Hometown Hallelujahs: Brandon Lake’s country-rock-tinged praise music

Not long ago, Brandon Lake was a teenager attending Wando High School and driving to Folly Beach with his buddies to surf The Washout. Today, he’s a five-time Grammy winner, selling out stadiums with his country-rock-tinged praise music, shaped over years of playing guitar and singing at Mount Pleasant’s Seacoast Church, where he’s still a worship pastor. 

Lake lives in Awendaw on a farm with his wife, Brittany, and three sons, where they raise cattle, donkeys, and “petting zoo” animals. A new guest house and recording studio on the property further cements Lake’s legacy in the Lowcountry, allowing him to bring songwriters and musicians to Charleston to write and record.

Lake’s career skyrocketed in 2020 with the release of “Gratitude,” from his album, House of Miracles. His Jeff Buckley-esque falsetto as he sings “Hallelujah” returns on his latest album, 2025’s King of Hearts, which debuted at number one on Billboard’s Christian, rock, and alternative album charts. One track, “Hard Fought Hallelujah,” features country singer Jelly Roll on colead vocals, a friendship that led to the duo sharing the spotlight at this year’s Stagecoach, a country music festival held in Indio, California, every April. It’s another “pinch me” moment for Lake, who kicks off his “King of Hearts” tour this fall before wrapping at home with two concerts at Credit One Stadium in May. Lake spoke with us from his farm about the importance of holding tight to Lowcountry roots.

Charleston First:

If we lived in Nashville, I could be writing songs with the guys that I create with every week, but I feel in my spirit that we need to be with our community—people that have known me since I was 15 and are proud of me but not impressed by me. I want to make this my Nashville.

Building a Forever Home:

We wanted our boys to be raised in a place where they can build forts and run around. Once we moved out here, I came home from a trip and noticed a huge difference of being able to regulate and feel quiet and safe in the woods and surrounded by animals. I want our farm to be a place where creatives and pastors who are burnt out and need to be revived can have a healing experience.

Songwriting Inspiration:

“Daddy’s DNA” is a song inspired by the story of the prodigal son. We have this open barn by the water, and there’s a pig pen over there. It felt so fitting to write this song there about a man who runs away and finds himself sleeping with the pigs and loses everything, but then he comes home, and his dad embraces him. For me, it’s one of the most special songs I’ve ever written because it shares the gospel in the form of a story. 

Sharing His Message:

People are hungry for music that lifts their spirit and gives them faith to keep going. At Stagecoach, it wasn’t like this transition into a worship song; it was just two dudes who have become great friends singing a song that encourages people. I think that subconsciously people can find themselves in a place of worship. I’m not trying to be invasive with reaching people in my music; I’m trying to be inviting.

Seacoast Past & Present:

Seacoast does a great job of making a big church feel small. The pastors aren’t trying to be cool. We’re there to make it about God and to encourage each other. People do a good job of not making me feel like a celebrity. Sometimes it turns into a photo line in the foyer, and I’m honored, because it means that my songs are changing people’s lives, but I don’t want it to ever be about me.

Homecoming:

We are called to reach our community and to love our neighbors. These are my people. I used to live on Daniel Island. It’s so cool to end this long tour at home and give it all I’ve got.