Phil Wickham and Brandon Lake might currently be helming the “I Believe Tour” and the “Tear Off The Roof Tour,” respectively; but come August, the two worship powerhouses will once again join forces for “Summer Worship Nights 2024.” Reprising their popular co-headlining bill from 2023, the friends and frequent collaborators will bring a nearly two-hour set to 17 new cities for a second run of shows together later this year. Featuring special guest Hulvey, the 2024 installment of “Summer Worship Nights” is set to launch Aug. 1 in Detroit, Mich., and will make stops in major markets, including Atlanta, Boston, Philadelphia, Denver and Los Angeles, before wrapping on Aug. 28 in Honolulu, Hawaii.
KLOVE.com recently sat down with the hitmakers for a joint interview ahead of the tour’s pre-sale, which officially begins today, Mar. 22, 2024. Wickham logged in from right outside San Diego, where he lives with his wife and four children. Meanwhile, Lake joined the conversation via Zoom from his home in Charleston, S.C. The two men consistently lavished praise on one another, their mutual admiration and respect evident from the beginning of the call. During the exclusive chat, they shared the secret to their strong bond, the beauty of teamwork and the reason they’re bringing “Summer Worship Nights” back for a second season.
KLOVE.com: How did the idea for “Summer Worship Nights” — and more specifically a tour together — originally come about?
Brandon Lake: Phil has had a massive influence on my life, songwriting, leadership, artistry, all of that. And it kind of goes way back to where Phil’s manager, Brandon Breitenbach, and I started having conversations. I needed a lot of help as my career was taking off, and he became my manager. And since then, it’s become more than just management. We really operate like a team and partners. And so Phil and I started doing more and more together. We were out together on Phil’s “Singalong Tour,” and it felt so great; it just felt like we had always been brothers.
This has been a really beautiful season for Phil and me, where, we have a lot of songs that are being listened to by a lot of people. And so it felt like the right time, the right people, the right partnership to go out and lead worship together. The lightbulb just went off and we’re like, “Yeah, why aren’t we doing this together? This makes complete sense.”
Phil Wickham: Obviously, God is doing amazing things with Brandon. I mean, song after song after song — he’s just blanketing the Church in praise. And there’s some cool things that God is doing with the songs I’ve been writing, too. And so it was one of those things that was easy to pull the trigger on. Same team, same heart, same vision. We love each other. It’s like, there are no cons to this. It sounds like a blast. Now we’ve just got to get people to show up. And when they did, it felt like there was something about the unity of this tour. It wasn’t just like Brandon plus Phil equals this. It was like Brandon plus Phil equals something much greater than the sum of its parts. I think God just smiled down on the vision.
KLOVE.com: The production and stage design for “Summer Worship Nights” was top-notch last year, and I’m assuming it will be equally as massive in 2024. Was that something that was important to you as you dreamed up this tour?
Lake: We give all the credit to our team. Actually, Phil and I walked into the room a day or two before the tour started, during rehearsals, to see it for the first time. And I think we fell to the floor. I know we teared up. I think that was the moment for me — just the weight of what we were getting to do kind of hit us, and it got us so excited for how it was going to impact so many people. But our team is just absolutely incredible. We can’t take credit for how it looked. We just have amazing people around us.
Wickham: Brandon and I often say how blown away we are by the people God has put around us, and it’s on every level. Even the guys out in the lobby setting up T-shirts for us… We’ll stop by and have this beautiful conversation about God and be uplifted by even the people who are doing the work that’s not even a part of what we’re doing backstage. It’s like every single person, from the beginning to the end, is so in it. And I think that’s a huge reason why so many people had the experience they did at “Summer Worship Nights” last year.
KLOVE.com: What surprised you the most about the initial run of this tour in 2023 that you’ll be bringing with you into “Summer Worship Nights 2024”?
Lake: I think the biggest takeaway and the thing we celebrate the most is all the people who said “yes” to Jesus. We gave people an invitation to say “yes” to the Lord every night — whether that’s coming back and rededicating your life or saying “yes” to Jesus for the very first time. Maybe they got convinced they were coming to a concert, and we surprised them with some church. And they’re like, “Man, whatever you guys have, if this is Jesus, I want that.” And so, it was so good, we’re like, “Let’s run it back. Let’s do it again next year.” We’re doing individual tours as well this year, but the thing we get most excited about is collaboration and this collaborative tour because it looks like the Kingdom, and people walk away saved.
Wickham: Very early on we felt like we needed to make sure people had a moment where they could think back and say, “I was at ‘Summer Worship Nights,’ and I remember when Brandon and Phil gave me a chance to say, ‘I want to follow Jesus.’” A lot of people, still to this day, will write in and say, “Thank you so much. I’ve been praying for my husband for 15 years. My kids have never given their lives to Jesus until now. Thank you.” I mean, hundreds and hundreds every night. I know God is very, very blessed by that. I know that brings a smile to the Father’s face when we’re proud and unashamed of His Gospel together. So I’m just so excited to bring it back, and I can’t wait for these nights again.
KLOVE.com: How will “Summer Worship Nights 2024” be different from last year’s tour? What can fans expect?
Wickham: Well, we were pretty strategic to go to different cities. So I’m hoping there’ll be quite a few new eyes. But I also hope, if people loved it last year, they’ll come again. Brandon and I both have new records out since the last tour, and so I’m excited to sing some of those new songs. But I think it will keep the same heart, same unity, same vision. It’s just a praise party where we keep it about Jesus and keep it simple.
Honestly, I don’t know if it’s going to be that different in my heart, because for me, it hasn’t changed in 20 years. Whether I’m in a home fellowship with an acoustic guitar or in an arena, I just want to see people meet with Jesus and see their hearts light up for the Kingdom. I want to see burdens fall off people’s shoulders under the truth of who Jesus is, because Jesus says His truth sets people free. And so in a way, it’s like I’m just going out and doing the same thing I’ve always done.
Lake: Yeah, we’re coming out to lead worship. We’re coming out to do the same thing we’ve always done. And yet, there’s going to be a new word, there’s going to be new songs, and so it will be a fresh experience. God’s always speaking something fresh. He’s got a new word for me today. He’s got a new word for me tomorrow. And even if it’s the same instruction, I have an opportunity to respond to it fresh, every single day. And so I keep telling people, “Yes, you’re going to be entertained, but I pray you’re coming for an encounter.” That’s what we are teeing up. That’s the atmosphere we’re trying to set. And so even if you fly to a new city and it’s the same exact show, I know God can do something completely new in your heart.
Read more of our exclusive conversation with Phil and Brandon over at Air1.com HERE.
