Here is our in-depth interview with Christian Media Spotlight creator, showrunner and executive producer Joseph Neal as he shares a bit with Contributing Writer Elizabeth Holthouse about this history of Christian Media Spotlight as Night of Hope is on the verge of its one year anniversary. Enjoy the read!
Q. I would like to know; how did the show first start and is there a story on how CMS got its name?
A. The show first got its start in 2007 out of necessity in part really. I was producing a ministry show that was an hour in length and the content that edition ran only 45 minutes - so I was scrambling to figure out how to fill time since in TV you can’t leave the air that early - so that’s where CMSTV was born. I emailed a few publicist managers to see if any artists could be featured half expecting them to say no - but the next day Brandon Heaths manager said he would do it! We did the interview via phone and it ended up being a success / more interviews followed from there! The name came pretty quickly - wanted it to really depict what the segment was about to me which was spotlighting the stories and testimonies of artists in Christian music - it was there that Christian Music Spotlight (renamed Christian Media Spotlight in 2015) and the slogan was born! The rest after that as they say is history!
Q. When would you say you first started to interview people?
A. That first interview believe it or not was the first exposure really to interviewing people in Christian media. I had taken journalism and studied broadcast media at a radio station but this was my first leap head first into something like this on a regular basis hosting and interviewing. Started with phone interviews and eventually morphed into in person interviews, and now thanks to technology - Skype and Facebook Live interviews too!
Q. How has the show developed and grown from the time you first started it to now?
A. It has grown so much in the last number of years. When I first started it was a segment on another television show and included it where time allowed - we mixed in our first festival broadcast in 2009 by a move of the Lord too. In late 2011, I quickly realized the show needed to grow wings on its own - so on New Year's Day 2012, we launched its own half hour show of its own! In 2015, we started getting enough authors and actors in the mix to where the name was tweaked slightly to Christian Media Spotlight to reflect the broadened scope. In about 2018ish is when we started taping the interviews as they happen over Facebook Live which really opened things up to a national audience more so than in our history. All that ground work prepared me and this ministry for the craziest year in its history. When the pandemic started and festivals were lost, Night of Hope was born and set into motion a lot of the growth that’s exploding now - from the music hangouts that now happen twice a week, to the personalized concerts, and even now the launch of the new audio podcast on Spotify and other platforms and articles like what people are reading now - that coupled with our TV stations expanding us to a full hour at the start of 2020 - and it’s been a wild ride! So, while we’ve grown - it’s still about the stories and testimonies and cultivating community at its core - that will never change.
Q. Did you have any mentors or people in your life, growing up that helped you in your faith walk with God and if so, how has it helped you?
A. I came to the Lord really in high school by a guy named LT - who friended me when I was finding my way and showed me the love of Christ - him and Mitch and Jamie - a lot of those guys in high school laid the foundation of my faith walk - and I won’t forget them for that. My late aunt and cousins are devout followers and so their love and kindness has been really cool over the years. Even though we see things differently now / I learned a lot of things from the first church I went to and produced tv for. My immediate family and relatives have all been pretty supportive of the work I do and never give them enough credit over the years for that. Beyond that I’ve been privileged to work with and network with so many musicians, venue owners, media personnel and others in the community who have been like a second family who continue to inspire me to keep being who I am in my faith and no matter what - hopefully I never lose that ability to love people and serve where God places me. I learned long ago that we are all imperfect people serving a perfect God and it reminds me and humbles me to show grace and kindness to people and just be a support and cheerleader where I can - and it helps in the tough stretches knowing that it’s not a war with flesh and blood - powers and principalities - and it helps me not to take a lot of things personal anymore and know that no matter what God is still here - life happens and you get through it one day at a time and with the Lord enjoy the journey a little bit along the way!
Q. Is there a Bible verse or passage of scripture either growing up or now that you go to when things are a struggle or are difficult for you?
A. There are several depending on the season - a few that come to mind : “My flesh and my heart fail; But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.”
Psalms 73:26 - God has to be the strength of my heart bottom line and the reason why I do what I do and why I am who I try to be and emulate.
“I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things, I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through He who strengthens me”
Philippians 4:12 - this scripture helps me to roll with the punches and no matter what happens He is with me and I can endure.
Jeremiah 29:11 - he has plans to prosper us and give us a future. This helps me to realize that I don’t have to worry about the future because He has it all taken care of in front of me and helps me to focus on what’s in front of me in the present. (There’s a few more scriptures for sure / but there’s a good three to start with for ya!
Q. What would you say, looking back from when the show first started to now, has been your favorite moment on CMSTV?
A. Wow. What a question. There’s almost been too many to narrow to just one - I’ve got stories for days. I’ll give a quick couple. In studio when Jenny from Addison Road performed in our studio was an amazing landmark episode I won’t forget on the show at that point in its history. A number of the festival shows were fun - MercyMe was only supposed to go 7-8 minutes and when our production timer/stage manager stopped us it was 22 minutes (and Bart came up with a liner I won’t forget ever). That year we did Chris August and Tenth Avenue North which was off the rails hilarious from the start! - In a video interview maybe, I’ll go into more detail on a few of these. Recently the shows with Carrollton, Sam Day and Collington were absolutely fun interviews. I loved my recent trips back to do TV in New England were very memorable because it opened up my eyes to how nationwide reaching, we are now and to just do television with a huge support around that week was a blast. I’ve been extremely fortunate producing this the last number of years to have met so many people and to have so many heartwarming, side splitting funny moments that I won’t forget that it’s so hard to pick one because I’ve been blessed with so many of those type moments over the years. I have probably so many production stories I could write a book.. lol
Q. If you had to go back to a moment from when this show first started, was there a time that something happened and you had to try and fix it really fast or not really?
A. If you mean like tech things going wrong - yes! Usually that happens not so much in the studio but when we have a large amount of production equipment onsite at a festival where things tend to go wrong. Whether it be memory cards, microphone issues, etc. - you fix it as fast as you can when you are on site and having multiple cameras helps - the biggest headaches sometimes is when it’s all done and you find those issues with a clip in post-production and that’s where many a headache has been spent.. lol! Lately it’s more connection and software glitches producing the show lately via remote setups that could go wrong. I was always taught old school in broadcasting by a mentor that things happen - you just have to roll with it and not draw too much attention to those mistakes - and no matter what the show must go on. You just try to mold and be flexible and adapt the best you can in any situation and that’s why I run a fairly loose production set because if something happens last minute, I want the production to be able to quickly adapt to a fluid situation and not be so stuck that if something changes / it’s ruined if that makes sense. I try to just keep pressing forward producing the best show i can - try not to dwell too hard on the mistakes and just enjoy the whole process along the way
Q. Do you remember the first time you started out with production and building a team of people who would later on help you create what this show has become today?
A. Yea certainly. For the first few years I primarily did the work load for CMS on my own all the way down to the editing. For the first year, I had a freelance producer Jim who did camera work and on road shoots, and a camera guy named John in the early years who has since passed away. About 2012-13 I realized at least with festivals I needed freelance crew and also studio crew for the studio shows we started to do. So, between my church connections, family, and television station personnel-built crews that helped me out in different scenarios. There was a crew that primarily assisted in studio, and a crew that primarily assisted with roadshows. My prerequisite for anyone that joined the team was simple - have a heart for the Lord and of service, strive for excellence while having a ton of fun along the way, be teachable and adaptable to production techniques and changes and all move forward keeping the core mission of CMSTV at the center of what we do - plain and simple. In 2013, Bob, Dan, Gwen, Rachell, Regan, Tim, Tom were just some of the studio folks that helped us out. Regan, Chris, Jim, DJ, Madesyn, Rachell, Regan were some of our freelance road crew along with other media friends/outlets that assisted along the way like Rich, Thomas, Lizzy, Sam, and Lydia come to mind along with festival staff like Angee, Phil, Victor, Maria, and others who make this what it is building the foundation over the years. (Not to mention the network personnel who keep us on the air). In addition to all of these folks over the years, countless Spotlighters like you in the community have been huge help and ambassadors contributing gifts and talents making this thing go forward. I lead and carry the mantle yes - but there have been a lot of people along the way who have had a hand in its history or continue to have in this ministry pushing and propelling it forward. I am very blessed to work with a tremendous freelance crew over the years - and while I’ve gone back to producing a lot of it myself remotely during the pandemic like old school again - hopefully when things open up there will be a need for more production crews again someday soon!
Q. Has there been a time from when you first did the Night Of Hope Specials that you thought there was going to be more or did you think there was going to be no more after the first special aired on the show?
A. When the pandemic first hit when festivals were cancelling and not many people were doing regular livestream music shows year, the Lord gave me the idea upon prayer for this show, and the name came rather quickly - what do I want this night to embody during this strange time - Night of Hope was conceived. I reached out to 10-12 different artists about submitting a song to air on the show. I was producing this night going all out with-it having fun thinking at the time that this was going to be the only one - even on show night I thought this was a one night special - the Night of Hope show logo wasn't created yet until Night 2 because I didn't see a need with a one off special.. lol. I remember saying at the end of the first broadcast "Let me know if you wish to see more of these" - not knowing the morning after we aired the first night that a half a dozen artists flooded my inbox saying they wanted in on the next one. I greenlit production on the second one for Memorial Day with a show logo. I didn't think even then what the Lord was about to do with this series. It wasn't until Night of Hope 3 in the summer that some of our consultants said we needed to go big with this night like a summer festival and I wanted a tagline for the show developed by our viewers and that's where "Sharing Hope Through Worship" was born. One of our viewers said "50 artists" to which at first, I got excited but thought was half crazy thinking we wouldn't reach that. Well.. we booked 50 artists and aired 46. It was then that I realized and made a decision that Night of Hope was here to stay and it became a monthly series from that point forward. I am continually awestruck and humbled how God is using this Night of Hope vehicle and taking it to new heights way more than ever thought possible. If you would have told me a year ago that the show at this point would feature over 85 artists, aired nearly 250 songs over 10 editions, I would've thought someone was crazy. It's just a testament of how God can take a little dream/vision He births inside of you, and in his timing when its ready to take off, can take that dream and turn it into a gigantic reality better than anything you thought possible. I'm grateful every day for this series and it's as much of our foundation as anything we do here at CMSTV and just proud of how people have reacted to the show and support and supported it and the artists and viewers we've been able to uplift and encourage along the way and the artists who have trusted this platform to showcase their gifts and talents.
Q. Do you have a memorable moment from someone you interviewed when the show first started or when you went to travel to interview artists that first started making music and releasing it?
A. There was a number of memorable names the first year the show was on the air, we had Matt Maher, Sonic flood, and Jars of Clay via phone interviews during the first year that were pretty cool. Matt Maher's phone interview was pretty fun and poignant one to do in the early going. Interviewing Duncan Phillips and Peter Furler from Newsboys a number of years ago via phone was an absolute joy as well! Those early conversations that first year really helped me develop the flow of the show, the tone of the show, and how stylistically I wanted to do interviews - it was a fun learning experience the first year on the air. As far as musicians starting out.- one I vividly remember is interviewing Ryan Stevenson who was playing the small stages and was just starting to branch out musically. We interviewed him 2 years in a row when he was a indie artist. I look back fondly at that as one example of playing a small role in helping artists achieve their dreams - because now Ryan is as much of a household name in the male artist realm with TobyMac's label and all - as anyone with his radio hits right now.
Q. If you could go back to traveling and doing interviews, where would you want to travel and who would you like to be the first person that you interview if given the chance to go back out on the road?
A. I had the pleasure of doing an interview episode with April Kane, Kat Stewart and Matthew Jones in October for the first time the show was on the road in about a year and a half and I had so much fun with that show that I realized how much I missed it - the energy of the in person shows. I am making preliminary plans to look at different festivals, like Soul fest in the N.E., Nehemiah Fest in the Midwest, and others to partner with to determine where to travel for roadshows this summer and how many I want to do. Would love to do more roadshows in the Northeast, but would love to do shows from places we haven't been yet that have great viewers, like a few places in the Midwest like Kansas or Ohio, places like that - would love to do more roadshows if we feasibly can - scheduling/production logistics and financial requirement aside. As far as a who - there are a few names that I haven't interviewed yet that would love to (list is getting smaller by the year) - but I just love chatting with people - from big household names down to chatting with indie musicians just getting their start - I love fellowshipping and chatting and having great conversations with a variety of artists
Q. Any advice that you would give to those who have felt lost in their faith walk with God, if so what would it be and why would you give it?
A. I would say to never give up as hard as circumstances may seem and keep pressing forward. Another piece of advice is not to sweat the small stuff and enjoy the journey. In this life you will have trouble, hard things will happen - being a Christian doesn't stop that. Our faith is there to help us get through those hard times - find someone - a good friend perhaps to talk to in those times of trouble so you don't get stuck in isolation - which is what the enemy wants. I would also say be excellent in where you are, don't worry so much about pleasing people but please God, and allow God to work through your imperfections. I spent a lot of time being a fixer and pleasing people and ready to receive criticism that I didn't know how to receive a compliment when it came. I had to realize it's not about perfection - and that if I focus on the things that please the Lord - ultimately the people who are moving with a like heart will be blessed and glean from that. By allowing God to work through that - God never wants to remove the best parts of you - he always wants to refine them and make you an even better version of you. I still have a heart to love and serve people, but I allowed God to make me a stronger person that is less trapped up by fear and setting unrealistic goals - where I can be free to enjoy each day as a gift the best i can. I've learned through good times and in tribulation over the last year that my last piece of advice I would give is this - be present in your relationships, and in life for what's in front of you. God wants to use you right now - and we can't if we are always looking so far back or so far forward, we are ineffective and stuck for today. God has a plan for all of us - we just all need to pay attention to what He is doing around us today. If we take it, one day at a time - hopefully we can weather the storms a little better when they come our way.
Q. Going back to a memory of either when the show was just beginning, or when it was continuing to grow, how would you say it has helped you in your own faith walk with God growing up, and how has it blessed you, from when you first started, to continuing to do it now?
A. Doing this show in a lot of ways keeps me just as encouraged and uplifted through music and conversation/testimonies as hopefully it does for a lot of you. There are songs that play that I receive for the show, or a piece of advice I will hear a guest say that has an impact on my faith walk immensely at a time when I may need to hear it That coupled with stories of how this program helps people through their situation or their day in a way helps motivate me in my own faith walk to keep trucking forward. In the last number of years despite all the things that have changed and things that have stayed a constant in my life, this show and ministry has been a joyful respite and a labor of love networking and fellowshipping with so many people and providing so many good memories. I'm thankful for many things in my life, good health, a good steady day job, good family, and this show is one of those things I thank God every day for the chance I get to produce this show - and I will keep doing it as long as the Lord wants me to and as long as it's leaving the desired impact it's supposed to leave.
Q. Is there a time in your life where you thought the show was going to just be a few episodes, and not as big as it has become now?
A. Sure. I think when it first was a segment inside of a show, I didn't think then it was going to become a series and was content with it being a recurring thing - until I realized God had bigger plans for it than that. At various growing pains of its life, I sometimes wonder if it's reached the pinnacle or if it's going to grow any farther. I just was asking God at the beginning of 2020 when roadshows were cancelling if I should end CMSTV or keep going and just have it be a slow autopilot type of year and the Lord clearly told me then - no - I have bigger plans for this - even though I certainly didn't see it yet. The heights that the show is reaching now is something that I certainly was actively pushing towards years ago but realized it wasn't God's timing for it to take off yet - He was still building the foundation and strengthening me at that point. Now - where I sit, I have watched CMSTV mature in front of my very own eyes into the creation that I knew it could be - and God has done even more with it than I ever could've thought possible. God's timing is everything and I am humbled and blessed that God has provided for, blessed and grown exponentially a platform such as this for a time such as this. This past year just has me more excited with a renewed purpose for CMSTV and its promising future.
Q. Finally, did you ever think that you would be celebrating the one-year anniversary of the show and did you ever think it was going to leave an impact on so many people's lives?
A. The one-year anniversary of Night of Hope - no certainly not at the beginning. I am constantly humbled by the feedback that the Night of Hope series has brought from viewers that were impacted by certain songs that we have played at a time they needed it, and artists as well who are grateful that when other outlets were saying no - we came along and said yes - and were able to feature their talent and give them a place to showcase it. I never thought that when it was first conceived a year ago that it would reach the heights it continues to reach and hear stories of how this music series (and by extension the hangout shows, or Christian Media Spotlight main show) has impacted people's lives - I love hearing those stories and don't take those stories lightly. The whole reason for Night of Hope to exist is to give viewers and artists a time of hope, encouragement, worship, and a positive nurturing place where they feel welcomed and valued. As long as Night of Hope is doing that - than I think that it's doing its job and we will keep doing those as long as there is a need to feasibly fill with those. To feature over 85 different artists and nearly 250 songs over 10 shows in this last year is mind boggling to me and quite humbling and proud in the greatest sort of ways.
