When I pulled up to The Well Coffeehouse in Brentwood, Tennessee, a place where I frequently meet friends or grab an iced latte, I knew something special was happening. A line stretched out the door and around the corner. I had been invited to attend a live recording of SiriusXM The Message’s Acoustic Story Time with host Jason Gray.
The guests for the evening were Drew & Ellie Holcomb and Bear Rinehart of NEEDTOBREATHE. I expected a typical Nashville songwriter’s round. What I experienced was something far more intimate.
It felt less like a concert and more like sitting on a back porch on a summer evening with family and old friends, celebrating the things that make life, faith, and community beautiful. Authenticity wrapped itself around the room like a warm blanket. Looking back, I should have known with this lineup that I was in for a memorable night.
Jason Gray opened the evening by sharing a brand-new song inspired by the late Rich Mullins. Mullins famously addressed the topic of church hypocrisy by saying, “The church isn’t full of hypocrites; we’ve always got room for more.” Gray’s new song, “Room for More,” carried that same grace-filled spirit and set the tone for everything that followed.
Ellie Holcomb kept the evening moving with “Hope Is Gonna Find Me,” while Drew shared his anthem “Find Your People.” Both songs felt tailor-made for a room full of listeners who knew every word and weren’t afraid to sing along. Bear Rinehart followed with “Momma Loves,” the first track from the band’s latest record.
Then the stories began to flow.
Ellie shared memories of performing at Red Rocks alongside Michael W. Smith and Third Day, along with stories from a recent trip to Peru celebrating her and Drew’s twentieth anniversary, including a visit to Machu Picchu. Drew reflected on the journey of his song “Tennessee” becoming an official state song and spoke about how music helps us find our sense of home, reaffirming why he continues to write and perform.
One of the night’s most touching moments came when Drew and Ellie covered each other’s songs. Ellie performed Drew’s “What Would I Do Without You,” while Drew shared how Ellie’s song “Constellations” had deeply impacted his own faith journey.
Bear rounded out the storytelling portion of the evening with the title track from NEEDTOBREATHE’s latest album, The Long Surrender. He described the record as the product of hitting rock bottom and learning what it means to surrender over time rather than all at once. Speaking candidly about the album, he admitted it felt almost like cheating because the songs were simply his story, “ripped from the pages of my journal.”
When the applause finally settled after “The Long Surrender,” Ellie summed up what many in the room seemed to be thinking. “That song feels like it’s always been there,” she said. “In the best way possible.”
The evening could have ended there and everyone would have gone home satisfied, but Jason Gray had one more surprise. He shared “Land of the Living,” a song he co-wrote with Ellie, and then invited Drew and Bear to each play one final song. With Drew & Ellie Holcomb and NEEDTOBREATHE heading out on tour together later this year, Jason also asked them to share what they appreciated about touring with one another.
Drew praised Bear by saying that great artists need great songs, but they also need a voice that sounds human and real. Bear’s response about Drew was equally heartfelt. “He’s consistent,” Bear said. “It’s how he writes and how he lives. His songs are earnest.”
For the final songs, Ellie performed “The Whole Thing.” Drew chose the Drew & Ellie favorite “Feels Like Home.” Then Bear let Jason and Drew pick his closer. Before they could answer, the audience loudly made its own choice: “Washed by the Water.”
And that’s how the night ended.
Voices filled the room as everyone sang along to the NEEDTOBREATHE anthem. We may have been packed into a coffeehouse in Brentwood, but for a couple of hours, surrounded by stories, songs, laughter, and faith, it felt like home.
Catch this episode all weekend on SiriusXM’s The Message and on-demand on the Sirius XM app.