Gaither Kaufman & Schoepf

We are Benjy Gaither, Josh Kaufman, and Tim Schoepf and we met in the late nineties in Indiana where all three of us attended Anderson University. We were close friends then and we are closer friends now, but in the years between, we were in and out of touch - busy wandering and searching on separate paths - in some ways very different, but in other ways strangely similar. Reaching the heights of success in the music industry, we each found ourselves the emptiest and most lonely we'd been while playing the biggest stages of our careers. But as it would turn out, that wasn't all we had in common ...

As we drifted in and out of each others’ daily lives and became husbands and dads, we each grappled with our own journeys of faith, identity, meaning, and success. Then in 2019, two of us (Josh and Tim) had encounters with Jesus that brought us back to faith. As we reconnected in later months, marveling and laughing at the ways God had finally really reached us, we discovered we were both feeling called to share our own stories and testimonies through music to audiences we had long since given up on ever playing for again. While we were toying with the idea of taking old hymns and gospel music to churches where modern worship music had eclipsed some of the great old songs, a couple of chance (or divinely inspired) conversations with a few giants of the Jesus Movement and gospel music explosion of the 1970s lit a spark in us ...

Many long conversations and providential coincidences later, we find ourselves embarking on a  new project together - one that is candidly much more consequential than than those late 90’s jam sessions at Benjy’s house learning Toto songs. We’ve put together an ever-evolving live show of songs from the Jesus Movement and early days of Christian music, mixed in stories from artists we know, and some of our own testimonies. We’re also in the process of traveling around the country to film interviews with dozens of artists, leaders, and everyday folk who were part of the Jesus Movement. As we launch our podcast “RE·VISION” we’ll be incorporating footage from those interviews and discussing the themes that emerge with each other and a rotating list of special guests. As we get further along the roadmap, we look forward to announcing larger live events and longer format documentary video.

In our research of the Jesus Movement and the music that came from it, we've discovered an overarching sense of sincerity and authenticity - a compulsion to share the transformative power of Jesus' love by telling, and probably more importantly, by loving others. The Jesus Movement came out of the tumult and turmoil of the late 1960's when people were desperately searching for meaning, purpose, and peace. I think it is fair to say that we live in a time that is similar in meaningful and relevant ways. Perhaps a look back would do the church good - not simply for the sake of reminiscing and recapturing something lost (though that might be part of it), but in order to better see the way forward.

Our key objectives with this project are to:

INFORM

We hope to bring this music and these stories to people who are unfamiliar with the music, the movement, and the era

REMIND

We hope to remind those who experienced the movement firsthand of the meaning, power, and authenticity that they found in it.

INSPIRE

Lastly, but most importantly, we hope to inspire people to decision, action, and meaningful change.