Texas natives The Afters have emerged as one of the leading bands of contemporary Christian music, known for blending pop and rock influences in their songs.
∙ Lead singer Josh Havens and guitarist Matt Fuqua met in 1999 while working as baristas at a coffee shop, where they wrote songs between shifts and played them for customers.
∙ While performing at Dallas clubs under the name Blisse, the band self-released their first album, 2001’s When the World is Wonderful, which gained attention from major labels.
∙ Their debut single, 2005’s Gold-certified “Beautiful Love,” crossed over to the Pop chart and was used as the theme song for MTV’s reality show 8th and Ocean.
∙ Four of their LPs reached the Top 10 on Billboard’s Top Christian Albums chart, including their sophomore release, 2008’s Never Going Back to OK, which peaked at No. 1.
∙ Nominated for eight Dove Awards, they’ve won three, including Short Form Video of the Year for the title track of their 2016 album, Live on Forever.
∙ The Afters’ chart-topping LP Fear No More hit the No. 3 spot on leading Christian music site Freeccm’s Top 10 Christian Albums of 2019 list.