Tony Cummings reports on the latest radio collab by two American Christian music hitmakers, BRITT NICOLE & JOE L BARNES

In this time of unrelenting trouble for the nations of the world, the collaboration between Britt Nicole and Joe L Barnes, "Keep Looking Up", says a great deal. Its lyrics go, "You've come this far, you can't let go/You can make it if you just hold on/To all of the dreamers, don't stop believing/Heaven is watching over us."

Britt has been on the US CCM scene for a goodly while. A native of Salisbury, North Carolina, she was appearing on her church's daily television programme and performed at New York's famed Carnegie Hall with her school's advanced chorus. Those early pursuits paved the way for her to sign with Sparrow Records in 2006. She burst on the CCM charts a year later with her label debut 'Say It', which gained her her first Cross Rhythms radio hits and in the US she toured that year with Steven Curtis Chapman, Jeremy Camp, NewSong and Hawk Nelson.

Newer to the Christian music scene is Joe L Barnes. In 2012 he released his first album, 'Heavenly Sounds', before going on to work with worship collective Maverick City and in 2020 was nominated by Nashville's Dove Awards as New Artist Of The Year (demonstrating the Dove's scant regard for the word "New"). The Kentucky native has now written or co-composed songs for a wide range of artists including Maverick City Music, Tasha Cobbs Leonard, Israel & New Breed and many more.

Now his collaboration with Britt Nicole brings together two fine US talents with a truly uplifting message.