Jamie Statema

I grew up in Sioux Falls, SD. I am the oldest of three boys and all in all, I had a great childhood.

I had a lot of spiritual advantages growing up. I was raised in a Christian home, went to a Christian school, and attended a solid Bible based church. However, it wasn't until I attended a concert by the group "Found Free" in the sixth grade that I actually became a Christian.

The foundation had been laid by my parents and teachers, but when this band told me that my sin was going to keep me out of heaven I knew that they were right. I had no trouble agreeing that I had broken God's laws and didn't deserve His mercy. So that night I made Jesus Christ my Savior. I was saved by grace in spite of my sin. I asked God to forgive me and told Him that I would do whatever it was He wanted with my life. It hit me like a lightning bolt immediately - I was supposed to do what this band did for me! I was to communicate the gospel of Jesus Christ using music as my tool.

I had the unique blessing of being told by God what to do with my life. I didn't think much of it at the time, but the older I get the more I realize what a gift that truly was!

I was convinced that God wanted me to be a drummer. So I spent my jr. high and high school years focused on one goal, to drum in a Christian band and share the gospel. When I graduated I did just that. I was given the opportunity to tour with an organization called "Young American Showcase" in Clearwater, FL. They are a Christian organization that performed concerts in public high schools in order to share the gospel. I was a drummer in a band and learned an invaluable amount of information on how to put on shows in a professional way. They had a high standard of excellence and I continue to be impacted every day by what I learned during this time.

The second year I did this, by a crazy turn of events, I was basically told that I either needed to take a position as a lead singer or go home. They had other drummers who were better then me. I was crushed! ONLY because I had no other options at the time, I begrudgingly took the front man position hoping that eventually another drumming spot would open up.

At this point I need to explain something to you. I hated to sing! As a matter of fact, as a child I took pride in the fact that I always got out of singing in choir by drumming instead. It was a beautiful thing! Now here I was, in front of 1200 public high school students every day forced to entertain them. I was the guy in front who had to sing, tell them to stand up and clap their hands, and give a speech about self-esteem. Are you kidding me? Can I please just go back behind my drums PLEASE?!?

I have never prayed so hard for the Lord to come back immediately!! For the first few months I hated it, but then things began to change. I was learning how to get the audience to do what I wanted them to do. It was intriguing to me and eventually I grew to a point where I couldn't imagine not being out in front. It was quite a transition, and to this day it amazes me how God basically 'forced' me into something I never would have dreamed of pursuing. Needless to say, I don't even own a drumkit anymore!

When this tour ended, I knew that I wanted to continue my mission of reaching people through music. However, this time I didn't want to hide behind my drums. This is when the idea of Go Fish came to be.

Go Fish started in 1995 and I quickly became aware of another passion that I was completely unaware of. When starting this group, it never dawned on me that we'd need our own songs. So out of necessity, I started writing some. It soon became apparent to me that I had a knack for it. Who knew? Well, God did and that's all that matters!

Since then we've sold close to a million albums, toured all across the country, and have been able to share the gospel with more people then I could have ever imagined. We are focused on families with young kids and continue to tour and record full time.

Last year I had the privilege of presenting the gospel during a concert at a Billy Graham Association Crusade at their kidzfest event. While sharing the gospel I was looking at hundreds of kids hearing and responding to the good news of Jesus Christ at our concert. I knew exactly what they were feeling...I had been there!