Worship Song Review: Praise the Lord
- Micah Tyler brings a brand new praise song bursting with exuberance and a really corny video that pokes a whole lot of fun at the daily challenges that bring us down.
One of the biggest pitfalls of being a Christian is that we take ourselves – and everything that happens to us – a bit too seriously. Enter Micah Tyler with a brand new praise song bursting with exuberance and a really corny video that pokes a whole lot of fun at the daily challenges that bring us down. Let’s take a look.
Who is Micah Tyler?
Micah Tyler is a truck driver/youth pastor turned Christian artist. This singer-songwriter first became popular for his hilarious parody videos; now, he’s known for his hit songs and well-deserved spot on Mercy Me’s tour. As if his touring schedule wasn’t busy enough, he’s also a husband and father to three and is soon to make his debut at the Grand Ole Opry.
MUSIC AND PRODUCTION
Praise the Lord is a part of Micah Tyler’s latest project, People Like Us. The six-song EP is produced by Fair Trade Services.
This heart-pumping single is flawlessly produced and clearly reveals the intricate percussion, gospel harmonies, poppish melody, and of course, Micah’s shining southern vocals.
But it all comes together when you watch the hilarious music video that is chock full of daily calamities, minor disasters, and the things that create our daily stress and exhaustion. Through it all, Micah sings his heart out with unsquashable energy and enthusiasm.
THEME
Micah attributes the song to Judges Chapter 20, where the tribe of Judah would lead the way whenever Israel went into battle. He says,
“Judah means praise. Praise is how we begin our battles. We fight our battles by loving Jesus and knowing that we can trust Him no matter what. In this world, there will be trouble, but we take heart because He has overcome the world. For that, we can praise the Lord.”
In other words, when the daily grind has got you down, we still have plenty of reasons to praise the Lord. Micah also hits on a few other old faithful Christian themes, including the prodigal son, taste and see that the Lord is good, and our hope is in Christ alone, creating a litany of reasons for us to sing along.
Theologically, Praise the Lord doesn’t have a lot of depth to it, and if I’m completely honest here, I don’t love that little implication that the devil ‘attacks’ us with the mundane challenges in the daily grind. But that isn’t its purpose anyway, and this is a good song that reminds us that no matter what we face, God’s grace is there for us. We have plenty of reasons to find joy and sing God’s praises!
STYLE
You can’t miss the Top-40 style pop music that houses Micah’s hit songs. If there were a formula for successful praise music, I would have to say he’s found it with the perfect application of rhythmic contrast, mild hip-hop and pop beats, and a killer hook. Praise the Lord effortlessly swings from its peppy pop feel to a somewhat gospel-inspired, harmonically rich bridge. The icing on the cake here is Micah’s country-style vocals powered by his boundless youth-pastor energy.
ACCESSIBILITY
There’s no question – this song is catchy, uplifting, and easy to sing. Its focus on grace and praise makes it a great opening and closing song to engage your worshippers or send them out with a song in their hearts.
However, there’s a lot going on throughout the music, which might make it a little harder for your worship team to learn. You may wish to adapt the shifting rhythms and thick harmonies to be a little easier to grasp or go with a background track so you can play the sidesplitting video in the background while you sing.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Praise the Lord is a fun praise song that’s sure to remind you exactly what you have to smile about – the Grace of God in your daily life and all of the benefits, blessings, and love He has bestowed on us. Sprinkle it carefully into a worship service when you need to infuse a little joy and energy into your congregation and be sure to add it to your daily playlist to give yourself a boost, too.
MORE
As believers, there’s no need for us to be serious and boring all the time. When the daily grind wears us down, we need fun, upbeat songs like Praise the Lord to perk us up and remind us what we have to smile (and even dance) about. It’s a real pick me up!
LESS
Praise the Lord isn’t covering any deep theological concepts here. It covers a broad spectrum of joy, praise, and God’s grace that gives us a reason to be happy and sing!
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