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Local Christian rockers can't stay away from 'home'
BY FRANKLIN HAYES Splash!
Life in the Florida panhandle is often superimposed with the scenic beauty of the landscape and the ample hospitality of local residents making this region of the state one of the best places to live in our great nation. These social intangibles and dulcet coastlines are what keep thousands of people living here like millions wish they could. Christian performing group Big Daddy Weave certainly understands that connection with this part of the world. Formed in Mobile Ala., two brothers from the group Mike and Jay Weaver are originally from Gulf Breeze.
"We love keeping it on the home front," Mike Weaver said. "We're still connected there [Gulf Breeze], and they won't let us forget where we are from. I've been all over the place and I realized that this area has some very special elements that not everyone else has. I love the hospitality of the south. I love to see the sun shine on the water as I come across the bay bridge, and I love bringing people back to where I come from," says Weaver.
Big Daddy Weave is set to return to the gulf coast in early spring as they perform at GraceFest being held at the Pensacola Fair Grounds on April 8. Members of the critically acclaimed band are no strangers to GraceFest either, having performed at the event since it's conception.
"GraceFest is a mainstay for us, we may have missed one. It's like a giant family reunion, and it's been a really neat thing. We actually played GraceFest before we were signed," Weaver said.
Event planners agree with Weaver that the relationship has been mutually beneficial for both Big Daddy Weave and GraceFest. As the band's success and audience has grown, so have the credibility and audiences of the Christian music festival.
"We're really proud of them," GraceFest event facilitator Sparkie Folkers said. "We know that
they want to come back home. They love playing GraceFest, and we love having them. They always have an open invitation," Folkers said.
Area residents are just as excited to see their hometown heroes return to Northwest Florida.
"I've been following BDW since they first played GraceFest in 2001," Santa Rosa resident Sam Ridgetone said. "I see them every time they come to this area, they are definitely one of my favorites."
Big Daddy Weave may also be more ingrained into living on the Gulf of Mexico than some would expect. In 2004, the group decided to record their latest album, "What I Was Made For" in Mobile Ala., and met an all too familiar roadblock: Hurricane Ivan. The Weaver's parents lost their home, and the band came out of the imbroglio with a heightened sense of purpose.
"The storm inspired a lot of life changing decisions," Weaver said in
reference to relocating to Nashville, Tenn. and getting married. "The events that followed the storm shaped and enforced the theme [of 'What I Was Made For]. The hurricane brought [our song material] out of the theoretical. We got to see the gamut of life from seeing the faithfulness of God, to asking 'God, where are you?' and then finding him right in the middle of everything. There were people all around us struggling with insurance companies, and God provided us with everything we needed," Weaver said.
Big Daddy Weave instantly hit the spotlight in 2002 as their first project, "One and Only" appeared in SoundScan's Christian Top Five, the highest debut for an artist that year. Further honored with a Gospel Music Association Dove Award Nomination for "New Artist of the Year" in 2002, the band garnered its first CHR No. 1 at radio with "Audience of One." Other hit songs include "In Christ," and "What I Was Made For."
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