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Jonathan Caleb McReynolds (born September 17, 1989) is a Grammy-winning American
gospel music Gospel music is a traditional genre of Christian music and a cornerstone of Christian media. The creation, performance, significance, and even the definition of gospel music vary according to culture and social context. Gospel music is compo ...
ian. He began his music career in 2012 with the release of ''Life Music'' via
Entertainment One Music MNRK Music Group (pronounced "monarch"), formerly known as Koch Records and Entertainment One (eOne) Music/Records, is an American independent record label and music management company based in New York City. It was formed in 1987 as a music div ...
. He has had two No. 1 ''Billboard'' Gospel Albums since with '' Life Music: Stage Two'' (2015) and '' Make Room'' (2018), fifteen
Stellar Awards A Stellar Award is an award presented by SAGMA to recognize achievements in the gospel music industry.Sagma
The Stel ...
, four
GMA Dove Awards A Dove Award is an accolade by the Gospel Music Association (GMA) of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the Christian music industry. The awards ceremonies presented annually and have been held in Nashville, Tennessee excep ...
and five
Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...
nominations in addition to his win in 2021.


Early life

McReynolds was born in
Chicago, Illinois Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
, on September 17, 1989, as Jonathan Caleb McReynolds. Work ID No. 883470768 He was raised by a single mother with love and support from his family, church members and his pastor at New Original Church of God in Christ. Known to be a very precocious kid, he learned to play the drums at five years old, the piano at eight, and showcased his talents weekly as a church musician. He was a reluctant singer, to say the least. However, in high school, he began to break out of his shell; eventually, sharing his talents with the public rather than singing alone in his living room. He attended Whitney Young Magnet High School, where not only did he become known for his musical talents, but also learned how to record and produce music, as a member of the school's podcast initiative. Those skills would prove to be significant in college as he recorded his first songs including his first viral hit "No Gray" in his dorm room.


Music career

His music career was started in 2012, with the release of ''Life Music'' on September 25, 2012, by
Light Records Light Records is a gospel record label founded in 1966 by Ralph Carmichael, as a joint venture with the Waco, Texas-based Word Records. It is a subsidiary of the MNRK Music Group. History Light Records' first roster included Ralph Carmichae ...
and
Entertainment One Music MNRK Music Group (pronounced "monarch"), formerly known as Koch Records and Entertainment One (eOne) Music/Records, is an American independent record label and music management company based in New York City. It was formed in 1987 as a music div ...
. This was his breakthrough released on the ''Billboard'' charts, and it placed at No. 98 on ''Billboard'' 200 along with Gospel Albums at No. 3, and at No. 23 on the
Independent Albums The Independent Albums chart (previously titled Top Independent Albums) ranks the highest-selling independent music albums and extended plays (EPs) in the United States, as compiled by Nielsen SoundScan and published weekly by '' Billboard'' mag ...
chart. His song "No Gray" was a viral smash that earned him TV appearances on BET's Celebration of Gospel and fans in India Arie and Nicki Minaj. McReynolds's second album '' Life Music: Stage Two'' was
Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...
nominated, a ''Billboard''
Gospel Gospel originally meant the Christianity, Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the second century Anno domino, AD the term (, from which the English word originated as a calque) came to be used also for the books in which the message w ...
No. 1 album for four weeks, and a
GMA Dove Award A Dove Award is an accolade by the Gospel Music Association (GMA) of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the Christian music industry. The awards ceremonies presented annually and have been held in Nashville, Tennessee exce ...
winner. It featured
Israel Houghton Israel Houghton (; born May 19, 1971) is an American contemporary Christian music singer, songwriter, producer, and worship leader. His worship team is credited as Israel & New Breed. Musical career Houghton produced an album by Michael Gungo ...
, India.Arie and Chantae Cann and his first top five gospel hit "Gotta Have You." Rating the album five stars for Journal of Gospel Music, Bob Marovich says, "''Life Music, Stage Two'' is the musical manifestation of his honest and spiritually grounded approach to dealing with the vicissitudes of daily life." McReynolds brought on yet another popular R&B talent, Tweet, on his EP ''Sessions'' (2016) This unannounced, surprise release reached the #1 on the
iTunes iTunes is a media player, media library, and mobile device management (MDM) utility developed by Apple. It is used to purchase, play, download and organize digital multimedia on personal computers running the macOS and Windows operating s ...
Christian chart in one night. Jonathan's third album ''Make Room'' was Jonathan's biggest success yet, earning him eight
Stellar Awards A Stellar Award is an award presented by SAGMA to recognize achievements in the gospel music industry.Sagma
The Stel ...
and two
Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...
nominations. It also debuted No. 1 on ''Billboard''
Gospel Gospel originally meant the Christianity, Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the second century Anno domino, AD the term (, from which the English word originated as a calque) came to be used also for the books in which the message w ...
charts. ''Make Room'' touted his first No. 1 radio hit "Not Lucky, I'm Loved" and the huge viral smash "Cycles." This album garnered public support from stars of different cultures and genres like
Justin Bieber Justin Drew Bieber ( ; born March 1, 1994) is a Canadian singer. Regarded as a pop icon, he is recognized for his multi-genre musical performances. He was discovered by record executive Scooter Braun in 2008 and subsequently brought to the U ...
,
Kandi Burruss Kandi Burruss (born May 17, 1976), known professionally by her mononym Kandi, is an American singer, songwriter, actress and television personality. She first gained notice in 1992 as a member of the multi-platinum R&B female vocal group Xscape ...
, and millions of listeners around the world. This project gave strong evidence to Kirk Franklin's claim that Jonathan is, in fact, "the future of Gospel Music." In March 2018, he broke major ground for gospel, when his one-hour TV special "Make Room" aired multiple times on TVOne. He was also the first in his genre to form a major partnership with Tidal. If all that was not enough, McReynolds just missed the bestseller list with his book "Make Room: Finding Where Faith Fits" that he released in the fall of 2018. In June 2019, Jonathan co-starred as a judge with Kirk Franklin, Kelly Price and Erica Campbell, on Season 9 of BET's Sunday Best. In 2020 he released ''People,'' an EP with "Moving On," the 2021 Grammy winner for Best Gospel Performance/Song. Soon after the Grammy win, "Favorite Son" a highly successful BET+ movie was released. His first acting role ever, McReynolds played the lead role alongside Rotimi, Serayah, and Loren Lott. In August 2021, McReynolds earned his fourth straight Gospel Airplay No. 1 with "Grace." In August 2024, McReynolds performed at the
2024 Democratic National Convention The 2024 Democratic National Convention was a United States presidential nominating convention, presidential nominating convention in which delegates of the Democratic Party (United States), United States Democratic Party voted on their party ...
. McReynolds released his second book, "Before You Climb Any Higher: Valley Wisdom for Mountain Dreams," in February 2025.


Personal life

In 2016, McReynolds established Elihu Nation, his non-profit that is geared to "celebrate, promote, and work to create young seekers and models of wisdom." It has organized several events aimed at Christian scholarship and self-help and has awarded at least $30,000 in college scholarships. Between touring, recording and TV appearances, Jonathan has taught for five years at his alma mater
Columbia College Chicago Columbia College Chicago is a Private college, private art college in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1890, it has 6,493 students (as of fall 2021) pursuing degrees in more than 60 undergraduate and graduate degree programs. It i ...
in the music department. His contribution to society outside of music is important to him. In addition to completing his bachelor's degree in music at Columbia College, he earned a master's degree in Biblical studies from Moody Theological Seminary in 2015. In 2018, McReynolds was admitted into Mensa, an international society for high IQ individuals and became an honorary member of Alpha Nu Omega, Inc., an international Christian fraternity. McReynolds is the uncle of actor Khalil Everage.


Discography


References


External links


Official website

Cross Rhythms article
{{DEFAULTSORT:McReynolds, Jonathan 1989 births Living people African-American songwriters African-American Christians Grammy Award winners Musicians from Chicago Songwriters from Illinois MNRK Music Group artists 21st-century African-American musicians 20th-century African-American musicians Mensans