Interview with spencer
It is our pleasure to welcome Spencer Elliott as our new Worship Leader to the PLC team. In a recent interview, he shared his professional journey, personal inspirations, and goals for the future.
1. Where are you from originally?
- I grew up in a small town called Brawley.
2. Where did you go to high school?
- Desert Valley High School
3. When did you come into a relationship with Jesus?
- I was 16 when I placed my faith in Jesus.
4. How did you get involved with music?
- Music has a been a part of my life, starting when I was in 6th grade. My first instrument was the snare drum and later on I learned how to play electric and acoustic guitar. Not long after placing my faith in Jesus, I got involved with a youth group, where a lot of the friends I had made were involved in the youth band. It was there where music started playing a huge roll in my walk.
5. How would you describe your personality?
- I would describe myself as an easy going person. Not long after getting to know me, one will learn that I’m a bit of a goofball. Very outgoing and an extreme extrovert. However; I am a straight shooter and I don’t shy away from difficult conversations, as well as saying the hard things that need to be said. I would also say I have a type A personality.
6. Tell us about how you met your wife, Lauren.
- I met my wife at a church in La Jolla where we both served as youth leaders and Sunday mornings. I was the church drummer and youth worship leader and she ran media.
7. How would you describe Lauren's personality?
- Pretty much the opposite of me, haha. She loves being the person working in the background. She is way smarter than I am and loves people. She also, is very adept at talking to people and asking good questions that help get to know people on a deeper level.
8. What is your basic philosophy about leading people into worship?
- This is not a popular opinion, but true nonetheless.Worship is NOT for us… Worship is a response to who God is and what he’s done. Do we benefit from it? Of course! But we are not the center… God is… We also, worship together to edify the church body that it may grow into maturity and their knowledge of God.
9. Tell us about the kind of music you like both Christian and secular.
- Phil Wickham has had a huge influence in my life as a worship leader. I also listen to a lot of prog metal, which is instrumental electric guitar music with a lot of technical playing and odd time signatures. One of my favorite artists is Aaron Marshal from Intervals.
10. What are your favorite activities to do?
- When I’m not leading worship or doing things music related, I’m usually training at my Jiu Jitsu gym or cooking.
11. What's your favorite kind of food?
-I love anything noodles based. But if I had to narrow it down, I’d say Ramen or Pho.
12. What's one of the craziest, scariest things you've ever done?
- I can’t recall doing things that were particularly scary, but one of the most exciting things I’ve done was getting certified as a deep water/rescue diver certified.
13. If someone wants to get involved with the worship team or working with sound, how would they go about doing that?
- Quite honestly, just come up, say hi, and that you’re interested in getting involved. Haha don’t be shy. Then, I’ll ask a series of questions to get a better understanding of where you are at musically, as well as just getting to know you.