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Chris Rice is a former American singer and songwriter who worked in the contemporary Christian music, contemporary folk, adult contemporary and adult album alternative genres. He became a recording artist in 1996 after signing a contract with Rocketown Records and releasing his debut album, Deep Enough to Dream. He released six albums between 1996 and 2007, before entering a 12-year hiatus. In 2019, he ended his hiatus and released a joint album with Andrew Ripp.
In 2020, Rice was accused of sexually assaulting a minor between 1995 and 2003 while leading worship at youth camp retreats for a church. In 2022, an investigation from an independent establishment determined the allegations to be credible. He has not released a statement regarding the allegations and has not been active in music since then.
Having taken only three years of piano lessons as a child, Rice did not aspire to a career in either music or student work. But frequent invitations to speak and lead music at his church's youth group events led to more such invitations throughout his college years at the University of Maryland, Grace College in Winona Lake, Indiana, and Union University in Jackson, Tennessee. He holds a bachelor's degree in Psychology and Communication. While leading music and coaching high school soccer teams he began writing songs. What began as weekend and summer work with youth and college students soon turned into a full-time career during his twenties and thirties, and prompted Rice to write and perform mainly on the guitar.
For those two decades, Rice spent his time as an itinerant speaker and songwriter/musician, playing for high school and college conferences and camps nationwide. This schedule prepared Chris for his career as a signed recording artist, touring the country with a full band.
In 2001, Rice released two piano-only, instrumental releases, The Living Room Sessions and The Living Room Sessions: Christmas, recorded on Rice's own living room grand piano.
His sixth album, Run the Earth... Watch the Sky, released in March 2003, Chris again joined the production talents of his longtime friend and collaborator Monroe Jones. The album's first single was "The Other Side of the Radio".
These four studio releases (plus the two instrumental releases) fulfilled Rice's contractual commitment to Rocketown and they issued several compilation albums, Short Term Memories and Snapshots: Live and Fan Favorites, following his departure in June 2004 and February 2005 respectively.
His fifth studio album, Amusing, released in August 2005. For the first time in his career, Rice released radio singles to AC and Light Rock stations around the country, the first single being a light romantic song entitled "When Did You Fall (In Love With Me?)" which reached No. 8 on the Pop AC radio format and enjoyed Top Ten status throughout the middle of 2006. A second AC hit, "Lemonade", began climbing the AC chart in 2007.
With his success on the AC radio format, Rice released a side project hearkening back to his roots, a vocal hymns album, Peace Like a River: The Hymns Project, in November 2006.
Rice released What a Heart Is Beating For in July 2007, further positioning him as a pop artist. Only 2 of its 13 songs contained overt faith themes.
In December 2018, Rice and Andrew Ripp pre-released an album, Songs We Wrote on Tuesdays, as Ripp+Rice as well as a single "This Ain't No Love Song" from that album. The album, a mix of adult contemporary and country music and was officially released on January 4, 2019.
In June 2022, Tates Creek Presbyterian Church released GRACE's report, which found the allegations to be credible. Rice has not released a statement regarding the allegations to date.
| 1994 | Live By Faith
| — | — |
| 1997 | Deep Enough to Dream
| — | 7 |
| 1998 | Past the Edges
| 167 | 4 |
| 2000 | Smell the Color 9
| — | 20 |
| 2003 | Run the Earth... Watch the Sky
| 161 | 12 |
| 2005 | Amusing
| — | 10 |
| 2006 | Peace Like a River: The Hymns Project
| — | — |
| 2007 | What a Heart Is Beating For
| — | 9 |
| 2019 | Songs We Wrote on Tuesdays )
| — | — |
| — | — |
| 2001 | The Living Room Sessions
| 23 |
The Living Room Sessions: Christmas
| 26 | |
| 2004 | Short Term Memories
| 10 |
| 2005 | Snapshots: Live and Fan Favorites
| 48 |
When Did You Fall
| — | |
Merry Chris Rice
| — |
| 1997 | "Deep Enough To Dream" | — | — | — | Deep Enough to Dream |
| 2002 | "Christmas Party" | — | — | — | The Living Room Sessions: Christmas |
| "The Other Side of the Radio" | — | — | 36 | Run the Earth... Watch the Sky | |
| 2003 | "Smile (Just Want To Be With You)" | — | 2 | 2 | |
| "Untitled Hymn (Come To Jesus)" | — | 38 | 37 | ||
| 2004 | "Go Light Your World" | — | 23 | 21 | Short Term Memories |
| "Cartoons" | — | 39 | 35 | ||
| 2005 | "Love Like Crazy" | — | — | 38 | Amusing |
| 2006 | "When Did You Fall (In Love With Me)" | 9 | 18 | 17 | |
| "The Christmas Song (Chesnuts Roasting on an Open Fire)" | — | 34 | 31 | Merry Chris Rice | |
| 2007 | "Lemonade" | 22 | — | — | What a Heart Is Beating For |
| "Sad Song" | — | — | — |
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