Skip to main content

Phil Stacey: American Idol Contestant Gives Back to God

Share This article

CBN.com A familiar face is lighting up stages across America. Fans of American Idol know his name -– Phil Stacey. He earned an impressive sixth place finish during the 2007 season. Now, he’s emerged on the country music scene with his self-titled debut album...  

Phil rocked the stage at the Smoky Mountain Winterfest in Knoxville, TN where thousands of teens gathered for fun and worship. 700 Club Reporter, Mia Evans got a backstage pass to find out how much his life has changed.

Mia Evans: So, was American Idol one of the best decisions you’ve made?

Phil Stacey: It’s kind of funny because I had a buddy in college and I missed his wedding because I was in the Navy. And I was like, 'Is there any way I can make it up to you?' He was like, 'The only way I can forgive you is if you audition for American Idol.' He’s one of those friends who always encouraged you to go out and chase your dreams, pursue your dreams, and everything. But yeah, I’m pretty thankful that I missed that wedding.

Evans: Now you’re here!

Stacey: That’s right.

Since wrapping up a 55-city tour with his fellow American Idol finalists, Phil’s been making music non-stop.   

Stacey: I think with every song on this project, there’s a story behind it. It represents something in my life. My faith is the most important part of who I am, so there are several songs about my faith. Of course my relationship with my wife is very important, so there are some songs about her on there. It’s an encouraging record. It’s a happy record, but it’s music from my heart.

As a Valentine’s Day gift, Phil asked his wife to appear in the music video for his first single, “If You Didn’t Love Me.”

Stacey: It shows me also in a hotel room, and I’m obviously waiting all day for something. At the very end of the video, it shows I was waiting on my wife, and she comes in, and we hug. That’s my real story. You know, I’m on the road a lot and we meet up at hotels in random cities. It’s true to life.

Evans: You are such a family man!

Stacey: I am a family man. I love my family with all my heart. I have an amazing wife. We’re on our tenth year of marriage now. We’ve got two little babies. I’ve missed both of their births. I know, I’m terrible! For the first one, I was in the Navy and the second one, I was auditioning for American Idol. I think most women would beat their husbands half to death for missing their kid’s birth. My wife actually shoved me out the door. She said, 'You know, we’ve always prayed that God would direct our paths. We’ve always felt that God would give us peace about every decision we make. Before we joined the military, we prayed about that decision, you know. All of our friends thought we were crazy. You know, but we felt peace about it. We just felt like that’s what we were supposed to do. The same thing with The American Idol audition. We just felt like this is something we should do.

His military career struck a major chord with thousands of fans on the show.

Stacey: I mean, we were getting letters from everywhere from different sailors, soldiers, marines, and airmen thanking us for presenting them in a positive way. It was absolutely awe-inspiring, and I’m very humbled.

Evans: Being a Christian on American Idol, was it difficult? Were people hard on you because of your faith or did they respect you?

Stacey: I think that people respected my faith and there were several Christians that were contestants on the show last year. We would sing praise and worship together before we’d go out, and we’d have devotions together. I didn’t feel like we were being looked down on. I felt like we were in in a way, being a light. 

Evans: Being in the military, being on the show, now being at the start—the launch of your music career, you’ve had to give up a lot. How do you handle that?

Stacey: I think the sacrifices you make are worth it if you believe in purpose. I believe that this is my purpose. My wife is the same way. She’s taking care of two babies by herself a lot these days because I’m touring so much and sometimes she just can’t come with me. I’ve never heard her one time complain about it. She’s this constant force of encouragement and support because she believes this is what God has us here to do right now. And God has put us on this—in this market where not everybody goes to church, not everybody listens to Christian music. And that’s what my music is about. It’s about my faith. It’s about sharing the love of Christ with others and because I believe in that, it makes it to where the sacrifices don’t seem so tough, even though I’m away from my family.

With unwavering faith and support from family, Phil’s future promises to be well worth the sacrifice.

Stacey: If I thought it was about me, I think I’d be completely stressed. But to know and have a firm foundation that it’s not what I’m doing, but what’s being done through me, it takes the pressure off to be honest with you, you know. I just trust that God has me here for a reason. Everything I do is for the glory of God.

Learn how you can have a relationship with God, like Phil Stacey.

Share This article

About The Author

Mia
Evans-Saracual

The 700 Club