After emerging as one of Christian music’s most prominent rising artists in recent years, with songs such as “Heart of the Father” and “Better Days,” along with collaborations featuring Blanca, Essential Worship, and Housefires, Ryan Ellis has departed Provident Label Group and is independently releasing a new EP, Halo.
NewReleaseToday had been promoting the project for the past several months. However, ahead of its release tonight, NRT removed the EP from its site after discovering that its closing track, “FREE,” contains explicit language.
On the song, Ellis sings, “Life ain’t a party, but it’s a [expletive] blast.”
Ellis has also shared social media posts surrounding the release in which he’s shirtless, discussing “not having all the information yet” and expanding his understanding of who God is. The posts have prompted concern from some fans, who encouraged him to remain grounded in Scripture rather than looking to the world for answers.
NRT has long maintained a policy against promoting Christian music containing profanity. NRT’s founder has also written multiple articles addressing the growing use of explicit language within Christian music, which can be read here and here.