently re-signed with the group in late 2021. He is also a former member of Cana’s Voice.
Webb, who lives in the Cincinnati area, is a past member of Signature Sound and other gospel performance groups. He first met the local quartet in 2013 after he accepted a chance invitation from member Jerry Noble to the Bellefontaine area. Since then, Webb connected Majesty with his friend Anderson.
“It’s amazing that we’ve had this opportunity,” DeGraff resident Walls said of the collaboration with the gospel artists. “We used to travel around to see these groups, and now we get to perform with them.”
The retired teacher and administrator related that Unto Him formed in 2001 in response to 9/11. He and McBrien joined after that time, as they previously sang in the Lighthouse Gospel Quartet together.
A lifelong Logan County resident, McBrien lives in Logansville and said when he was approach in the early 2000s about joining a quartet, he felt it would be “a great way for me to serve God through music.”
Kilgore, who serves as a pastor of Monroe Community Church in Pickrelltown, said believes that God can stir people’s spirits through the gift of music and lyrics. He has been singing gospel music for more than 20 years and is thrilled to be able to once again be a part of a gospel singing group.
Noble last performed with the group at their 2019 concert with Webb and Anderson, and he is greatly missed after he passed away following a battle with leukemia, members said.
Among the sponsorships for “A Night of Faith and Friends,” the Ohio Suicide Prevention Foundation is a main event sponsor, and will offer resources at a booth Saturday evening.
“Even though it’s a Christian atmosphere, anyone can suffer from suicidal thoughts; Satan is still trying to attack and anyone can be affected by self-doubt,” Kilgore said.
“We want to reach out with resources to help anyone who might be struggling. We need to remove the stigma.”
For more information about Majesty, visit www.majestyquartet.com, or the Ohio Suicide Prevention Foundation at www.ohiospf.org.