Jonathan Caleb McReynolds (born September 17, 1989) is a Grammy-winning American gospel musician. He began his music career in 2012 with the release of Life Music via Entertainment One Music. He has had two No. 1 Billboard Gospel Albums since with Life Music: Stage Two (2015) and Make Room (2018), fifteen Stellar Awards, four GMA Dove Awards and five Grammy Award nominations in addition to his win in 2021.
Early life McReynolds was born in Chicago, Illinois, on September 17, 1989, as Jonathan Caleb McReynolds. Work ID No. 883470768 He was raised by a single mother with love and support from his family, church members and his pastor at New Original Church of God in Christ. Known to be a very precocious kid, he learned to play the drums at five years old, the piano at eight, and showcased his talents weekly as a church musician. He was a reluctant singer, to say the least. However, in high school, he began to break out of his shell; eventually, sharing his talents with the public rather than singing alone in his living room.
He attended Whitney Young Magnet High School, where not only did he become known for his musical talents, but also learned how to record and produce music, as a member of the school's podcast initiative. Those skills would prove to be significant in college as he recorded his first songs including his first viral hit "No Gray" in his dorm room. He was also a member of the Whitney Young Concert Choir.
Music career His music career was started in 2012, with the release of Life Music on September 25, 2012, by Light Records and Entertainment One Music. This was his breakthrough released on the Billboard charts, and it placed at No. 98 on Billboard 200 along with Gospel Albums at No. 3, and at No. 23 on the Independent Albums chart. His song "No Gray" was a viral smash that earned him TV appearances on BET's Celebration of Gospel and fans in India Arie and Nicki Minaj.
McReynolds' second album Life Music: Stage Two was Grammy Award nominated, a Billboard Gospel No. 1 album for four weeks, and a GMA Dove Award winner. It featured Israel Houghton, India.Arie and Chantae Cann and his first top five gospel hit "Gotta Have You." Rating the album five stars for Journal of Gospel Music, Bob Marovich says, "Life Music, Stage Two is the musical manifestation of his honest and spiritually grounded approach to dealing with the vicissitudes of daily life."Marovich, Bob (September 18, 2015). "Jonathan McReynolds – Life Music: Stage Two". Journal of Gospel Music. Retrieved October 31, 2015. McReynolds brought on yet another popular R&B talent, Tweet, on his EP Sessions (2016) This unannounced, surprise release reached the No. 1 on the iTunes Christian chart in one night.
McReynolds' third album Make Room was his biggest success yet, earning him eight Stellar Awards and two Grammy Award nominations. It also debuted No. 1 on Billboard Gospel charts. Make Room touted his first No. 1 radio hit "Not Lucky, I'm Loved" and the huge viral smash "Cycles." This album garnered public support from stars of different cultures and genres like Justin Bieber, Kandi Burruss, and millions of listeners around the world. This project gave strong evidence to Kirk Franklin's claim that McReynolds is, in fact, "the future of Gospel Music." In March 2018, he broke major ground for gospel, when his one-hour TV special "Make Room" aired multiple times on TVOne. He was also the first in his genre to form a major partnership with Tidal. If all that was not enough, McReynolds just missed the bestseller list with his book "Make Room: Finding Where Faith Fits" that he released in the fall of 2018.
In June 2019, McReynolds co-starred as a judge with Kirk Franklin, Kelly Price and Erica Campbell, on Season 9 of BET's Sunday Best. In 2020 he released People, an EP with "Moving On," the 2021 Grammy winner for Best Gospel Performance/Song.
Soon after the Grammy win, "Favorite Son" a highly successful BET+ movie was released. His first acting role ever, McReynolds played the lead role alongside Rotimi, Serayah, and Loren Lott.
In August 2021, McReynolds earned his fourth straight Gospel Airplay No. 1 with "Grace."
In August 2024, McReynolds performed at the 2024 Democratic National Convention.
McReynolds released his second book, "Before You Climb Any Higher: Valley Wisdom for Mountain Dreams," in February 2025. "From Sunday Best to Soul Rest: Jonathan McReynolds Shares Lessons in New Book". BlackChurchTok.com. Retrieved April 15, 2025.
Personal life In 2016, McReynolds established Elihu Nation, his non-profit that is geared to "celebrate, promote, and work to create young seekers and models of wisdom." It has organized several events aimed at Christian scholarship and self-help and has awarded at least $30,000 in college scholarships.
Between touring, recording and TV appearances, McReynolds has taught for five years at his alma mater Columbia College Chicago in the music department. His contribution to society outside of music is important to him. In addition to completing his bachelor's degree in music at Columbia College, he earned a master's degree in Biblical studies from Moody Theological Seminary in 2015.
In 2018, McReynolds was admitted into Mensa, an international society for high IQ individuals and became an honorary member of Alpha Nu Omega, Inc., an international Christian fraternity.
In 2024, McReynolds became a dual citizen of the United States and Ghana at an event held at the Accra International Conference Centre (AICC), where then-President of Ghana, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo granted Ghanaian citizenship to 524 diasporans.
McReynolds is the uncle of actor Khalil Everage.
Discography + List of studio albums, with selected chart positions Title Album details Peak chart positionsUSUSGospelUSIndieLife Music Released: September 25, 2012
Formats: CD, digital download 98 3 23Life Music: Stage Two Released: September 18, 2015
Formats: CD, digital download 44 1 11Make Room Released: March 9, 2018
Formats: CD, digital download 97 1 5People Released: April 24, 2020
Formats: CD, digital download — 2 —My Truth Released: February 17, 2023 Label: MNRK Records LP Formats: CD, digital download — 3 — Closer Releasing: March 27, 2026 Label: Life Room, Capitol CMG Formats: CD, LP, digital download, streaming — 1 —"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.
Singles
As lead artist TitleYear Peak chart positionsAlbum USGospel USGospelAir USGospelDigital "I Love You" 2012 16 16 21 Life Music "Lovin' Me" 2013 23 23 6 "Mary, Did You Know" 2014 18 28 17 "Gotta Have You" 2015 — 5 8 Life Music: Stage Two "Pressure" 9 — 2 "Not Lucky, I'm Loved" 2017 4 1 1 Make Room "Cycles" 2018 16 — 3 "Make Room" 2019 5 1 4 "People" 2020 11 — 1 People "Movin' On" 4 1 1 Johnny x Mali: Live in LA "Adulting" 2021 — — 14 "The Greatest Adventure" — — — "Your World" 2022 5 1 5 My Truth "Detail" 2023 — — — "Able" 2024 6 1 14 "Pray for Me" 2025 — — — "Still" 4 1 3 Closer "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.
As featured artist TitleYearAlbum "Yours to Use" 2022 rowspan="2" "Cycles Refix" 2023 "Finished Work Reprise" Fresh Fire "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.
Promotional singles
As lead artist TitleYear Peak chart positionsAlbum USGospel USGospelAir "Red & Green" 2024 — — Red & Green (EP) "Sent Me a King" 11 19 "New Normal" 2025 — — Closer "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.
As featured artist TitleYearPeak chart positionsAlbum USGospel USGospel USGospelDigital USGospelStream. "Breathe" 2022 31 10 4 9 Breathe (EP) "Cycles Refix" 2023 — — — — "Finished Work Reprise" — — — — Fresh Fire "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.
Other charted songs
As lead artist TitleYear Peak chart positionsAlbum USGospel USGospelAir USGospelDigital "No Gray"2014 22 — 13Life Music "Gotta Have You" 2015 8 — — Life Music: Stage Two "The Way That You Love Me"2016 23 — — "Grace" 2021 10 1 15 People "For Myself"2023 10 — — My Truth "Forever Mistletoe"2025 21 — —Red & Green (EP) "White Christmas" — — 8 "Emoji" 2026 23 — — Closer "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.
As featured artist TitleYearPeak chart positionsAlbum USChrist. USGospel USGospelDigital USGospelStream. "Just as Sure"2018 — 11 7 10Hiding Place "Again" 2023 23 9 12 13 Father's Day "Finished Work Reprise"2018 — — — — Fresh Fire "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.
Accolades Dove Awards Year Nominee / work Category Result 2015 Gospel Artist of the Year Himself 2016 Contemporary Gospel/Urban Recorded Song of the Year "The Way That You Love Me" Short Form Video of the Year Contemporary Gospel/Urban Album of the Year Life Music: Stage Two 2018 Contemporary Gospel/Urban Recorded Song of the Year "Not Lucky, I'm Loved" Contemporary Gospel/Urban Album of the Year Make Room 2019 Contemporary Gospel/Urban Recorded Song of the Year "Make Room" 2020 Gospel Artist of the Year Himself Contemporary Gospel Recorded Song of the Year "People" Contemporary Gospel Album of the Year People Long Form Music Video of the Year 2021 Gospel Artist of the Year Himself Contemporary Gospel Album of the Year Doe (EP) 2022 Contemporary Gospel Recorded Song of the Year "Adulting" Contemporary Gospel Album of the Year Clarity Jonny x Mali: Live in LA Gospel Worship Recorded Song of the Year "Breathe" 2023 Contemporary Gospel Recorded Song of the Year "Your World" Contemporary Gospel Album of the Year My Truth 2024 Contemporary Gospel Recorded Song of the Year "Able" Contemporary Gospel Album of the Year Note to Self (EP) 2025 Contemporary Gospel Recorded Song of the Year "Holy Hands" Gospel Worship Recorded Song of the Year "One Hallelujah" 2026 Contemporary Gospel Recorded Song of the Year "Still" Contemporary Worship Recorded Song of the Year "One Good God" Contemporary Gospel Album of the Year Closer
Grammy Awards Year Nominee / work Category Result 2016 Best Gospel Album Life Music: Stage Two 2019 Best Gospel Performance/Song "Cycles" Best Gospel Album Make Room 2021 Best Gospel Performance/Song "Movin' On" 2022 Best Gospel Album Jonny x Mali: Live in LA 2024 My Truth 2025 Best Gospel Performance/Song "Holy Hands" "One Hallelujah" 2026 "Still"
Stellar Awards Year Nominee / work Category Result 2022 Artist of the Year Himself Duo/Chorus Group of the Year Jonny x Mali: Live in LA Album of the Year Contemporary Duo/Chorus Group of the Year Contemporary Album of the Year Special Event Album of the Year 2024 Song of the Year "Able" Male Artist of the Year Himself Album of the Year My Truth Contemporary Male Artist of the Year Himself Contemporary Album of the Year My Truth 2025 Special Event Album of the Year Red and Green Recorded Music Packaging of the Year 2026 Male Artist of the Year Himself Contemporary Male Artist of the Year Duo/Chorus Group of the Year "Still" Contemporary Duo/Chorus Group of the Year
Notes
References
External links Official website Cross Rhythms article