Krista Branch is an American singer whose 2010 song "I Am America" has been called the anthem of the
Tea Party movement
The Tea Party movement was an American fiscally conservative political movement within the Republican Party that began in 2009. Members of the movement called for lower taxes and for a reduction of the national debt and federal budget defic ...
. Branch produced "I Am America" with her husband, who wrote the song, to protest the treatment of the Tea Party by Democrats. After being uploaded to
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second most ...
, the song was aired on
Glenn Beck
Glenn Lee Beck (born February 10, 1964) is an American conservative political commentator, radio host, entrepreneur, and television producer. He is the CEO, founder, and owner of Mercury Radio Arts, the parent company of his television and rad ...
's radio show and it quickly grew in popularity. It was subsequently performed on
Fox News
The Fox News Channel, abbreviated FNC, commonly known as Fox News, and stylized in all caps, is an American multinational conservative cable news television channel based in New York City. It is owned by Fox News Media, which itself is ...
and at events across the country. A former ''
American Idol
''American Idol'' is an American singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It aired on Fox from June 11, 2002, to A ...
'' contestant, Branch was eliminated early in the process.
Branch was born in Mount Pleasant,
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
, and later lived in
Bixby, Oklahoma
Bixby is a city in Tulsa and Wagoner counties in the U.S. state of Oklahoma, and is a suburb of Tulsa. The population was 28,609 at the 2020 census and 20,884 in the 2010 census, an increase of 13.70 percent In 2010, Bixby became the 19th larg ...
. She married Michael Branch in 2000, and together they have three children. Early in the marriage, her family faced serious financial difficulties, and later, while they were living in
Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the wes ...
, faced the near death of their youngest daughter.
The Branches became supporters of 2012 presidential candidate
Herman Cain
Herman Cain (December 13, 1945July 30, 2020) was an American businessman and Tea Party movement activist within the Republican Party. Born in Memphis, Tennessee, Cain grew up in Georgia and graduated from Morehouse College with a bachelor's de ...
after performing at several events where he was a keynote speaker, and "I Am America" was made the official theme song of the campaign. Another song released by Branch, "Remember Who We Are", was made the official campaign anthem of
Rick Santorum
Richard John Santorum ( ; born May 10, 1958) is an American politician, attorney, and political commentator. A member of the Republican Party, he served as a United States Senator from Pennsylvania from 1995 to 2007 and was the Senate's third ...
's
presidential campaign
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
*President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
.
Branch's music regularly expresses religious and political themes emphasizing
American exceptionalism
American exceptionalism is the belief that the United States is inherently different from other nations.EP, and released her debut album, ''Calm in the Chaos'', on January 11, 2019.
East Texas
East Texas is a broadly defined cultural, geographic, and ecological region in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Texas that comprises most of 41 counties. It is primarily divided into Northeast and Southeast Texas. Most of the region con ...
, and began singing in her youth at church along with her four siblings. She also lived in Oklahoma for part of her childhood. Branch moved out of Texas with her family at the age of 14, but remained proud of her Texas heritage. To focus on her music career, Branch and her family moved 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 ...
, in 2010.
She married Michael Branch in 2000, and they have since had three children together. Early in their marriage they had a low income, and Branch's husband took on several odd jobs, in addition to his work as a youth pastor, to make a living. He describes living with Branch in a "shabby place" in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where they struggled to pay $480 a month in rent. Later, they bought a house in Tulsa, and rented it out while they were living in Colorado; they got into financial difficulties when the tenants stopped paying the rent, and they accepted the bank's decision to foreclose the mortgage, as that cleared their debt. They appeared on the Christian news magazine program, ''
the 700 Club
''The 700 Club'' is the flagship television program of the Christian Broadcasting Network, airing each weekday in syndication in the United States and available worldwide on CBN.com. The news magazine program features live guests, daily news, con ...
'', talking about an incident in which their baby daughter was revived after drowning in their bathtub, and they attributed their child's survival to the power of prayer, having been inspired after seeing ''
The Passion of the Christ
''The Passion of the Christ'' is a 2004 American epic biblical drama film produced, directed and co-written by Mel Gibson and starring Jim Caviezel as Jesus of Nazareth, Maia Morgenstern as Mary, mother of Jesus, and Monica Bellucci as Mar ...
'' a few days earlier.
Career
While living in Bixby, Oklahoma, Branch auditioned for the seventh season of ''American Idol'' and was chosen by the judges to move on to the preliminary round in
Hollywood
Hollywood usually refers to:
* Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California
* Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States
Hollywood may also refer to:
Places United States
* Hollywood District (disambiguation)
* Hollywoo ...
. Footage of her performance was not included on the show, but she appeared in a montage at the end of the episode. A week later, she was eliminated from the competition. Branch told ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' her decision to enter the contest was not due to a desire to "be somebody", but because she felt she should take any opportunity with the belief that God would bless her efforts.
Two years later, the video for Branch's fourth single, "I Am America", was released on
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second most ...
. Her husband, Michael Branch, wrote the song partly in response to criticism of the
Tea Party protests
The Tea Party protests were a series of protests throughout the United States that began in early 2009. The protests were part of the larger political Tea Party movement. Most Tea Party activities have since been focused on opposing efforts ...
from Democrats, while also drawing on his own difficulties in life. In an interview for Billy Kelly of ''
the Washington Times
''The Washington Times'' is an American conservative daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., that covers general interest topics with a particular emphasis on national politics. Its broadsheet daily edition is distributed throughout ...
Tea Party Report, Branch told how soon after her husband wrote the song. he had her quickly learn the lyrics and then recorded her performing the song. She originally felt the song was too confrontational for her, but decided the message was so important that she should record it. In the music video, footage of Tea Party rallies is interspersed with scenes of Branch singing on a sound stage and kids holding signs containing political messages and
scripture
Religious texts, including scripture, are texts which various religions consider to be of central importance to their religious tradition. They differ from literature by being a compilation or discussion of beliefs, mythologies, ritual pract ...
. "I Am America" was played on the July 7, 2010, broadcast of
Glenn Beck
Glenn Lee Beck (born February 10, 1964) is an American conservative political commentator, radio host, entrepreneur, and television producer. He is the CEO, founder, and owner of Mercury Radio Arts, the parent company of his television and rad ...
's radio show and a week later Fox News host Bill O'Reilly devoted a portion of his "Pinheads and Patriots" segment to the song, saying that "for honoring legitimate protest", Branch was a patriot. About 21 days after being uploaded, the video had nearly 475,000 views. "I Am America" soon became a popular song with the Tea Party movement and has been described as the movement's anthem. ''The New York Times'' described Branch as having a "dynamic presence" on stage when singing the song.
Glenn Beck played another Krista Branch song titled "Remember Who We Are" on his ''Insider Extreme'' radio program early in August 2010, and the song was featured in a video from Branch promoting Beck's
Restoring Honor rally
The Restoring Honor rally was held August 28, 2010 at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. and was organized by Glenn Beck to "restore honor in America" and to raise funds for the non-profit Special Operations Warrior Foundation. Billed as a ...
. The lyrics for "Remember Who We Are" contain a mixture of defiant metaphors with a Christian rock style of music. Branch's husband said he wrote the song to "remind us of who Americans are in the wake of the most trying of times." He stated that Americans stand up and come together in the face of adversity, saying he prayed the song would bring people hope. Calling it an "inspiring patriotic song", the video for the song was made the "Video of the Day" on Glenn Beck's site on September 3, 2010.
Her first EP ''I Am America'' was released on September 3, 2010, by Soundmindpro Publishing, a company established by Branch's husband. The EP included "Remember Who We Are", "I Am America", and "Foreign Land", a song about departed American soldiers. Jeremiah Holdsworth of IndieVision felt the songs were strong, noting their patriotic themes and subtle religious subtext, and said the song "Foreign Land" particularly moved him. Branch released a new single on July 22, 2011, called "Lead Me On", a cover of the Amy Grant song and released a video for the song a month later. The song was described as pro-Israel with the music video containing imagery related to the history of the Jewish people, including a prominent emphasis on the Holocaust.
In addition to her performances in the United States, Branch has performed for teens in Guatemala and Slovakia. She performed at the 2011 Sunbelt Ag Expo in conjunction with the
American Bible Society
American Bible Society is a U.S.-based Christian nonprofit headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. As the American member organization of United Bible Societies, it supports global Bible translation, production, distribution, literacy, engage ...
, singing patriotic songs to support American soldiers and performing the
national anthem
A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and Europe ...
for the expo. Branch attended the Washington Times' 30th-anniversary celebration on October 3, 2012, and performed several songs for the event. Branch regularly performs with Oklahoma jazz saxophonist Grady Nichols. She is working on her debut album, which was scheduled to be released in early 2013.
2012 Republican presidential primaries
Branch's music has gained prominence as a result of its use during the 2012 Republican presidential primary. When she was performing "I Am America" at events across the country, Herman Cain was often the keynote speaker. Branch and her husband came to appreciate his political views and her husband signed on with Cain's campaign. "I Am America" was later adopted by the candidate as his campaign's official theme. Cain said when interviewed about the song, "The first time I heard that song, the message was so right-on, I felt goose bumps just listening to it." The song was later described by the
National Journal
''National Journal'' is an advisory services company based in Washington, D.C., offering services in government affairs, advocacy communications, stakeholder mapping, and policy brands research for government and business leaders. It publishes d ...
as having "underscored Cain's anti-elitist appeal" with its lyrics. Campaign ads featuring "I Am America" gave the song increased exposure. On ''
The Colbert Report
''The Colbert Report'' ( ) is an American late-night talk and news satire television program hosted by Stephen Colbert that aired four days a week on Comedy Central from October 17, 2005, to December 18, 2014, for 1,447 episodes. The show focu ...
'', comedian Stephen Colbert satirically claimed Cain got the line "I Am America" from Colbert's book, '' I Am America (And So Can You!)''. Several parodies of the ad were then shown on the program using the song.
Rick Santorum announced in March 2012 that he has adopted Branch's song "Remember Who We Are" as an official theme song for his campaign, having been without a theme song prior to the announcement. Santorum said he chose the song because "few songs express the beauty and strength of who we are as free Americans better than Krista's." The song is seen as representing the emotion of his campaign effort.
David Weigel
David Weigel (born September 26, 1981) is an American journalist. He works for ''Semafor''. Weigel previously covered politics for ''The Washington Post,'' ''Slate,'' and ''Bloomberg Politics'' and is a contributing editor for ''Reason'' magaz ...
described Branch as the "muse of the insurgent conservative candidate" due to her songs being used by Cain and Santorum in their primary campaigns.
Politics
Branch has said her patriotism and admiration for America is the unifying principle of her music. She suggests the Tea Party is animated not by rebelliousness, but by patriotism and love of freedom. Her music often incorporates political themes and religious views that have led to her songs resonating with Tea Party supporters and commentators such as Glenn Beck and Bill O'Reilly.
The artist has performed at political rallies led by Beck, and at campaign rallies for Herman Cain. Her husband joined Cain's presidential campaign as state director for Tennessee after hearing him speak at events where Branch performed. Branch said Cain was a natural choice for her husband and her because she felt their beliefs aligned with Cain's. Since 2010, she received three payments that totaled $10,000 for live entertainment services provided at political rallies from several political action committees associated with Cain's campaign.