"I'll Sing"

“I’ll Sing” Song Story

“I’ll Sing” sort of came by surprise. It was June 11, a hot day, and I was hiking in our beautiful Alberta foothills in Kananaskis Country.

My older son Lee had just moved to start a new career in another province, and my younger son Adam would be starting his second year of university that coming fall. I thought of my boys - their personalities as young boys, how they grew up, and their humor. I thought of how talented they are - how I did my best to see those talents early on and encourage them, and how they are using them now… I never would have considered that this is where they would be now, and I felt proud and honored to be their mom.

I also recalled my sons’ births and those precious first moments alone with them - The doctor had left, the nurses were now back at their stations, and my husband had gone home for the night. It was now just him and I. I remembered holding him on my lap, looking into his eyes, and asking, “So, who are you?” I had this odd feeling of “I don’t know who you are”. I asked him “What are you going to do? What will be your gifts and talents? Are you “book smarts” and a math guy like your dad, will you be musically talented like your mom? What is your personality?….” I felt deeply honored to call him mine.

I then started to consider what Mary must have felt. She had no intention of having a family so soon. She wasn’t even married. She was a young girl who was told she would conceive by the Holy Spirit, marry Joseph, and have a baby who she would name Jesus, for he would be our Savior. How shocking that must have been to her. “Who are you and what will you do to see us through, with your gifts and talents to be our Savior?” What does that mean? Both the honor and utmost responsibility of being called to be Jesus’ mother must have been overwhelming to her. He was not only to be her son, but also her Savior and King.

“I’ll Sing” is Mary’s first moments with her new son - a lullaby to her baby, but also her humble tribute to her King.

(Sheep River Trail, toward Gibraltar Mountain - Kananaskis Country, AB)

Recording “I’ll Sing”

A day after my hike and coming up with my song idea, friends from GMI Hub (Gospel Music Industry Hub, from Toronto, Ontario) posted on social media, asking artists to submit their Christmas songs for consideration for their “Family Christmas - Volume 2” album. The deadline was July 31. I called my producer Mark Troyer (Evergreen Sound, Calgary, Alberta) and asked if he possibly had any time in the next two weeks to record a single. He did, and we arranged a recording date. I finished writing my song and sent Mark a rough voice memo recording of my first draft.

I met Mark at his studio July 16th. We recorded the piano and vocal, and Mark later added his backing vocal and string arrangements, worked his magic, and had my song ready for me by late July. Once again, Mark did an amazing job creating a song with the sound I was striving for. “I’ll Sing” was now a song.

GMI Hub gladly accepted “I’ll Sing” for their Christmas album, and “Family Christmas - Volume 2” was released October 29. I then had the honor to be a guest on GMI Hub on their YouTube December 1 episode to share about “I’ll Sing”.

“I’ll Sing” was added to my website, iTunes, Spotify, and Apple Music on November 15, and my lyric video was released on YouTube December 1.

“I’ll Sing” came by surprise, as did the process that followed. I had no intention of releasing new music so soon after the release of my album “Brave Girl”, but was happy to accept the opportunity. It’s been a fun ride. Fans have been very responsive to this special song and I appreciate their support.