MercyMe /

MercyMe is an American contemporary Christian band founded in Greenville, Texas. The band consists of vocalist Bart Millard, keyboardist James Bryson, percussionist Robby Shaffer, bassist Nathan Cochran and guitarists Michael Scheuchzer and Barry Graul. The band formed in 1994 and released six independent albums prior to signing with INO Records in 2001. The group first gained mainstream recognition with the crossover single, “I Can Only Imagine” which elevated their debut album, Almost There, to becoming certified double platinum. Since then, the group has released five additional studio albums, four of which have been certified gold, and a greatest hits album. MercyMe has won numerous Dove Awards and has had various Grammy Award nominations. In 2009, Billboard magazine named MercyMe the Christian songs artist of the decade for the 2000s. Their song "Word of God Speak" was named the Christian song of the decade and they also were named the Christian Adult Contemporary Songs Artist of the Decade. They had 22 number one songs as of the end of 2009, and six of their songs ranked in the top 50 songs of the decade.