Hello Wild Harbors!

In a mid 2017 blog post, Jenna Badeker said that it was a year for stepping out and taking chances. She and husband Chris have been recording and performing as “Chris & Jenna” for the last 7 years. While recording a new album with producer Andrew Osenga, they started discussing a possible name change.

“When Chris & Jenna reached out to me to see if I’d record with them,” Osenga told me this last Fall, “I had made presumptions about their music just based on their name alone – and mostly not positive presumptions. But their new batch of songs are really incredible. The music isn’t cutesy, it’s gutsy. I encouraged them to think about a band name that represented this new chapter of music.”

And beginning in 2018, Chris & Jenna the people are still alive and well, but the Chris & Jenna band name is retired (including their two albums under that name). It’s time to begin a new chapter as… Wild Harbors.

Name changes can be quite a risk… ask Radio Shack or Philip Morris. But it can also work… like Xfinity, Colony House, or even UTR Media. Chris & Jenna aren’t afraid of the risk and they seem to be embracing the upside. Here’s a portion of what they wrote on their blog:

As our new album developed, it started to become clear that the name might have run its course. We realized that the images that came to people’s minds when they heard the name for the first time weren’t aligning with the sounds we were creating.

On a personal level, so much of our time and conversation is centered around the band. We are so grateful that we work well together. Through praying and talking with others, we realized it might be good for us to create a line in the sand to help determine when we’re working on music and when we have time off to be Chris & Jenna the married couple. We love being a band, but our marriage comes first. Having a band name that is different from our own names is a way for us to create some protection and separation.

…So, moving forward, we are Wild Harbors. We are seeking port in places that may not be tamed or perfected. They may not be easily reached. But we’re setting sail from any harbors of complacency and fear where we’ve been tempted to remain. Thank you for sailing with us this far. We’re excited to see what’s in store.

You can search for Wild Harbors on the web or social media channels to keep up with their new chapter of music. Look for some new singles in 2018 and a full album by the end of the year.