Taylor Swift May Have Had to Fight Label for Christian Band
Taylor Swift may have had to fight label bosses to agree with her decision to give Christian rock group NEEDTOBREATHE an opening spot on her North American “Speak Now” tour that begins this weekend in Omaha, Neb.
That’s what World Entertainment News Network is suggesting after talking to NEEDTOBREATHE singer Bear Rinehart recently.
“It was actually really natural,” Rinehart told WENN about the announcement made back in December. “She just called – she’s a big fan, which is really nice ... She’s been a fan for a little while ... and even though it didn’t totally make sense for us, we’re probably not what people (record label bosses) would have had, she really liked the band a lot and made it happen.”
NEEDTOBREATHE, formed in 1999 by an Assembly of God pastor's two sons and their two childhood friends, has scored four top 10 hits on the Christian charts, including a number one with “Washed by the Water” in 2008. The band has also put two songs in the top 40 on the mainstream charts with “You Are Here” and “Something Beautiful.” They won two Dove Awards this year for “Group of the Year” and “Rock/Contemporary Recorded Song of the Year” for the song “Something Beautiful.”
The band will appear on all North American stops of the tour with Swift. In March, CMT reported that Frankie Ballard and Danny Gokey will also appear at select shows, as will new artists Hunter Hayes, Josh Kelley, Randy Montana, James Wesley and Charlie Worsham.
