Introducing Grace Runkle

During her sophomore year of college, Grace Runkle stood at a microphone in front of her peers and prepared to lead a night of worship. She hadn’t led worship in a few years, but since she’d only been asked to sing a song or two, she’d accepted. As she stood on stage, her voice – which she had always considered to be a struggle point of her art – was transformed. 

“When I went up to the mic to sing, in that moment, God touched my voice,” recounted Runkle. “He gave me a voice I had never had before. It's like in that moment, he taught me how to sing.”

Runkle is a 22-year-old singer-songwriter from Lynchburg, Va. and she graduated from Liberty University this past spring with degrees in business and ministry. Over the course of the last two years Runkle has released five singles, each of which express her central mission to see the gospel communicated through artistic expression.

“I would say that my mission is to communicate the gospel to the world, to both the unsaved and the saved,” said Runkle. “But also specifically, I want to call the church back to honest creativity, excellence and beauty with their art, because I believe that God has called us to be a light in the darkness and part of that is releasing art into the world.” 

Runkle’s debut single, “captivated”, was written on her bedroom floor with nothing besides a notebook and a few hummed phrases. The single was released on May 17, 2024, and it was the song that started everything.

“It was so imperfect,” said Runkle. “Like, I think most people feel like they have to wait till they've written a thousand songs and perfected the plan and done everything, and I quite literally released the first song I ever wrote where I didn't even have a guitar in the first place.”

Runkle hadn't studied music in college, so her musical skills were largely either self-taught or God-given. And she never thought that she would be able to pursue music; she had never received prophetic words, nor had she grown up with assurances that she would be some sort of life-changing artist. So when she released  “captivated”, it was a step of faith and born from the conviction that she could make a difference in the world.

“I'm such a believer that God uses really weak people who don't know what they're doing,” said Runkle. “He is strong where they are weak, and I am very weak. And I think that song reminds me of my weakness in the most pure and joyful way, because God used it so wonderfully.” 

Runkle’s sound is distinctly indie, and it reflects the genre that made her feel connected to music in the first place. Still, Runkle identified a need within the music industry. 

“I noticed this gap in the market of people longing to connect with music that brings light into a dark industry, but not a lot of people doing it in a creative way,” said Runkle. “And so it was noticing there was a need and realizing that I think I could be the person to fill it. And I think that I could save lives if I opened up and started being honest about the gospel.”

In Runkle’s words, her life is changing faster than she is. She doesn’t want fame, and there are aspects of life as a public-facing figure that are uncomfortable. But when reflecting on what keeps her rooted, Runkle recounted the story of Jesus and how he fed the five thousand. Instead of leaving the crowd, he turned and ministered to them. 

While acknowledging that there are parts of this journey that require her to deny herself, Runkle has still found this season of life to be fun. In her own words, it’s something of a movie.

On April 10, she will be headlining THE BIG SHOW with OC Artists Collective. She’s flying out to Los Angeles and performing at the Jesus Center, accompanied by openers Tanner Lauzon and Ethan Mizell. It’s not Runkle’s first time on stage, but it’s her first time performing at this scale – a milestone she described as both terrifying and exciting. 

​​“It's a little surreal, but it means so much to me because, like, truly, what an honor to get the opportunity to carry influence in a room where I get to sit up there and sing songs and proclaim the gospel,” said Runkle. 

Runkle is fully, and almost supernaturally, equipped. Much like sophomore year, it’s not just her at the microphone.

“I think what's been so grounding for me is remembering that when I get up on that stage, it's not even just me,” said Runkle. “It's the Holy Spirit in me that is actually singing and performing, doing these things.”

As to where she’s planning on going from here, Runkle alluded to several different upcoming projects.  She plans to collaborate with Christian artists, and she might even tour. The one certainty is that each of these future endeavors will express her mission excellently. 

Life has changed since that stage she stood on sophomore year, but even still, Runkle’s life is just picking up.