Writing Songs from the Heart, an Interview

with songwriter Kimberly Walling Ford

This is the first of what I hope will become a regular feature here: an interview with a Christian Creative that shares their heart, their story, and their work. I first met Kimberly Walling Ford when we were both living in Tacoma. We reconnected on Facebook recently and I was so excited to see that she is still working with music because I remember her talent! I asked if I could interview her about writing songs and she graciously agreed. If you are a Christian Creative and you want to share your story, use the contact form to get in touch with me. Meanwhile, enjoy my conversation with Kimberly and check out some of the music projects she has contributed to.

Kimberly Walling Ford, songwriter

KDL - When we first met in Tacoma, WA you were a young teenager, but I could tell music was a special part of your life. How did you get interested in music?

KWF - My earliest memories of music are from when my parents would lead worship choruses at our church. My dad and I shared a love for early Contemporary Christian Music (CCM). When I was introduced to the music of Amy Grant, the sincerity in her songs and voice resonated with me. Her music put into words what a real and personal relationship with Jesus looks like. At age 11 I really believed I wanted to do what she was doing - writing songs and singing about Jesus.

I was always drawn to music. I took piano and voice lessons in middle and high school. By the time I was 13 I was writing some of my own songs. Some were written about Jesus, and a few were about friendships, life, and faith. I had a very supportive school as well as an encouraging pastor who gave me the opportunity to start doing solo concerts. My parents recognized the passion within me, believed in me, and made so many sacrifices along the way. I was blessed by their incredible love and nurturing support.

How has your musical experience and career expanded?

After high school I attended Seminar in the Rockies through the Gospel Music Association in Estes Park, CO. I had no plans to go to college like all my friends. I thought I was going to graduate high school, go to this conference, and be discovered and signed to a record deal.  By the end of the conference, I was deeply disappointed.  I had no idea how many other people wanted to do what I wanted to do. The wonderful thing about that conference was that it was not just about the vocal and songwriting competitions. They provided a plethora of classes to learn from industry professionals in Gospel and Christian music. Everything from artistry, promotions, stage presence, and vocal techniques, to songwriting and publishing was presented. I learned so much from those classes that encouraged me to get better. I knew I would be back there someday, but I wasn’t sure when.

Since being discovered hadn’t worked out yet, I was convinced that the next best thing was spending a year on the beautiful Oregon Coast at a special place in Cannon Beach called Ecola Bible School. This was a very important time for growing in my faith, and forming significant friendships. It also presented many outreach opportunities, including singing in a praise band for churches and youth groups around the Northwest. One day the band leader told me about a contest from a recording studio in Central Washington and encouraged me to enter. The grand prize was a fully recorded and packaged album of original songs. That decision changed my life. I won. I am so incredibly grateful to Cascade Recordings for what they did for me through their generosity. When the album was released, I started doing concerts regularly for the next couple of years. My parents continued to support me at my concerts. My dad was my sound man and my mom helped sell my CDs. 

I continued songwriting and recorded my second album with an artist/producer, Scott Anderson, in Seattle. Scott and his wife, Allison, were so instrumental in mentoring me as a writer. Scott did an incredible job of bringing my newest songs to life. They also encouraged me to go back to Estes Park and enter the songwriting competitions. One of the songs I entered won first place in the regional and international competition and God used it to open up big doors in Nashville. I met many Christian music publishers that week who all invited me to come visit them in Nashville.

For two years I made trips back and forth to Nashville. I kept singing, writing and networking. I still had the dream and goal to be a recording artist, but the doors were opening as a songwriter. I realized that If I wanted to make a career in the Christian music industry, the next step was to move to Nashville. In July of 2003, I moved to Franklin, TN.

In 2005, I was signed as the first staff writer for a new company out of the Seattle area called Centricity. They are wildly successful now, but in 2005 not many people knew who they were and no one knew who I was. That combination made it a challenge in many ways. However, it was an incredible gift to have people who believed in me, were willing to invest in me, and provided me with so many amazing experiences and opportunities to grow as a songwriter. I learned so much during the four years I was with them. 

After that season with Centricity ended, I married my husband, Michael. The next year, we welcomed our first child. There were several times since then that I thought my musical endeavors were behind me. The season of marriage and motherhood did not include much time or energy for creativity in songwriting. Whenever I would start believing that, a friend would offer encouragement to not give up, or an opportunity would come my way that would keep me in the game. I have written for choral projects, kids praise projects, and independent artist projects. Now I can see that God was allowing me to keep my toe in the water writing, while also allowing me to be fully present in my family life.

Renew Creative self-titled album art

In the last four years I have been focusing my creative energy on writing songs for our church. I absolutely love my church. I have been a member of Harpeth Christian Church in Franklin, TN for 21 years. It’s where I met my husband, got married, dedicated our children and am now on staff. It’s where our children have since committed their lives to trust and follow Jesus. It’s where we are all serving, discipling others, and building solid friendships. I have served as a vocalist and musician on the praise team for 17 of the 21 years I’ve been there. The heartbeat of our church is discipleship. Songwriting has provided a way to have discipling relationships with creatives through singing, music and the arts. Writing new and original worship songs helps disciple our congregation in the ways of Jesus.

You are writing songs in collaboration with other writers. How did you get started with that?

I initially set out to be a singer, but didn’t want to sing cover songs that naturally led to being compared to the original artist.  So, I started writing my own songs. I found that writing songs was a way for me to process and work things out that I was going through and a way that I could encourage other people. I often drew from Scripture. I knew that was powerful, and it also helped me and hopefully others to remember what God tells us in His Word.

I always wrote songs by myself until I went to Ecola where I became friends with others who loved singing, writing, and playing music as well. I realized very quickly how much I loved co-writing because we always had so much fun together. The creative process seemed more enjoyable and exciting when other people brought their ideas and talents to the table. When I moved to Nashville I realized everyone co-writes! I started connecting with publishers and industry folks, and they immediately started connecting me with other writers. I feel like I wrote with anyone and everyone. In fact, since moving to Nashville, there are very few songs I’ve written by myself. 

What does the music writing process look like for you? What inspires you? How do you go from an initial idea to a finished song?

The musicality of the song is significant, but it’s the lyrics of the song that matter the most to me. Genuine, thoughtful, creative lyrics speak truth and evoke a response. I will usually start with an idea, a theme or something that catches my attention or hits my heart, which sparks a lyric. I usually have several different ideas written down somewhere. When I meet with a co-writer we throw out ideas, and something will resonate with the other and we decide to take a stab at it. Sometimes we’ll talk about what’s going on in our lives, stuff God’s doing or trying to teach us or remind us of, or maybe something we read in the Bible that day or something somebody said.

It’s often a magical thing about songwriting. The music will find its way to the lyric. I rely on my co-writers to come up with the majority of the music for lyrics I write, because I love hearing what other people come up with musically. After writing the structure of the song lyrically and musically, we will go over it, edit, and tweak and make sure it’s the best we think it can be. Then we usually have someone listen and give us feedback. This could be a fellow songwriter or a publisher. Sometimes I will show it to my husband, my kids, or my worship leader.  If they are all saying the same things about the song, it’s good to pay attention to that feedback.

Is music an important part of your personal worship? What practices keep that fresh for you?

Music has always been a part of my personal relationship with Jesus and one of the ways I worship Him with my life. I find that songwriting is a special way to communicate with Him and for Him to speak to me as well. I think this is similar to King David and the other psalmists who expressed themselves to the Lord through song. Through their pain, sadness, joy, celebration, fear, and grief, they express their awe and wonder of Who He is.

Recently I have listened to many of the artists and their music that moved me early on. They helped formulate my emotions, experiences, and my theology about who God is and who I am. It reignited a fire in me that brings me back to the pure innocence of being a child, growing up, and maturing in my relationship with Jesus. It is a powerful reminder of the gospel and its influence in all areas of my life.

I am continually studying, reading, and learning to love God’s word. I want to grow more in my love for and devotion to Jesus and in sharing His love and truth with others. Staying in His Word is a tremendous inspiration to me because it is alive and active, freshly speaking to me right where I am (Hebrews 4:12). Writing songs from Scripture helps keep personal worship fresh for me. God is always reminding me of things through His word. Most importantly, anything from God’s Word that I can put into a song helps me remember what His Word says. This is a way that I can, “hide His Word in my heart that I might not sin against Him.” (Psalm 119:11) 

What’s the easiest part of putting a song out into the world? What’s the hardest?

Things have changed drastically in the twenty years that I’ve been in Nashville. Being an artist and songwriter now is both the hardest and easiest thing to be. When I started my journey, everyone who wanted to be a successful singer or songwriter was still dependent upon record labels and publishing houses. The dream was to be signed. If you got signed you could make money on album sales, radio royalties and touring.

Then the digital world invaded the industry and introduced streaming. The value of music plummeted as it became generously accessible to everyone for very little money. It changed everything. The music industry had to start reinventing itself to keep up with the latest technology. Sadly, the music creators became the victims of a new reality that does not include fair pay and compensation for their work. There used to be two ways to get your songs out into the world. You could independently record an album and book places to sing that would pay you and buy your albums. Alternatively, you could find someone else who would do it for you, a record label or a publishing company.

Now, with the incredible saturation of social media, anyone can put their songs out for the world to hear. Sadly, it’s not so much about the music anymore as it is about how many followers, monthly listeners, and streams you have. People don’t even own the music anymore. They just rent it for a small fee each month, minimizing the value and compensation for the actual creators. The big companies who rent out the music make all the money. That is completely debilitating and heartbreaking for those who imagined their lives and careers as musical creators. I realized many years ago that I could never make a living in music like I could have twenty years ago. However, that hasn’t made me stop writing.

Can you introduce us to the songs you’re sharing with us?

While I was with Centricity they made it possible for me to record and release another album of my songs. These were a collection of my most favorite songs I had written since moving to Nashville. This was such a special project for me. My friend Brian Oaks produced it. We had some of the best Nashville musicians play on it, including Christine Dente, from Out of The Grey. I admire her greatly as a songwriter and vocalist. She graciously sang on the album, as well as some of my dear friends. Where Do We Go From Here was my last solo project I recorded in Nashville in 2009.

My church’s praise team, Renew Creative, just released our first project of original music. I am excited that six of the songs on the album are songs I co-wrote. Some are full praise songs celebrating who God is and all He has done for us. Some are familiar hymns that we modified with our own choruses, bridges, or arrangements. There are also some very real, raw songs where we are pouring out our hearts to God. The song “Not My Will” was a song I co-wrote with my worship leader Dave Stovall and friend Matt Lott. I had to dig deep and revisit my grief from when my dad quickly and unexpectedly passed away from Covid pneumonia in 2021. Losing my dad was one of the hardest and most devastating things I have been through. The way it happened during that awful time of the pandemic was truly traumatic. I knew to really be able to authentically sing “Not my will but Yours,” would come at the cost of revisiting that grief. I have already seen God using it as a prayer for those in our church who are going through challenges.

The Best is Yet to Come by Brian Connelly

I also have had the wonderful opportunity of writing with an incredibly talented young artist named Brian Connelly who has become like family to me along with his wife and two children. It has been such a joy to write songs that encourage the church to worship God with their hearts and lives. His debut album, which was released in July, includes four songs I co-wrote with him.

Make sure to visit the links to Kimberly's music! In the comments please let me know which songs you will be adding to your playlist. - KDL