Assad's musical career began in
contemporary Christian music. Her debut album, ''
The House You're Building'', was released through
Sparrow Records in July 2010 and went on to be named on
Amazon.com's list of Best Christian Music of 2010, as well as the Christian and Gospel Breakthrough Album of the Year on
iTunes. She has worked and toured with other
CCM artists such as
Chris Tomlin,
Tenth Avenue North,
Matt Maher and
Jars of Clay.
Nashville and the Firefly EP In 2008 when Assad was 24, she decided to move to
Nashville, Tennessee, to continue focusing on her music career. She raised $7,000 from friends and fans to support her move from Florida. In Nashville, she worked with producers
Paul Moak and Phillip LaRue and recorded a five-song
EP,
Firefly, which sold at shows and featured a handwritten cover made of a brown paper bag.
Sparrow Records In 2009, Assad signed with Sparrow Records, who had been talking to Assad after the release of her EP. ''The House You're Building'' was released on July 13, 2010, and the title track was featured as a free download on iTunes Discovery Download. The album performed well commercially and critically, going on to become the Amazon.com's "Best Album of 2010" in the Christian Music category, as well as being the best selling new artist in the Christian Music category of 2010 according to
SoundScan. The album reached No. 12 on the Billboard Christian Albums chart and No. 6 on its Heatseekers chart. Her second album,
Heart, was released on February 14, 2012. The album sold 7,300 units in its debut week, an increase of 185 percent over her previous album, and reached No. 18 on the overall iTunes chart. For the most part, the new album was a further development of the "piano-driven style and lyrical depth" that ''The House You're Building
had shown. The track "Sparrow", was released as a single, and similarly did well. "Sparrow" was based on the classic gospel hymn, "His Eye Is on the Sparrow", which Assad said she loved seeing and hearing in Sister Act 2'' when she was young.
Fortunate Fall Records Wanting to steer her music closer to liturgical and worship music and attracted by the economic advantages of independent production, Audrey Assad parted ways with Sparrow Records "on good terms". Assad ran a
Kickstarter campaign with the help of her husband that reached double its goal by its finish on April 15, 2013. The proceeds paid for Assad's third studio album,
Fortunate Fall, which Assad produced herself under the name "Fortunate Fall Records", as well as a live concert EP,
O Happy Fault, and a film of the concert. Assad released her second independent album,
Inheritance, on February 12, 2016. Besides two original songs, both co-written with
Matt Maher, the rest of the album contains new renditions of traditional church hymns such as "
Holy, Holy, Holy" and "
Be Thou My Vision," as well as a new rendition of the Latin-language hymn "
Ubi caritas." "Holy, Holy, Holy" saw radio airplay after its release as a single on March 15, 2016. In early 2018, her next album,
Evergreen, became available for pre-order via
PledgeMusic, with 5 percent of campaign proceeds going towards Preemptive Love Coalition. ==Musical style and themes==