About the Southern Brothers
When asked to reflect about the over twenty years of music that the Southern Brothers have sung, recorded, and performed, a great range of emotions well up. The Southern Brothers ministry and career have the makings of a great novel or movie. A great story contains drama, laughter, successes and failures and the story of the Scott, Tim and Todd Mills (corporately known as the Southern Brothers) can fill all of the above. This journey is one of redemption, success, and a testament to the unwavering music and message of three brothers wanting only to present the Gospel in a style that is unique and worthy of the Creator in whom they sing.
Tim Mills said, "We began our singing formally in the year 1986. The group began originally with Scott and Todd Mills, Jerry Wagner (our cousin) and a young man singing bass from our church. We got together to do a special in church after the choir couldn't work the song out. The special was a huge success and eventually one special song became two, and then churches were calling us to sing at youth revivals and other events. About six months into the group forming, I took the spot of the young man and thus all three brothers and first cousin formed the group that stayed together for a long period of time."
"We have had a little bit of turnover, but have stayed fairly consistent with the Southern Brothers," mentioned Scott. "During different times with the group others have come and gone. Things have come full circle and we are now a trio consisting of Tim, Todd and myself."
When asked about the group's motivation in doing what they do - the guys say it can be a somewhat complicated answer.
"I believe our motivation is at the very least 2-fold," mentioned Tim. "We sing Gospel music, so our motivation is to uplift God and be a ray of light to people that do not know Jesus and present the Gospel in a fresh and entertaining way. Also, we strongly believe that our job is to uplift the saints."
Scott Mills continued, "When you sing Gospel music, the majority of your audience tends to be Christians. Christian should be the happiest people on earth. Having said that, Christians still have faults, failures and daily challenges. We believe that our job is to uplift the fellow Christian and remind them of the love that Jesus has for them and to encourage them through difficult times in their lives."
"On a non-spiritual note, we are passionate about creating what we feel is great music. All three of us believe that the Christian community and local church should not have to take a back seat when it comes to musical quality," mentioned Todd. "Some of our greatest compliments received were from people that did not listen to Gospel music, never attended church but wanted to buy a CD because they simply enjoyed our music. The Gospel is delivered to someone that has never been open, and it is an affirmation that our music is being received to not only the church, but the world as well."
When asked to describe the style of the Southern Brothers, the typical response is one of a wry smile and slight chuckle. “I can’t explain their style but its good!” or a similar variation usually is spoken. The Southern Brothers style is a melting pot of many influences ranging from classic Southern Gospel, Country, Bluegrass and other styles of music.
“We made a concerted effort to present a song in the style of music that we felt would best promote the message contained in that song,” says Tim Mills. “If a song, in our opinion, could best be presented in classic Southern Gospel, then the song would evolve into a Southern Gospel production. I am proud of the fact, however, that we have within our music career the courage to present songs in varied styles that challenged ourselves vocally and give our audience a window into the world of music that we have found meaningful and valuable to my brothers and me.”
Yes, it is difficult to “pigeon-hole” the style and brand of music that the Southern Brothers produce. Are they classic Gospel? Yes. Are they a little country/bluegrass mixed with tight harmonies? Of course. Rather than describe the Southern Brothers, experience their music and put your own label on. Experience the sound that is distinctive, inspired and unapologetic. Come and be part of a 20 year journey that is only beginning and where the best is yet to come.
