‘Passion Conference’ Atlanta Worship, Tye Tribbett, Phil Wickham - Publishing Royalties

Anyone familiar with worship music will know of the huge ‘Passion’ conferences held in Atlanta each year, attracting 55,000 people. One of the anthems sung at these conferences has been Glory To God Forever. In 2009, worship band ‘Fee’ released this track as a radio single. More than fifteen years later, churches are still paying to use it. Churches buy annual licenses from CCLI to show lyrics on screen, print music for their worship teams, and stream their services, and CCLI pays out based on the songs they report using. More than half of the last twelve months came through CCLI. Most of the rest comes from streaming, and 96% of earnings come from the US.

The song also reached gospel listeners. Multiple Grammy winner Tye Tribbett recorded it in a medley on his 2013 album Greater Than, which reached No. 9 on the Billboard 200. His recording now earns 20% of LTM. Over the last twelve months, streaming grew about 31%, helped by the medley, while church licensing softened about 13%.

“Glory To God Forever” earns 56% of LTM by itself and 78% when its medleys and Spanish version are included, so the catalog largely follows one song. The song itself is softening about 14% from the prior year, with growth in its gospel recordings making up the difference. The other 43 earning songs add about $1,070 a year, led by “Turn Your Eyes,” “The Wonder Of The Cross” and “Yesterday, Today And Forever.”

This catalog pays like clockwork. Earnings over the last two years are within 1% of each other, and every quarter since 3Q24 has landed between roughly $1,000 and $1,450. That consistency comes from how the music is used: these songs are still sung in churches and streamed by gospel listeners years after release, so the income rests on weekly worship rather than chart cycles.

These songs were written for congregations, and other artists later brought them into gospel and Spanish-language worship.

Fee, the Georgia worship band led by Steve Fee, released “Glory To God Forever” as the lead single from its 2009 INO Records album Hope Rising. The song reached No. 22 on Billboard’s Christian Songs chart and became a church staple, and it has been performed at Atlanta’s Passion conferences, gatherings that have drawn around 55,000 people. The catalog also includes its Spanish-language version, “Gloria A Dios Por Siempre.”

Three-time Grammy winner Tye Tribbett recorded the song in a medley with “There Is Nothing Like” on his 2013 album Greater Than. The album peaked at No. 9 on the Billboard 200, topped the Gospel Albums chart and won the Grammy for Best Gospel Album. A 2023 live medley adds “Way Maker.” Five of Tribbett’s albums have reached No. 1 on Billboard’s Gospel Albums chart, and his group, Tye Tribbett & G.A., has worked with Will Smith, Justin Timberlake, Jessica Simpson and Sting.

“Emmanuel” was recorded in 2010 as a duet featuring Phil Wickham, a Dove Award winner and Grammy nominee. His albums Living Hope and Hymn of Heaven both reached No. 1 on Billboard’s Christian Albums chart.

The rest of the catalog is congregational worship from 2002 to 2010, including “Yesterday, Today And Forever” (2002), “Captivated” (2005), “The Wonder Of The Cross” (2007) and “One Day” (2010). It also includes “Turn Your Eyes” (2005), a modern setting of a 1922 hymn. Churches still license these songs, and they are streamed today.

Earnings Note. 4Q2023 and 2Q2024 contain large church licensing payments (approximately $1,700 and $1,600, respectively) from CCLI, each covering two quarters of royalties. CCLI paid twice a year until 3Q2024 and has paid quarterly since.