What started out as an occasional podcast on the review site Christian Music Review in early 2008 featuring interviews with artists in Christian music, soon began to branch out into film, books and even sports.
Now, more than 15 years and over 150 full-length radio shows later, Kingdom Builder continues to grow into a program devoted to highlighting music and interviews of those who shine for Jesus in the world of Christian entertainment!
Welcome to Kingdom Builder: The Story Behind the Story
Have you ever listened to a song and wondered about the heart behind the lyrics? Have you watched a film or read a book and wished you knew the inside story of its creation?
That is the very heart of Kingdom Builder. For over 15 years, our mission has been to take you beyond the spotlight and behind the curtain, connecting you with the creators who shine for Jesus. We’re your all-access pass to the inspiring, unfiltered stories behind your favorite songs, movies, and books.
Our Journey: Milestones & Momentum
It all began in 2008 as a passionate (occasional) podcast on the site, Christian Music Review (dot org), founded and hosted by Jay Heilman. What started as interviews with music artists quickly blossomed, as the vision expanded to cover the worlds of film, books, and even sports.
A major milestone hit in 2017, as Kingdom Builder evolved from a classic podcast into a dynamic, one-hour radio show on the on-line radio platforms One Jam Nation Radio (OJNR) and Righteous Rock Radio. This new format was packed with the latest Christian music singles, powerful Bible teachings, and the exclusive, in-depth interviews that have become our signature. From 2020 to 2024, the audio podcast continued this legacy streaming exclusively on SoundCloud, continuing to share incredible stories of faith and creativity.
The Team: A Vision United
As the mission grew, so did the team. The first to join Jay was co-host Kelly Meade, whose insights and engaging presence helped take the show to the next level. The duo shared a powerful chemistry, but the team still had one missing piece to feel truly complete.
In October 2024, the Kingdom Builder family was finally rounded out. In a full-circle moment, Mike Laxton, a core member of the original Christian Music Review crew from its earliest years, triumphantly returned to the team. Mike’s homecoming solidifies the trio, bringing a rich history and a renewed energy to the mic.
Today, with a legacy spanning over 17 years, 150 full-length shows and nearly 1,000 videos, the completed team of Jay, Kelly, and Mike are more fired up than ever. Our goal remains the same: to make you aware of all the inside stories you won’t hear anywhere else, celebrating the artists, authors, and filmmakers who are building the Kingdom—one story at a time.
Prior to its run on on-line radio, KB existed in 6 different seasons with the following guests and airdates:
Season 1 (2008)
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Episode 1 – Dolph Lundgren (January 30, 2008)
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Episode 2 – Kevin Hughuley of Rush of Fools (February 20, 2008)
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Episode 3 – Warren Barfield (May 7, 2008)
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Episode 4 – Brian “Head” Welch of Korn (June 4, 2008)
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Episode 5 – Kirk Cameron Fireproof (July 15, 2008)
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Episode 6 – Alex Kendrick Fireproof (July 15, 2008)
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Episode 7 – Collin Stoddard of 33Miles (September 19, 2008)
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Episode 8 – Josh Reedy of DecembeRadio (September 19, 2008)
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Episode 9 – Mike Nawrocki/Larry The Cucumber of VeggieTales (November 2, 2o08)
Season 2 (2009)
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Episode 1 – Alex Kendrick Interview by Kevin Davis (February 11, 2009)
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Episode 2 – John Waller (April 1, 2009)
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Episode 3 – Night of Joy 2009 – Kutless (September 29, 2009)
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Episode 4 – Night of Joy 2009 – Leeland and Michael Tait of Newsboys (September 29, 2009)
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Episode 5 – Night of Joy 2009 – Sonny Sandoval of POD and Flyleaf (October 14, 2009)
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Episode 6 – Night of Joy 2009 – Mercyme and Jars of Clay (October 20, 2009)
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Episode 7 – Oz Fox of STRYPER (November 3, 2009)
Season 3 (2010)
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Episode 1 – To Save A Life Cast Randy Wayne, Sean Afable, Josh Weigel & Kim Hidalgo (January 19, 2010)
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Episode 2 – Ben Zobrist (May 18, 2010)
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Episode 3 – Alex Kendrick Courageous (June 15, 2010)
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Episode 4 – Patrick Doughtie Letters To God (August 10, 2010)
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Episode 5 – Corbin Bernson Rust (August 25, 2010) (Not Aired)
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Episode 6 – Sean Afable To Save A Life (September 7, 2010)
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Episode 7 – Lincoln Brewster (November 9, 2010)
Season 4 (2011)
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Episode 1 – Phil Vischer What’s In The Bible? (January 11, 2011)
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Episode 2 – Nick Vujicic (January 18, 2011)
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Episode 3 – Kevin Downes Like Dandelion Dust (January 25, 2011)
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Episode 4 – Grace Card Cast David Evans, Michael Joiner & Michael Higgenbottom (February 1, 2011)
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Episode 5 – Will McGinnes Know Hope Collective (March 1, 2011)
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Episode 6 – Rebecca St. James (March 1, 2011)
Season 5 (2013-2014)
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Episode 1 – TJ Harris of Decyfer Down (July 12, 2013)
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Episode 2 – Ray Comfort (July 26, 2013)
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Episode 3 – Jeremiah Carlson of Neverclaim (September 13, 2013)
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Episode 4 – Michael Sweet of STRYPER (October 18, 2013)
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Episode 5 – Shane Harper God’s Not Dead (February 11, 2014)
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Episode 6 – David Ellefson of Megadeth (February 12, 2014)
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Episode 7 – Ray Comfort (March 6, 2014)
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Episode 8 – Anthony Evans (April 7, 2014)
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Episode 9 – Beckah Shae (April 16, 2014)
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Episode 10 – Michael Sweet of STRYPER (April 17, 2014)
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Episode 11 – Colton Dixon (August 23, 2014)
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Episode 12 – Blake Rayne and Erin Cottrell Identical (September 2, 2014)
Season 6 (2014-2015)
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Episode 1 – Mike Donehey of Tenth Avenue North (November 4, 2014)
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Episode 2 – Ginny Owens (November 10, 2014)
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Episode 3 – Al Robertson of Duck Dynasty (December 18, 2014)
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Episode 4 – NF (March 24, 2015)
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Episode 5 – Beckah Shae (July 20, 2015)
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Episode 6 – Kevin Young of Disciple (August 22, 2015)
On-Line Radio Era (2017-2024)
Shows 1 – 47 Aired Originally on One Jam Nation Radio (OJNR) from August 2016 to October 2017
Shows 48 – 60 Aired Originally on Righteous Rock Radio from January 2018 to May 2018
Shows 61 and on have aired exclusively on SoundCloud from June 2018 to the January 2024.
2016
Show 1 – Michael Sweet of STRYPER – August 13, 2016
Show 2 – Plumb – August 20, 2016
Show 3 – Schyler Dixon – September 3, 2016
Show 4 – [Night of Joy 2016 Recap] – September 10, 2016
Show 5 – Mattie Montgomery of For Today – September 17, 2016
Show 6 – Jodi King of Love & The Outcome – September 24, 2016
Show 7 – Author, Chrysandra Brunson – October 1, 2016
Show 8 – Joel Smallbone of for KING + COUNTRY – October 8, 2016
Show 9 – Kevin Young of Disciple – October 15, 2016
Show 10 – Masey McLain, Jaci Velasquez of I’m Not Ashamed film – October 22, 2016
Show 11 – David AR White & Jonathan Cain of Journey – October 29, 2016
Show 12 – Al Robertson of Duck Dynasty Part 1 (2014 Interview) – November 12, 2016
Show 13 – Al Robertson of Duck Dynasty Part 2 (2014 Interview) – November 19, 2016
Show 14 – Team TCE’s Favorite Songs from 2016 – November 26, 2016
Show 15 – Holt International Feature & Christmas Classics – December 3, 2016
Show 16 – Christmas 2016 – December 10, 2016
Show 17 – KB 2016 Finale “Team TCE Christmas Memories – December 17, 2016
2017
Show 18 – Coach Bobby Bowden – January 7, 2017
Show 19 – Lou Gramm of Foreigner – January 14, 2017
Show 20 – Dallas Jenkins of Resurrection of Gavin Stone film – January 21, 2017
Show 21 – Reba McEntire & Bryan Duncan – January 28, 2017
Show 22 – Joel Smallbone of for KING + COUNTRY – February 11, 2017
Show 23 – Ayiesha Woods – February 18, 2017
Show 24 – Terry Benedict of Hacksaw Ridge film – February 25, 2017
Show 25 – Steven Curtis Chapman – March 3, 2017
Show 26 – Aaron Shust – March 11, 2017
Show 27 – Pastor Chris Whaley of The Masked Saint film – March 18, 2017
Show 28 – Pastor Victor Torres of Victor film – March 25, 2017
Show 29 – Michael Joiner of Heaven Bound film – April 8, 2017
Show 30 – Stu G of Delirious?/One Sonic Society – April 20, 2017
Show 31 – John Waller – May 7, 2017
Show 32 – Mike Nawrocki of VeggieTales (Retro 2008) – May 14, 2017
Show 33 – Todd Agnew – May 27, 2017
Show 34 – 2007 Radio Flashback – June 10, 2017
Show 35 – Elias Dummer of City Harmonic – June 17, 2017
Show 36 – Jeremy Rosado – June 24, 2017
Show 37 – Natasha Owens – July 22, 2017
Show 38 – Fernando Ortega – July 29, 2017
Show 39 – Mac Powell and Mark Lee of Third Day – August 5, 2017
Show 40 – Matthew West – August 19, 2017
Show 41 – Mark Lee of Third Day – September 2, 2017
Show 42 – Jasmine Murray – September 16, 2017
Show 43 – Rich Mullins Tribute Show: Mac Powell, Mark Lee, Todd Agnew, Kevin Max, Mitch McVicker – September 22, 2017
Show 44 – Author, Jennifer McAlister – September 30, 2017
Show 45 – Jonathan Cain of Journey – October 14, 2017
Show 46 – Randy Armstrong of RED – October 21, 2017
Show 47 – Judd Brannon of Champion film – October 28, 2017
2018
Show 48 – Dolph Lundgren of The Final Inquiry film (Retro 2008) – January 23, 2018
Show 49 – Covers Show – January 30, 2018
Show 50 – Dawn Michele of Fireflight – March 6, 2018
Show 51 – Mainstream Hits – February 20, 2018
Show 52 – Steven Curtis Chapman (Replay) – March 6, 2018
Show 53 – I Can Only Imagine – March 13, 2018
Show 54 – Jordan Feliz RRR – March 20, 2018
Show 55 – Richard Sterban of Oak Ridge Boys – March 27, 2018
Show 56 – Josh McDowell – April 4, 2018
Show 57 – Phil Joel of Zealand – April 10, 2018
Show 58 – Michael W. Smith – April 24, 2018
Show 59 – Ted DiBiase – May 1, 2018
Show 60 – Ron Hall (Same Kind of Different As me) – May 8, 2018
Show 61 – Jonathan Cain of Journey – May 15, 2018
Show 62 – Will Turpin of Collective Soul – June 5, 2018
Show 63 – Jason Fowler – June 12, 2018
Show 64 – Blanca – September 21, 2018
Show 65 – Joe Bonsall (Oak Ridge Boys) – September 28, 2018
Show 66 – Chad from Unspoken – October 5, 2018
Show 67 – Jason Roy of Building 429 – October 12, 2018
Show 68 – Francesca Battistelli – October 19, 2018
Show 69 – David Evans (Indivisible) – October 26, 2018
Show 70 – Tim Janis – December 7, 2018
2019
Show 71 – Keith Thibodeaux – January 11, 2019
Show 72 – John Schlitt – January 18, 2019
Show 73 – Billy Smiley – January 25, 2019
Show 74 – Terry Benedict (Hacksaw Ridge) – February 1, 2019
Show 75 – John Waller – February 8, 2019
Show 76 – David Ellefson 1 – February 22, 2019
Show 77 – David Ellefson 2 – March 1, 2019
Show 78 – Danny Gokey – May 7, 2019
Show 79 – Jonathan Cain of Journey – June 28, 2019
Show 80 – 2009 Flashback – July 5, 2019
Show 81 – John Cooper of Skillet – August 16, 2019
Show 82 – Stephen Kendrick (Overcomer) – August 23, 2019
Show 83 – for KING & COUNTRY – August 30, 2019
Show 84 – Aaron Shust – September 13, 2019
Show 85 – Matt Sallee of E58 Worship – September 20, 2019
Show 86 – John Schneider – September 27, 2019
Show 87 – 2009 Flashback Show – October 4, 2019
Show 88 – Michael Sweet of STRYPER – October 11, 2019
Show 89 – Covers Show – October 18, 2019
2020
Show 90 – RTU 20 Recap – February 21, 2020
Show 91 – Jeremy Camp – March 6, 2020
Show 92 – Kevin Downes – March 13, 2020
Show 93 – Brian Welch (Retro 2008) – March 20, 2020
Show 94 – John Schlitt 2 – March 27, 2020
Show 95 – John Schlitt 2 – April 3, 2020
Show 96 – Manafest – April 10, 2020
Show 97 – John Elefante 1 – April 17, 2020
Show 98 – John Elefante 2 – April 24, 2020
Show 99 – Brooke Robertson – May 1, 2020
Show 100 – Steven Curtis Chapman – May 8, 2020
Show 101 – Tasha Layton – May 15, 2020
Show 102 – Colton Dixon – May 22, 2020
Show 103 – Stephen Christian of Anchor Braille – May 29, 2020
Show 104 – Mark Mohr Avion Blackman of Christafari – June 5, 2020
Show 105 – Mike Rathke – June 12, 2020
Show 106 – Ida Maree – June 19, 2020
Show 107 – Jodi Essex – June 26, 2020
Show 108 – Katy Crawford – July 3, 2020
Show 109 – Iryne Rock – July 10, 2020
Show 110 – Mike Nawrocki – July 17, 2020
Show 111 – Phil Robertson – July 31, 2020
Show 112 – Michael Sweet of STRYPER – September 4, 2020
2021
Show 113 – John Falcone – February 26, 2021
Show 114 – John Waller – March 5, 2021
Show 115 – Laura Story – August 2, 2021
Show 116 – Coach Bobby Bowden (Throwback 2017) – August 8, 2021
Show 117 – Alex Kendrick_Cade Thompson – September 10, 2021
Show 118 – Darren Mulligan of We Are Messengers – October 18, 2021
Show 119 – Shannon N. Heilman Tribute Show – November 12, 2021
Show 120 – Hannah Kerr – Christmas Episode – December 22, 2021
2022
Show 121 – Love and the Outcome – February 14, 2022
Show 122 – Jordan St Cyr – March 4, 2022
Show 123 – Leanna Crawford – October 14, 2022
Show 124 – Branan Murphy – October 29, 2022
Show 125 – John Marc Kohl – November 12, 2022
Show 126 – Naomi Raine – November 20, 2022
Show 127 – Katie Miller – November 23, 2022
Show 128 – Eddie McLinktock – November 28, 2022
Show 129 – Kate Stanford – December 5, 2022
Show 130 – Christmas-Jordan St Cyr – December 18, 2022
2023
Show 131 – Adam Agee – January 30, 2023
Show 132 – Brothers Of The Heart – February 15, 2023
Show 133 – Granger Smith – February 20, 2023
Show 134 – Karen Abercrombie – February 27, 2023
Show 135 – Sherry Anne – March 6, 2023
Show 136 – Sean BE (Sean Rodriguez) – April 25, 2023
Show 137 – Jeremy Rosado – May 12, 2023
Show 138 – After Grace – June 14, 2023
Show 139 – Alejandro Monteverde – June 30, 2023
Show 140 – Dr. Alveda King (Legacy Series) – July 7, 2023
Show 141 – John Waller (Legacy Series) – July 15, 2023
Show 142 – Dennis Quaid – August 4, 2023
Show 143 – Travis Tritt – September 15, 2023
Show 144 – Riley Clemmons – September 29, 2023
Show 145 – Roma Downey – October 6, 2023
Show 146 – Matt Smith of Theocracy – October 13, 2023
Show 147 – AOH Music – October 20, 2023
Show 148 – Mike Barnes of RED – November 15, 2023
Show 149 – Jason Gray – November 17, 2023
Show 150 – Mark Hall of Casting Crowns – November 30, 2023
2024
Show 151 – Josh Havens of The Afters – January 19, 2024
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