Mark Stuart (musician)
| Mark Stuart | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Mark Allen Stuart |
| Born |
April 14, 1968 Owensboro, Kentucky, United States |
| Genres | Christian rock, rock |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, singer, songwriter |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar |
| Years active | 1987-present |
| Associated acts | Audio Adrenaline, Know Hope Collective |
Mark Allen Stuart (born April 14, 1968) is a Christian rock musician, singer and songwriter best known as the lead vocalist for Christian rock band Audio Adrenaline during their original run from 1987 to 2006.
Early life
Mark Stuart was born to missionary parents Drex and Jo Stuart in Owensboro, Kentucky. His father is an ordained minister. When Mark was younger, his parents spent four years in Haiti as missionaries. Mark also has an older brother named Dave, and a younger sister named Kelly.
Mark attended Kentucky Christian College where he obtained a degree in Secondary Education for Science and Math. Mark says "I can teach physics, calculus, and chemistry." Originally, he was planning to pursue his goal of becoming an aeronautical engineer.
Audio Adrenaline
Mark Stuart met the original guitarist and bassist for Audio Adrenaline, Barry Blair and Will McGinniss, while attending Kentucky Christian College (now known as Kentucky Christian University). Barry Blair was Mark's roommate for three years. They founded the band in 1986 under the name of A-180. However, they temporarily disbanded the next year when Mark went to Haiti for a semester. When he returned to Kentucky, the band reformed and recruited Bob Herdman, who brought them two songs to record. After they did, they changed their name to Audio Adrenaline and signed a deal with Forefront Records. After more than twenty years of success with the band and eight studio albums, Stuart and the band decided to retire on January 2006. The primary reason cited was Stuart's "ongoing vocal challenges" stemming from vocal cord damage caused by a disorder known as spasmodic dysphonia, not by overuse like was previously thought. There is no definitive cause of this disorder, many believe it is genetic.[1]
After Audio Adrenaline
Mark Stuart and Will McGinniss have started a project called Know Hope Collective. The project features a changing group of musicians that will sing worship songs and present testimonies.[2]
Personal life
Stuart married Kerri McKeehan, sister of TobyMac, in 1995.[3]
Missionary work
Stuart has visited Haiti consistently to help with missionary efforts. He started the Hands and Feet Project in 2004 along with Audio Adrenaline.
On January 12, 2010, Mark, his parents (Drex and Jo), and his wife Aegis were working at the Hands and Feet Project in Jacmel, Haiti when the earthquake struck Port-au-Prince. None at the Project were injured by the quake, and Mark was able to get the word out about the plight of the residents of Jacmel via multiple Skype interviews with media outlets such as CNN, MSNBC and BBC, among others. He assisted with relief efforts in Jacmel until he returned to the U.S. on January 22, when he continued to assist by raising funds through continued coordination of relief efforts and organization of benefit concerts.[4][5][6]
Contributions to other artists
- Stuart was producer for two-time Grammy Nominated and now Platinum-selling artist singer/songwriter Jennifer Knapp's hit album Kansas, and co-produced her first Grammy nominated album Lay It Down with Knapp.
- In the rock opera !Hero (in 2003), Stuart starred as Petrov, a character based on the apostle Peter. He starred alongside such notables as Michael Tait, T-Bone and Rebecca St. James.
- Stuart has Executive Producer credit on the albums: The Healing of Harms by Fireflight; A Love Hate Masquerade by Kids in the Way; The Twenty-First Time by Monk & Neagle; Conquering the Fear of Flight by Wavorly; Where Do We Go from Here and Fireproof by Pillar; and Bone-Appetit! by T-Bone, among others.
- Stuart is featured on the tracks: "Lord" from the compilation album Your Name (2008); "Sing Your Praises" from the T-Bone album Bone-Appetit! (2007); and "Air" from the compilation album, Soul Lift (2001).
- Stuart contributes background vocals to the track "Trust in Me" on the album Katy Hudson (2001)
References
- ↑ Audio Adrenaline says "Adios" on AudioA.com Archived May 8, 2006, at the Wayback Machine.
- ↑ Know Hope Collective on Jesus Freak Hideout; Spinhouse (June 3, 2010)
- ↑ 100% Adrenaline on CCM Magazine; Selby, Marykay (April 1996)
- ↑ Christian musician Mark Stuart meets needs in Haiti on ChristianTelegraph
- ↑ From Haiti: Mark Stuart talks to CNN and other media about earthquake on BeliefNet (January 15, 2010)
- ↑ Audio Adrenaline Mark Stuart Featured on MSNBC on Jesus Freak Hideout (January 18, 2010)