Acclaimed singer/songwriter Matthew West returns January 15th with Something To Say, his highly anticipated third studio recording and first project in more than two years. Produced by Brown Bannister, Ed Cash and Christopher Stevens, the album is West’s Sparrow Records debut and follows a life-changing year for the artist.

In 2007, doctors at the Vanderbilt Voice Center in Nashville discovered a vascular polyp and hemorrhaged blood vessels on West’s vocal chord. In addition to undergoing surgery, he was unable to speak for a total of two months following the diagnosis. However, during this season of silence God refocused West’s priorities and renewed his purpose.

“Prior to this experience, I only had a glimpse of what these songs had to say, but having literally nothing to say for two months, it was as if I understood what these songs were trying to communicate all along,” says West. “Sometimes you’re given the message before you know what it means. Then the test comes, and you can see how God intended everything to be.”

“No matter how many mistakes we’ve made or trials we’ve faced, it’s the brokenness of our lives that God uses to give us something to say to the world,” he continues. “I was sitting in church one Sunday after my surgery when my pastor read a quote from C.S. Lewis, ‘God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains; it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world.’ It’s easier to cover up the weakest moments in life, hoping no one sees, but that’s not God’s plan for us.”

The project’s debut single, “You Are Everything”, is already a multi-format hit, landing this week at #5 on R&R’s Christian AC Indicator chart and at #7 on R&R’s Christian AC National Airplay chart. The single is also #12 on R&R’s Soft AC/Inspo National Airplay chart and #22 on R&R’s Christian CHR National Airplay chart.

Exploring themes of brokenness and restoration, Something To Say is West’s most personal project to date. One of Christian music’s most acclaimed and versatile songwriters, West wrote or co-wrote all of the album’s 12 selections. Showcasing both his signature energetic pop/rock anthems and emotional ballads, highlights of Something To Say include the title cut, “The Motions”, “Save A Place For Me”, “Life Inside You” and “All The Broken Pieces”.

West catapulted onto the Christian music scene in 2003 with his debut single, “More” which was the most played Christian AC song of 2004. The multi-Dove Award nominee and sought-after songwriter released two critically-acclaimed Universal South recordings, Happy (2003) and History (2005); has been a mainstay at Christian radio with memorable hits like “Only Grace”, “History” and “Next Thing You Know”; and has toured with such artists as tobyMac and BarlowGirl. In addition, West has penned songs for Rascal Flatts, Billy Ray Cyrus, Natalie Grant and Mandisa, among others.

Available at Christian retailers across Canada next Tuesday, Something To Say was recently featured on HearItFirst.ca. You can find out more about the album on West’s YMZ artist page.