“Playlist: The Very Best of Israel and New Breed”

Integrity Music and Sony Music Release
Playlist: The Very Best of Israel & New Breed

New Collection Is Latest Addition to Sony’s Popular “Playlist” Series

Integrity Music announces the January 21 global release of Playlist: The Very Best of Israel & New Breed, a 13-song collection that is the latest addition to Sony Music’s popular “Playlist” series featuring legacy artists that span a variety of genres.

A collaboration between Integrity and Sony, the project joins a long list of Sony’s best-selling “Playlist” titles from artists who have helped define their genres – – from Billy Joel to Billie Holiday. Playlist: The Very Best of Israel & New Breed features songs from the GRAMMY Award winning group’s albums along with songs from New Breed founder Israel Houghton’s solo projects.

Known for bending genre rules, there’s no box that Israel Houghton can’t punch his way out of musically. Born from the circle of a white mother and a black father, raised within a blended white family, a Latino neighborhood and a spirited church, Houghton has challenged cultural and denominational biases since his youth. And he used his experiences to fuel the creation of his band New Breed as a means to overcome such divisions within the faith community. As a result, Houghton and New Breed have created a canon of songs that have become standards in houses of faith around the globe, while also earning GRAMMY, Dove, Stellar, Soul Train and Premios ARPA awards.

“I remember early on facing some walls and divisions that were skin-tone oriented, where people said you should just do it this way or just do it that way,” Houghton once told Charisma magazine. “White people would say, ‘Don’t do black music,’ and black people would say, ‘Don’t do white music.’ And it got so frustrating.” So, Houghton decided to just make the music his heart envisioned – meshing a variety of styles he refers to as a “Kingdom sound” – and eventually it caught on in a big way.

This “Playlist” album focuses on some of Houghton’s most creative musical moments that unite fans of Christian artists like Chris Tomlin and Gospel/Urban greats such as Kirk Franklin. In fact, Franklin, along with artists Michael Gungor and Fred Hammond, also make guest appearances on the selected songs as does Houghton’s friend, fellow producer and New Breed member Aaron Lindsey.

The Playlist features:
1.   Jesus The Same
2.   No Turning Back (Featuring Aaron Lindsey)
3.   You Have Me / You Hold My World (Featuring Michael Gungor)
4.   Jesus At The Center
5.   Everywhere That I Go
6.   Saved By Grace
7.   New Season
8.   Surprises (Featuring Fred Hammond)
9.   Not Forgotten
10. Again I Say Rejoice
11. Moving Forward
12. Love God Love People
13. Mercies (Featuring Kirk Franklin)

Playlist: The Very Best of Israel & New Breed will be available wherever Christian music is sold, including digital service providers such as iTunes and Amazon.

A worship leader and member of Houston’s Lakewood Church, Israel Houghton has also led worship for Hillsong conferences, Franklin Graham crusades and a variety of music festivals around the world. His latest, best-selling album with New Breed is the live, two-disc CD (and DVD) Jesus At The Center. He is currently producing a new Integrity album with Covenant Worship, featuring David and Nicole Binion. Additional information can be found at newbreedmusic.com.<br />