Today we’d like to introduce you to Shane Mickelsen
Hi Shane, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
J209 started with the desire and mission to ignite the fire of faith in Christ in the rising generation. Seven young adults heard about this opportunity and decided to join the non-profits mission full-time. We started learning songs, worked on building a social media presence, and started to advertise concerts and firesides for local youth and church groups. We even drove to Washington state to compete in a national a cappella competition, having only been together for 2 and a half months.
A big turning point for us came when we put on our own full-length show at Thanksgiving Point in Lehi, UT. When we asked people for their feedback on the show, people talked about how they felt God’s love through our songs, how their faith was reignited at our show, and how they hoped we would continue to share our music and message with the world.
Today, J209 has been able to perform for thousands of people across the western United States. Our songs have been listened to by people from across the globe and we have gained thousands of followers in just the past few months. We love performing for youth groups and firesides and we are currently working on four more self sponsored shows this year. We’re excited to keep growing and, more importantly, to keep igniting faith in Christ.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Everyone in the group has made a lot of sacrifices to make J209 happen. Some of our members have dropped out of school, postponed careers, and our Alto Abi even moved to Utah from Florida to be a part of it! Everyone has put in countless hours both at work and at home trying to grow and help the group.
Another struggle was just getting our name out there and growing a following. Sometimes it just takes time for people to find and share the group, and sometimes it just takes us promising to send voice messages to anyone that follows us (that second method worked really well for us.)
While we’ve had to work around busy schedules, learning new songs and choreographies, and figuring out how to build a social media platform, we’ve absolutely seen God’s hand in our work and in our lives. For every struggle we’ve faced, we’ve seen God provide a way to overcome and we’ve felt His spirit guide us through. We’re excited for the challenges ahead and we know that God is going to keep helping us through.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
J209 is a contemporary Christian a cappella band. All of our songs are centered on Christ and can help people connect to Him. The band is made up of 7 vocal parts including a bass, baritone, tenor, alto, mezzo, soprano, and a vocal percussionist. We’ve been able to release 8 singles so far and we have a full-length album coming out in a few weeks!
We’ve done a lot in the little time we’ve been around! We’ve sang for thousands, won a regional a cappella competition, released several songs, and have grown a good following in just a few months. With all that being said, I think we are most proud of being able to help God bring His children closer to Him. We wouldn’t be here without Him, and we are excited to see what He has in store for us.
Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc?
It’s always good to open the scriptures and connect to God that way. I think those books in particualr have done the b=most good for the group. A couple other books are “Playing Big” by Kim Flynn and “The Story Code” by David Garfinkle. Both have provided a lot of good insight on how to have a successful business.
Pricing:
- Tickets to our concert – $12-29
- T-shirts – $16
- Hats – $20
- Hoodies – $32
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.j209.org/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/j209_official/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/J209official
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@J209_official
- Other: https://linktr.ee/J209_official
