Bonray Releases Debut Album, 'Turn My Eyes'

Bonray Releases Debut Album, 'Turn My Eyes'
This post was published on the now-closed HuffPost Contributor platform. Contributors control their own work and posted freely to our site. If you need to flag this entry as abusive, send us an email.
Bonray, “Turn My Eyes”

Bonray, “Turn My Eyes”

The Bonner siblings – Zac, Jesse, Jake and Morgan – didn’t set out to become a Christian family band, but given their background, it’s not surprising they did. Hailing from Pennsylvania, the four grew up in a home where music was constantly playing. Their father, a pastor and fellow musician, inspired their love of music early on and always encouraged them to practice regularly and even expand their repertoire by trying new instruments.

It wasn’t until Jesse started college, however, that the siblings began performing together. He initially formed a band with three school friends, but one member after another eventually phased out and a sibling, in turn, jumped in. “Within a year it became a full family band,” he recalls. “And by the time Morgan joined, it just felt right.”

The quartet officially became Bonray in 2014, and since then has been touring around the U.S. while also vlogging and creating popular mashup/cover songs for YouTube from artists such as Needtobreathe, TobyMac, Danny Gokey and even Justin Timberlake.

The group released their first album, “Turn My Eyes,” last month. Like their covers, the album’s sound is uniquely upbeat and fun, with a West Coast vibe to it: something to roll the windows down and drive to.

“We want to write Christian music with a good message, but we also want it to be something you want to listen to just by the sound alone,” Morgan explained. “So we tried to come up with something that combines the pop stuff we listen to with the lyrics that are meaningful to us.”

Sharing the Gospel and the hope God’s given them through music is at the heart of Bonray’s work, and is a theme reflected in the band’s very name (‘Bon’ comes from their last name, Bonner, and ‘-ray’ comes from the ray of light they hope to be to listeners).

“We just want to excite people for Jesus and the life that we can have with him when we choose to follow him,” Zac said. “That’s the message that’s ingrained in each of the songs. ‘Good Life’ talks about that excitement, while ‘Wildfire’ is about spreading the Gospel and passion for Jesus like a wildfire. And ‘Turn My Eyes’ is a reminder that no matter what you’re going through, turn your eyes to Jesus because he’s the reason we find hope and peace and purpose.”

If there’s a word that sums up Bonray and the music they’re creating together, it’s joy. It’s evident in their voices when they talk about the people they’ve met while touring the country and reflecting on getting to do life together, and it overflows into their irresistible harmonies and clever hooks.

For tour dates and more information, visit bonraymusic.com.

Popular in the Community

Close

What's Hot