By Michaela Gordoni
Worship artist TAYA’s new album is a “Reminder” that no matter how low your circumstances are, God is faithful.
“God stripped away everything I could lean on that wasn’t Him,” she said. “And what was left was His faithfulness. That’s the banner over this entire album. Not mine — His.”
She wrote and recorded her second solo album while touring with her husband and baby. Her small family lived out of hotel rooms for five and a half months. In that time, Taya got diagnosed with cancer and underwent two surgeries, they left their church, she experienced an identity crisis and her niece was born with a life-threatening condition — they didn’t know if she’d make it.
Her album, The Reminder, came out of her difficult experiences.
“It was painful,” she said. “There were moments I wanted to walk away. But my friend told me, ‘The oil only comes one way — and it’s through pressing.’”
Weeks after giving birth, she was diagnosed with skin cancer. After enduring labor, she endured more pain with almost back-to-back surgeries while dealing with exhaustion and the emotional weight of leaving her church, her niece’s birth and having to make a record.
The most meaningful lyric that came out of her trials is “This is a reminder. This is for my soul.”
“I was writing it for myself,” she said. “It was the reminder I needed to sing over my own life. When you’re in the valley, you forget what you know. You forget what’s true. That’s what this album became — a way to remember.”
Her songs may have been influenced by her experience, but they aren’t about her feelings. They’re based on scripture and declarations.
“We have a full-on church song now,” she added. “It’s based on Hebrews 1 and it has nothing to do with how I feel. It’s just truth.”
“My understanding of worship used to be that it was the slow song,” she said. “But real worship is obedience. It’s Abraham walking up the mountain with his son. It’s doing the hard thing God asks of you, even when you don’t understand it.”
After her first surgery, she sat in the doctor’s office, waiting to hear what she’d say about her follow-up biopsy results.
Taya clung to faith and courage. “I looked at her, and all I could say was, ‘I believe in Jesus.’ That’s it,” she said. “Not eloquent. Not impressive. But true.”
Related: Christian Artist TAYA Drops New Single: ‘Reminder Of God’s Faithfulness’
The biopsy showed positive for cancer, so she had surgery again. Through it all, her faith refined her — and she wants the same for her album’s listeners.
“I hope people are reminded of what God’s already done for them,” she said. “A verse. A promise. A moment where they knew He saw them.”
“Everyone’s reminder is going to be different. But we all need one,” she said.
On Saturday, TAYA celebrated God’s faithfulness in an Instagram post, recalling her trials and noting that her niece is alive and healthy.
“HE is the One who remains, the One who is well able, the One who is present, the One who heals, the One who doesn’t walk out and not return, the One who is gentle and lowly,” she said.
“The One who walks with us, the One who is in the middle of it all, the One who calls us His own, the One who is with us through it all, the One who doesn’t change like shifting shadows — He remains, and you can bank your life on Him today,” she continued.
She quoted words from her title song, “The Reminder:” “You’re so faithful, So True, I know I can trust You, Cause I know You’ll always be good to me, Always be good to me.”
Last week, TAYA debuted at Nashville’s the Grand Ole Opry. She sang “The Reminder” and the song she’s best known for — “Oceans.”
She said, “Getting to hop in that iconic circle, at the Grand Ole Opry that has held countless country singer-songwriters is not lost on me. Many stories have been told from that platform, so getting to share some of my own from it is a moment I will never forget.”
Read Next: TAYA’s New Single Emphasizes Trust In God: ‘I Can’t Do It Without Him’
- Content: +1Share:
- Content: +1