"Peace Be Still" is a song performed by American contemporary Christian singer Hope Darst. The song was released on February 7, 2020, as the lead single from her debut studio album, Peace Be Still (2020).[1] Darst co-wrote the song with Andrew Holt and Mia Fieldes.[2] Jonathan Smith produced the single.
On February 7, 2020,[4] Darst released "Peace Be Still" as her debut single via Fair Trade Services with her debut album slated for release in summer 2020.[5] The song had been originally performed by The Belonging Co and Lauren Daigle, released on The Belonging Co's debut album, All the Earth (2017).[6] On January 10, 2020, Fair Trade Services announced that "Peace Be Still" will be serviced to Christian radio in the United States, the official add date for the single slated on February 28, 2020.[7] Darst shared the story behind the song,[8] saying:
I have found myself fighting fear and anxiety in different seasons of life and what I've learned is that it doesn't always just go away because I think my way out of it, but I can worship my way through it. When we got together to write this song, one of the writers came in and said, 'I'm fighting a ton of fear today.' What they didn't know was that I, too, was battling intense fear and anxiety in my own life. So, we did the only thing we knew to do that day; we declared peace over ourselves. We knew that if we could sing God's promises over ourselves it would drown out the fear and would shift things inside of us. Fear and anxiety don't just disappear because we write songs or sing songs, but God has given us a weapon of worship to use every time the wave of fear wants to rise itself against us. This song is a prayer and a weapon; a prayer of peace over everything you are facing and a weapon of worship to defeat fear, depression, and doubt. God has promised you peace.
Composition
"Peace Be Still" is composed in the key of A with a tempo of 71 beats per minute and a musical time signature of 4 4.[9]
Reception
Critical response
Jonathan Andre of 365 Days of Inspiring Media gave a positive review of the song, saying "Writing and singing about peace when the world they knew was upside down is quite a wacky concept. But as evident in the song and how strong it is lyrically and musically in my opinion, “Peace Be Still” is a winner!"[10]
The official lyric video of "Peace Be Still" was published on Hope Darst's YouTube channel on February 7, 2020.[12] The official audio video of the song showcasing the single's artwork was published on YouTube on February 24, 2020.[13] The official performance video for the "Peace Be Still" was availed by Hope Darst on August 16, 2020, to YouTube.[14]