Mike Rathke to Release ‘The Dawning Fire’ Ep April 10

Vero Beach, FL (April 1, 2020)
After releasing three singles from his upcoming EP, The Dawning Fire, Mike Rathke’s full project will be available on April 10, 2020. The record features five songs, with four of them written by Rathke, while “O Lord You’re Beautiful,” was written by the late Keith Green. The Dawning Fire was recorded at The Sound Emporium in Nashville, and the EP was produced by Billy Chapin (Backstreet Boys, Avalon, Edwin McCain, Don Henley), and co-produced by Brandon Bailey.

“Recording at The Sound Emporium was a great experience. For years I’ve worked on releases with the little equipment I had available to me.To be able to record in an A-list studio was amazing,” said Rathke.“I felt like a kid in a candy store. My hope is that the Lord will allow me the opportunity to continue recording at this level of professionalism. It’s important to me that we give our very best to our callings.”

The first track for Rathke’s project was released in early December 2019, and the song is a call to come into fellowship with Christ before His return. The second single released was Rathke’s rendition of “Oh Lord You’re Beautiful.” This tune has been a staple for Rathke since the beginning of his worship ministry, so it has special meaning for him—like it does for so many of Keith Green fans. The third lead track, “Every Era,” just released March 20, along with the official music video that has gained 365,000 views.

“Every Era” also received strong media coverage from New Release Today, The Christian Beat, Hallels, Jesus Freak Hideout and CCM Magazine. With the song streaming across multiple platforms, it resulted in the track being added to 23 playlists and earning over 33,000 streams.

“I write songs that reflect biblical truth, so sometimes it can be a worship song or what I call ‘life songs,’” said Rathke.“The Bible has passages that are very worshipful in nature and then there are other passages that tell a historical story. I try to create songs that speak to God’s truth in all facets of life.”

With his new EP, The Dawning Fire, Rathke has been touring in support of the music and shared the Gracefest 2019 stage with Tasha Cobbs and MercyMe. This summer, Rathke will perform at the Gospel Music Association’s IMMERSE 2020 in June and at Creation Festival Northwest in July.