A soulful church-music director turned earnest country star.
About Danny Gokey
Hometown
Milwaukee, WI, United States
Born
April 24, 1980
Genre
Christian
Danny Gokey is a Grammy-nominated country and contemporary Christian singer who’s best known for placing third on Season 8 of American Idol.
• The Milwaukee native started singing as a child with his family in church. He later worked for more than eight years as a worship leader at his local church.
• Gokey entered the national spotlight in 2008, when he auditioned for American Idol just four weeks after his wife’s death.
• After finishing third, he signed to 19 Recordings/RCA Nashville, becoming the first male Idol contestant to ink a deal with a major country label.
• His 2010 debut album, My Best Days, debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard 200.
• After leaving the label in 2011, Gokey released the Love Again EP in 2012, followed by a memoir in 2013.
• Gokey dropped his sophomore album, Hope in Front of Me, in 2014 and returned with a Christmas album, Christmas Is Here, in 2015.
• The singer’s 2017 album Rise earned a Grammy nomination for Best Contemporary Christian Album. He was nominated for that same award two years later, for his 2019 album Haven’t Seen It Yet.
Influenced by Danny GokeyDanny Gokey has influenced the music of Jared Meise, Fresh Icee, Alex Muno and more.