I'm not an American Idol fan by any means - never watched the show except for maybe one episode - but I just found out that this year's winner, Kris Allen, is a worship leader and has recorded a version of "God Of This City", which was first heard in the U.S. through the Passion project "God Of This City." A band from Ireland called Bluetree wrote the song, and I kind of like their version the best, because the verses feel more haunting before you get to the chorus.
Anyway, at
this web page, you can see and hear Kris Allen's version. All you have to do is click on the play icon on the black square on the page, and enjoy!
What I didn't realize - and the reason I'm putting this on my anti-trafficking blog instead of my personal blog - is that the song God Of This City was written after the band went on a missions trip to Thailand. Here's an excerpt from that web page:
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Belfast, Ireland-based modern worship band Bluetree, whose acclaimed album, God Of This City, has become one the best selling Christian recordings this year, receives a boost this week from American Idol winner Kris Allen. Allen has been performing the title track to Bluetree’s album, “God Of This City,” a song birthed by the band in a brothel in Thailand.
An anthem being sung worldwide, “God Of This City” was written by Bluetree
during a mission trip and while the band was on stage performing worship songs in the Climax Bar, a club which doubles as a brothel in the Red Light district of Pattaya, Thailand. The song became a message of hope for the people of Pattaya and is now being sung in churches across the world, with the Willow Creek Association recently concluding its worship pastor seminar with the song. It was further recorded by Chris Tomlin and became the name and theme for the latest Passion project and world tour.
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You can also hear the story behind the song by clicking on the play icon on the far right of the page.
