‘Festival: A Youth Concert’ Helps Youth Connect With, Joyfully Worship Jesus Christ

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By Kaitlyn Bancroft, Church News

Looking out at a crowd of almost 2,000 youth, Benjamin Taylor testified of Jesus Christ.

“This is not about performance,” he said. “This is about our Savior, Jesus Christ. We are His followers, right? We are His disciples. We choose to look to Him in every thought. So tonight, we celebrate our faith in Him. We celebrate our gratitude, we celebrate our praise. He is the reason why we’re all here.”

Taylor was one of 13 Strive to Be artists who performed at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah, on Wednesday, June 11, as part of this year’s “Festival: A Youth Concert” event.

Learn more about the event Festival 2025: A Youth Concert

The singers were also joined by Young Women General President Emily Belle Freeman and Young Men General President Steven J. Lund, who explained the concert to the audience and gave them instructions about the stage, the cameras and the light-up bracelets distributed before the show.

But the concert wasn’t only for the youth attending in person, who were participating in a For the Strength conference. The entire show was filmed so that Strive to Be can broadcast it to youth around the globe.

Strive to Be is the youth channel of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, dedicated to strengthening youth around the world through Christ-centered music and messages.

Last year, the channel featured a worldwide broadcast of “Festival: A Youth Concert,” filmed in Salt Lake City in front of a live audience of almost 1,000 people. The recording was then distributed through Church channels, with wards and stakes encouraged to plan a date to view the concert together.

This year, wards and stakes will again have the chance to enjoy “Festival: A Youth Concert” together. The broadcast will be available online Augusr 7 in English, Spanish and Portuguese and will include footage from live performances in Mexico and Brazil.

“We have been planning this night for a very long time,” Taylor told the crowd on Wednesday night. “Every song, every note and every prayer behind the scenes has led to this moment. What matters most is that you are here, every one of you guys. So we need you guys ready to feel, to listen and to be changed.”
 

Church News Episode 245: Strive to Be artists on strengthening testimonies through music and upcoming ‘Festival 2025: A Youth Concert’

Looking Unto Christ Through Music

The concert setlist of songs and performers included:

• “Good Day,” Liahona Olayan
• “Stand Strong,” Benjamin Taylor
• “Stronger,” James Thorup
• “Faith,” Reina Ley
• “Healer” Sister Ellie Barry
• “FSY Medley,” sung by the entire group
• “Your Presence,” Ashley Hess and Pearce Morris
• “What Is This Joy?” JRay Kuhn
• “He’ll Be There,” Connor Austin
• “Fear Not,” Rylee Paige
• “Light My Way,” Jay Phung
• “Look Unto Christ,” Hanna Eyre
• “If You Believe,” Patch Crowe.

Between songs, the performers shared stories and personal testimonies of Jesus Christ.

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Jay Phung, a Strive to Be singer from Hawaii, recounted the story of Christ walking on water and Peter leaving the boat to walk with Him (Matthew 14:25-31).

People sometimes focus on the part of the story where Peter sunk into the water, Phung said. But he finds it incredible that Peter first walked on water.

“You are capable of seemingly impossible things as long as you have your eyes on Christ,” Phung said. “It was only when Peter looked away that the sinking began. So imagine what you could do. Please, please accept the Lord’s invitation and just take that first step out of the boat, and I promise you that you have nothing to fear, because the Lord will always be there.”

Strive to Be artist Hanna Eyre performed a song based on this year’s youth theme, found in Doctrine and Covenants 6:36: “Look unto me in every thought; doubt not, fear not.”

“Looking to Christ invites His joy to our lives, and that is a real, lasting joy,” Eyre told the youth. “Every song tonight has pointed us to the One, the One who gives us strength, peace and purpose. … Jesus Christ is the hope in the struggle. He will give you courage.”

The crowd responded loudly and enthusiastically to each performance, at one point chanting “We love Jesus!”

Strive to Be artist JRay Kuhn encouraged the youth’s energy, inviting them to get on their feet for the uptempo song “What Is This Joy?”

“I’m so grateful that we can also celebrate and have joy, for this is the Church of joy,” he said.

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