Singer-songwriter Erik Nieder asked Hope Darst to join him on his radio single, “Praise You All The Same.” Nieder originally wrote the song with Benji Cowart as a prayer over his daughter’s ongoing health challenges. Born with clubfoot, his young daughter endured multiple surgeries and extensive time in casts, braces and wheelchairs before she was able to walk.
Thinking of his daughter and wondering — from a father’s perspective — when and if the suffering would ever cease, Nieder penned an earnest, desperate prayer, as he learned to trust God regardless of the outcome. The Dallas-based musician looked to Job 1:21 for comfort, inspiring some of the song’s lyrics: “The Lord gave me what I had, and the Lord has taken it away. Praise the name of the Lord!”
RELATED CONTENT: Faith Behind The Song: "Praise You All The Same" Erik Nieder & Hope Darst
“What started as a simple prayer for my little girl has turned into an anthem of praise and a reminder of the Lord’s faithfulness in every season,” Nieder reflects. “And what a gift it is to now have Hope singing it with me. I’ve been a fan of Hope for a number of years now, and it was truly an honor to have her join me on this song that means so much to me and my family. It took about five minutes of her singing in the studio to realize this was not merely a version of the song, but THE VERSION of the song. And I couldn’t be more excited about it.”
Darst, who crafted her hit, “Mighty Name Of Jesus,” in response to her own daughter’s chronic illness, immediately identified with the heartbeat behind the declaration. Her commanding vocal arrives on the second verse and again on the bridge as she harmonizes with Nieder, pledging unwavering allegiance to a God who gives and takes away, but through it all, remains trustworthy.
Today, Nieder and Darst share a label home; but before signing a record deal, Nieder wrote, recorded and toured as an independent artist for more than a decade while also serving as a worship leader at Watermark Church in his home state of Texas.
