Bass player Phil Joel has left the band to devote more time to family and personal goals. His last day with the band was December 31st.

“I’ll always be a newsboy, it will remain a strong part of who I am”, said Joel. “I’ve grown up with the guys and they’ll always be brothers to me and the past twelve and a half years have been amazing.”

“We will miss him,”, said frontman Peter Furler. “We appreciate him, and wish he and his family only the best for the future.”

The band has just completed a successful tour of Singapore and China without Joel as a four-piece with guitartist Paul Colman and keyboardist Jeff Frankenstein taking up additional vocal and bass duties.

The boys have decided at this time not to replace Phil, but to perform on their upcoming North American tour as a four-piece. “The four of us have known each other for many years now”, says Furler “It would feel strange for us to bring someone new in at this point.”

Phil, together with his wife Heather, will now focus on deliberatePeople., a ministry that they founded that serves to encourage believers to be more intentional in their daily pursuit of God. For more information, visit www.deliberatepeople.com.

Joel’s latest solo project, The deliberatePeople Album, features a more raw and quieter version of newsboys with additional Brit pop/rock influences. Find out more about the album on his YMZ artist page.

The newsboys are about to embark on their 40+ city North American tour where it will be making a stop in Edmonton at Break Forth 07 on January 28th. Visit the YMZ concert listings for more details.