Provident Music Distribution announces the significant signing of Maranatha! to a major distribution deal. Beginning April 1, all Maranatha! audio titles will be exclusively distributed to the Christian retail market by Provident Music Distribution. The first new projects to come under the agreement include the latest in the Promise Keepers Series, Promise Keepers Live, coming June 4; Top 25 UK, the latest extension in the highly-successful Top 25 Series; as well as a split-track version of Top 25 Praise Songs, the leading title in the series, both arriving at retail in July.
“We are extremely pleased to welcome Maranatha! to the Provident Music Distribution family,” states Don Noes, senior vice president of Provident Music Distribution. “With the phenomenal growth that praise and worship music has had in the last few years, it’s exciting to be in partnership with this innovative praise and worship music company. We are proud of their impact on the Church as well as organizations such as Promise Keepers. We look forward to the opportunity of expanding the reach of Maranatha!’s catalog in the CBA market.”
Beginning Monday, March 25, the Provident Music Distribution sales team will begin presenting Maranatha! releases which street after April 1. All products will begin shipping from the Provident Music Distribution warehouse on Monday, April 1. Maranatha!’s former distributor for audio titles, Word Distribution, will fulfill orders through March 31.
Randy Alward, COO of Maranatha!, confirms, “We’re excited to be with Provident Music Distribution. Not only have they demonstrated quality systems and efficient distribution capabilities, but they have great hearts and a passion for what the Lord is doing in worship. We believe this partnership lays a wonderful foundation for the future of Maranatha!”
Maranatha! emerged from the heart of the Jesus Movement in the early 1970s as a voice of hope to a turbulent generation. As millions of young people found truth and meaning in Jesus Christ, a worldwide spiritual explosion transformed nearly every aspect of the Church. This religious cultural revolution brought forth a response in song called Jesus Music.
Since the introduction of the early praise albums in the late 1970s, Maranatha! has sold over 30 million units worldwide. Industry recognition for Maranatha! projects includes numerous RIAA platinum and gold awards, an ASCAP 2000 Song of the Year Award for “Lord I Lift Your Name On High” and a GRAMMY in 1991 for A Capella Kids in the Best Album for Children category. Maranatha! most recently established the Top 25 Series, a successful and recognized brand of praise and worship music. Top 25 Praise Songs, the debut project in this series, was certified gold in 2001.
Nashville-based Provident Music Group, a unit of The Zomba Group of Companies, is among the world’s top Christian music companies. Provident encompasses record labels Reunion Records, Essential Records, Brentwood Records, Benson Records, Diadem Music and Cedarmont Kids; a music publishing division, Brentwood-Benson Music Publishing Inc.; and Provident Music Distribution, which primarily services the Christian retail market.
