A few years ago, I stumbled on some videos by Maverick City Music, which started out as a loose group of musicians and vocalists who sought to shake up the worship music industry. Maverick City wanted to diversify worship music — not in a woke way, but in a way that made vibrant, heartfelt music that brought black and white worship music together.
Those early EPs gave off a sense that you were in the room with these talented people as they made music and glorified God together. It felt like something special and revolutionary. Here are two of my favorite early songs of theirs:
As Maverick City gained more followers, more fame, and more attention, it started to feel less like a collection of upstarts trying to change the worship music mindset and more like a brand. Its founders launched a record label, and many of its personalities became celebrities in their own right. Their social media presence got slicker, their tours grander, and television appearances more frequent.
Don’t get me wrong: The music was still powerful, and it glorified God, but it wasn’t quite the same as before. And a new lawsuit is demonstrating cracks beneath the surface of a powerful movement that the Lord is still using.
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Chandler Moore recently left Maverick City, but his was one of the most memorable voices among some true talents:
I listened to some early Maverick City as I wrote this, and I noticed that in the early EP Maverick City, Part 3, Vol. 1, Moore begins with a prayer in which he says in part, “There are no celebrities here.” Sadly, that changed, and Moore’s lawsuit against his former manager, Norman Gyamfi, and other figures associated with Maverick City Music and TRIBL Records reveals how big a business worship music can be.
On the surface, the suit sounds like a tale as old as time: a business manager taking advantage of a client. The initial filing document from Oct. 1 sets the stage: "This case involves the all-too-common fact pattern of a business manager and his corporate alter egos taking advantage of a creative musical artist and violating the trust the artist placed in the manager."
Among the allegations is Moore and his attorneys’ insistence that Gyamfi sold Maverick City’s masters to a Sony subsidiary without authorization and that Gyamfi forged documents that funneled hundreds of thousands of dollars that should have gone to Moore into his pockets. Moore alleges that Gyamfi forged Moore’s signature on a publishing contract.
"Norman Gyamfi exploited his fiduciary relationship with musical artist Chandler Moore by, among other things, entering into deals to enrich himself without Moore’s knowledge, secretly forging Moore’s name on a contract to divert monies owed to Moore into Gyamfi’s own pockets," the suit asserts. Moore and his legal team also insist that Gyamfi used corporate “alter egos” to enrich himself at Moore’s expense.
According to the suit, "Gyamfi and the Insignia entities unlawfully retained assets and monies that were owed to Moore by wrongfully directing publishing entities, including, without limitation, Essential Music Publishing LLC, to pay all of Chandler’s publishing monies directly to Gyamfi and the Insignia entities."
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As you might expect, that kind of accusation didn’t stay unanswered for long. Maverick City Music co-founder and CEO Jonathan Jay took to Instagram to push back against Moore’s claims. He began by noting that he generally doesn’t speak out about the business affairs of Maverick City.
“But in light of the recent speculation, innuendo, and allegations made by Chandler Moore, I can't remain silent,” he wrote. “Not when the truth is being distorted. I've spent my life building this, and I won't let a series of lies go unchecked.”
He added:
To be clear: the claims being made against me, against Norman, and against our companies are categorically false. These aren't misunderstandings. These are calculated attempts to strong-arm a way out of agreements Chandler made freely and later breached.
Our business dealings with Chandler were forthright, generous, and above reproach. We acted in good faith, gave more than what was required, and consistently extended grace. Any allegations of misdeeds are simply not true and we welcome a full and honest examination, because the truth will speak for itself.
Jay also insinuated that Moore isn’t above reproach in his dealings:
It saddens me deeply to see Chandler publicly allege something so wildly untrue. There's a pattern of avoided accountability, unresolved conflicts passed off to others, and a history of others being forced to carry the weight of consequences never owned. That pattern ends here. So much has been given to create space for a new sound and a new standard in worship and I refuse to let a false narrative undo what so many people have labored, sacrificed, and prayed for over the years.
Where is the truth in all of these allegations? That’s for the court to decide, but it’s discouraging to see this playing out in public. It’s also heartbreaking that these upstarts who set out to change worship music have turned into squabbling businessmen.
Another key member of Maverick City Music announced this week that she is also stepping away to start a solo career. Naomi Raine’s Instagram announcement is full of gratitude and excitement, but there’s a touch of the realization that Maverick City has taken on an outsized role in these words: “What started as a group of folks singing in a shed has turned into something I could’ve never even imagined!”
We all have those bands and musical artists we loved when they had smaller followings, and then they got more famous and lost some of their charm. In the South, we like to say that some people get “too big for their britches.” That describes how I feel about Maverick City Music in light of this news.
Maybe it’s a cautionary tale for all of us who blend ministry and industry — that even in the most Spirit-filled spaces, success can blur the lines between calling and career. I get that even worship music is big business, but when greed and dishonesty creep in, maybe it means that something needs to change. I can only hope that somehow the end result of all this eventually brings glory to God.
Stories like this remind us that even in the world of worship music, truth and integrity matter. At PJ Media, we dig deeper into the cultural and spiritual stories that others gloss over.
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