WHAT IS COLONY SESSIONS?
Colony Sessions is a writers-in-the-round event put on by the Franklin Fellows.
This is a night of fun, as we rejoice in stories and songs featuring talented local artists and songwriters. This night is about storytelling, sharing what it means to live a purposeful, meaningful, and beautiful life.
This event also serves as the annual fundraising event for Franklin Fellows.
ABOUT THE ARTISTS
Austin DAVIS
Born and raised in Maui, HI, Austin begun his journey in professional music as a touring drummer at the young age of 17. In 2017, Austin decided to embrace a new chapter in his career, transitioning from touring to becoming a prolific songwriter and producer.
He received his first songwriting credit as a collaborator of Kari Jobe’s single “I Am Not Alone” off of her 2014 album, “Majestic”. Since then Austin has continued to be a staple collaborator with Kari and her husband Cody Carnes as a producer and writer. Writing credits include songs such as “First Love”, “Heaven Invade”, and Cody’s recent church anthem “Firm Foundation (He Won’t), which was also performed by Maverick City and Chandler Moore.
Along with the previous mentions, he is heavily credited as being apart of The Belonging Co.’s albums writing song’s like “The Dove” and “Everything Is Changing” to name a few, and his most recent release with Passion, “I’ve Witnessed It”, was released as a single and the album title from their conference in 2023.
JESS CATES
Jess is a professional songwriter with over 100 songs recorded, including the Backstreet Boys worldwide hit, “Incomplete,” and Nick Lachey’s top 5 song, “What’s Left Of Me.” He is also a writer on David Archuleta’s debut hit single, “Crush,” and Martina McBride's grammy-nominated song, "I Just Call You Mine.”
His heart and passion for worship music has lead him to write some of the top worship songs in the industry; such as Chris Tomlin's "Even So Come," Bethel Music's "Reign Above It All," and Mandisa's "You Keep Hope Alive." Multiple other artists have recorded his songs; including Vertical Worship, Jesus Culture, Passion Music, Elevation Worship, Danny Gokey, Jeremy Camp, One Republic, Jordan Sparks, Leona Lewis, Ben Rector, Jonas Brothers, LeAnn Rimes, Jon Reddick, and many more.
Other songs have been featured in Film, TV, Trailers and Ads including Hyundai, Mini Cooper, Fortnite, Samsung, Hulu, Starz, The Super Bowl, American Idol, Dancing With The Stars, So You Think You Can Dance, America’s Got Talent, Quantico, TLC, HGTV, ESPN, Amazon and many more.
Cates resides in Thomas Station, TN, with his wife and kids. He is also the worship pastor at Church of the City in Springhill.
Recently, he wrote on “Shine Like Stars” and “My Eyes Have Seen” off the new Passion Music EP, along with the Jon Reddick radio single “God, Turn It Around” you can currently hear on K-LOVE!
Tommy Iceland
As honored in his name, Tommy was born in Hafnarfjördur, Iceland. Raised in a musical family off the west coast of Sweden, his upbringing was saturated with gospel singers, songwriters, and recording artists. This led to his passion for songwriting at age twelve, an enthusiasm that placed him in various bands growing up as he honed his craft.
Tommy made his way to the US to start his career as a songwriter, producer, and artist in 2018. He has written and produced for a variety of artists and groups around the world such as Chris Tomlin, DOE, Rita Springer, Mac Powell, Jesus Culture, Sidewalk Prophets, and many more.
OUR SPONSERS
Host Sponsor
Platinum Sponsor
Gold Sponsor