Jonathan Pierce Hildreth, better known as Jonathan Pierce (November 15, 1967—May 9, 2020), was an American

CCM CCM may refer to: * Cubic centimetre (''ccm''), metric unit of volume * Climate change mitigation (''CCM''), climate change topic Biology and medicine * Calcium concentration microdomains, part of a cell's cytoplasm * Photosynthesis#Carbon ...

gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message (" the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words a ...

singer from

Odessa, Texas Odessa is a city in and the county seat of Ector County, Texas, United States. It is located primarily in Ector County, although a small section of the city extends into Midland County. Odessa's population was 114,428 at the 2020 census, ma ...

and an interior designer in

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and t ...

. Pierce used his first and middle name while omitting his last name for career purposes.

Music career

Pierce began singing in church at age seven and took voice lessons from age nine. Following his graduation from high school, he relocated to

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and t ...

, where he sang with the Christ Church Choir.

Naomi Judd Naomi Judd (born Diana Ellen Judd; January 11, 1946 – April 30, 2022) was an American singer and actress. In 1980, she and her daughter Wynonna (born Christina Claire) formed the duo known as The Judds, which became a very successful country ...

introduced him with

The Imperials The Imperials are an American Christian music group that has been active for over 55 years. Originating as a southern gospel quartet, the innovative group would become pioneers of contemporary Christian music in the 1960s. There have been many ...

, who offered him a spot. He was with them for three years (1990–93), until he was offered a position with the

Gaither Vocal Band The Gaither Vocal Band is an American southern gospel vocal group, named after its founder and leader Bill Gaither. On March 1, 2017, it was announced that the Gaither Vocal Band lineup consisted of Reggie Smith, Wes Hampton, Adam Crabb, Todd ...

. He remained with them for three years (1994–97). Pierce released several albums on

Curb Records Curb Records (also known as Asylum-Curb and formerly known as MCG Curb) is an American record label started by Mike Curb, originally as Sidewalk Records in 1963. From 1969 to 1973, Curb merged with MGM Records where Curb served as President of M ...

. In 1999, he was nominated for five

Gospel Music Association The Gospel Music Association (GMA) is a nonprofit organization founded in 1964 for the purpose of supporting and promoting the development of all forms of gospel music. As of 2011, there are about 4,000 members worldwide. The GMA's membership c ...

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 are presented annually. Formerly held in Nashville, Tennessee, the Dove Awards ...

for Song of the Year and Pop/Contemporary Song of the Year for "I Believe In Christ", Inspirational Song of the Year for "Farther Than Your Grace Can Reach", and Male Vocalist of the Year. His 2000 release, ''Sanctuary'', hit No. 35 on the

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

Top Contemporary Christian Albums chart. Pierce appeared in the part of Joseph in the Nashville revival of ''

Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat ''Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat'' (often colloquially known as ''Joseph'') is a sung-through musical with lyrics by Tim Rice and music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, based on the character of Joseph from the Bible's Book of Genesis. Th ...

'' in December 1999.

Interior design

Pierce left music to pursue a career as an interior designer in which he became the lead designer for CMT's ''Ultimate Country Home'' series in 2003. Pierce is the proprietor of Pierce and Company in Nashville. He subsequently appeared on the

VH1 VH1 (originally an initialism of Video Hits One) is an American basic cable television network based in New York City and owned by Paramount Global. It was created by Warner-Amex Satellite Entertainment, at the time a division of Warner Communic ...

reality show '' LeAnn & Eddie'' in 2014.

Personal life

Pierce married his wife Denise in 1994 and they divorced in 2007. His ex-wife is an acclaimed author who explains that their marriage was tumultuous, yet, refuses to be public about the cause of the divorce. She outlined the marriage struggles in her book, ''"Flying Solo."''

Death

Pierce died on May 9, 2020, while recovering from heart surgery. He was 52 years old.

Discography

With the Imperials

*1991: '' Big God'' (Star Song) *1992: ''

Stir It Up "Stir It Up" is a song composed by Bob Marley in 1967 and first recorded by the group Bob Marley and the Wailers that year and issued as a single. It was later covered by American singer Johnny Nash on his 1972 album ''I Can See Clearly Now'' ...

'' (Star Song)

With the Gaither Vocal Band

*1994: ''Testify'' (Chordant) *1995: ''Southern Classics: Volume II'' (Spring House) *1997: ''Back Home in Indiana'' ive(Chordant) *1997: ''Lovin' God & Lovin' Each Other'' (Spring Hill)

Solo

*1995: ''One Love'' (

) *1998: ''Mission'' (Curb) *2000: ''Sanctuary'' (Curb) *2003: ''For You'' (Curb)

Appearances on other albums

*1997: ''Christmas Is Coming Home'' B.J. Thomas (Warner Resound) *1997: ''Moments'' Vestal Goodman (Chordant)

Gaither Homecoming video solo performances

*1996: ''Sing Your Blues Away''; "Because He Lives" *1996: ''Homecoming Texas Style''; "O What A Savior", "I Bowed On My Knees and Cried Holy" *1996: ''Joy To The World''; "New Star Shining"

References

External links

Pierce and Company website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pierce, Jonathan 1970 births American performers of Christian music Living people Singers from Texas 21st-century American singers 21st-century American male singers