In The Studio: Modern Day Cure

Album Title: Promises (Self-released)
Release date: Scheduled for October 16, 2015
Studio: Lift Music Studio, Spring Hill, TN
Producers: Tyrus Morgan, Jay Speight (Lift Music Co.)
Number of tracks: Four

L-R: Aaron Chipp, Tamar Chipp, Tifani Autry

Family & Friends | The trio is comprised of husband and wife Aaron (drums) and Tamar Chipp (vocals and keyboards) with friend Tifani Autry (vocals and guitars). “She is like a sister to us,” says Aaron Chipp. “We have faced many trials together, but nothing has broken our bond. Our relationship is measured by Ecclesiastes 4:12 (MSG), which says, ‘By yourself you’re unprotected. With a friend you can face the worst… A three-stranded rope isn’t easily snapped.’”

How did Modern Day Cure form? | Aaron: “I experienced God speaking to me while attending a youth leader’s conference in Atlanta. At the time, I had no plans of being in a band and hadn’t played the drums in over six years, but knew the calling was real. Once I returned home to Michigan and explained my experiences to Tamar, she was on board. To gauge her interest, we then reached out to Tifani and she revealed that she had a dream about us serving together. That was confirmation. We continued to pray as God led us and painted the vision for Modern Day Cure. It’s been a life changing journey for all of us.”

More than meets the eye | Tamar: “Most people are surprised when they hear us play. We’re often described as a ‘gospel group’ because of the color of our skin, but once we start playing, there’s no denying the rock-driven influence in our music. We love big, roaring electric guitars and our style is best described as contemporary worship with rock and pop elements. Over the years, we’ve found that no matter where we perform, our music transcends cultural and denominational barriers.”

The difference | Tifani: “The music is secondary, having hearts that please God is our first priority. When we started the band, none of us were currently playing our instruments—Aaron hadn’t played drums since before going to college, Tamar had piano lessons as a kid, but never took them seriously, and I had never played guitar.” Tamar continues, “To us, ‘worship’ truly means living a life of surrender to God. He had a specific call on our lives, we are three unlikely people that have been given this great opportunity to express our trust in God’s power with a fresh and unexpected sound.” Tifani concludes, “We know who we are, what we’re not, and understand our primary focus.”

References | Aaron: “We derive our band name from Hebrews 13:8, which says, ‘Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.’ To us, that makes Him the modern day cure. His power and relevance never changes and He’s always the answer that this world needs so desperately. We drew our inspiration for the EP from Psalm 138:2 (NLT), which says, ‘…I praise your name for your unfailing love and faithfulness; for your promises are backed by all the honor of your name.’ What a promise, and such foundational truth!”

Staying the course | Aaron: “Travel was particularly challenging, as we had to commute between Michigan to Nashville three times over the summer to complete the EP. Taking on this project was a huge step of faith, and we are extremely thankful for everyone who supported us through our crowd funding campaign. Our new producers, Tyrus Morgan and Jay Speight, pushed us to the limits to be better writers and musicians. It was challenging, but also made the recording process enjoyable. We all had some good laughs in the studio! God is faithful!”

Promises in five words or less | Aaron: “God keeps his promises.”