Joel Houston


Joel Timothy Houston is an Australian musician, songwriter, pastor, and leader in the Sydney-based band Hillsong United, a worship band of Hillsong Church.
He has been co-pastor at Hillsong NYC since 2010. He is the head of the Christian worship band Hillsong UNITED, for which he sings, plays guitar, and writes songs. In 2008, he became the creative director at Hillsong Church. He is the oldest son of the church's founders and Global Senior Pastors Brian and Bobbie Houston and grandson of Frank Houston. He has two siblings, a brother Benjamin and a sister, Laura. Houston was also the bass player for the band Able, which was composed of Marty Sampson, Michael Guy Chislett and Luke Munns, which won the Channel V Leg Up competition in 2001.

Biography

Early life

Joel is the oldest child of the Hillsong church's senior pastors and founders Brian and Bobbie Houston and grandson of pastor Frank Houston.
Joel has two siblings, Ben Houston and Laura Toggs.
Houston wanted to play the piano at the age of seven. However he found an inclination to play bass and this led him to play the bass guitar for a number of Hillsong Worship albums instead.

Hillsong United and Hillsong

Houston's first debut with the Hillsong United as a vocalist was in 2002, however he had been playing bass guitar with the band for several years prior to this, and contributing various songs, including the title track from the group's debut full-length live album, Everyday. As part of Hillsong United music team, Joel Houston has helped lead worship conferences in North America, South America, Africa, Europe and Asia. He has also contributed to the main Hillsong album recordings as well, which are led by worship pastor Reuben Morgan. Many of the songs he has written or co-written are sung in churches worldwide and have been translated into 32 languages. His music has been featured on Hillsong albums that have quickly risen on both the Australian and American Christian music charts. In March 2007, Hillsong United's eighth album All of the Above debuted at No. 6 on the ARIA charts. Joel Houston has been the creative director of Hillsong since 2008. Joel is currently co-pastor of Hillsong NYC with Carl Lentz.

Personal life

Joel married Brazilian model Esther Lima in 2012 and had a son, Zion, in 2013.

Discography

Albums on which Houston has written and performed songs: