2007: Please Come Home On October 10, 2006, it was announced that Kensrue had signed with
Equal Vision Records, and that the label would release Kensrue's debut solo album. On January 23, 2007, Kensrue released a solo album titled
Please Come Home on Equal Vision Records. He wrapped up the recording and mixing of the album at the home of fellow
Thrice member
Teppei Teranishi. The album opened at 142 on the
Billboard 200 with 5,800 copies sold the first week. He supported the album with a solo tour including stops on the
Late Show with David Letterman,
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and
The Fuse Network.
Please Come Home met with mostly favorable reviews from critics, who have compared Kensrue musically to singer/songwriter
Ryan Adams and
Johnny Cash. Kensrue intended to donate 5% of the proceeds from
Please Come Home to a
non-profit organization called
To Write Love on Her Arms. In the press release, Kensrue explained the choice: "To Write Love on Her Arms is a nonprofit movement dedicated to presenting hope and finding help for those struggling with
clinical depression,
addiction,
self-injury and
suicide.
To Write Love on Her Arms began in March 2006 as a written story and an attempt to raise money for one girl's treatment. T-shirts were printed and a MySpace page was created to serve as home base for the story. Excitement spread quickly throughout MySpace and the independent music community. For 2007, TWLOHA is aiming to raise $100k for treatment and recovery. This comes in addition to online counseling and continued efforts to creatively present hope and raise awareness. TWLOHA is a fitting choice for Please Come Home. The album lyrically exudes redemption, personal worth, love, acceptance, and hope. “I try to be an artist who aspires to find hope even in dark places: If I’m down, I don’t want to bring people down to that place with me. I’m looking for a way out," says Kensrue.
2008: This Good Night Is Still Everywhere On October 14, 2008, Kensrue said this on the official Thrice website - "I just finished my Christmas record. I haven’t really mentioned it because (a). I’ve been spending all my time working on it, and (b). I wasn’t totally sure I would finish it in time to come out this year. But, last night I finished it up and Teppei is finishing the mixes tonight. It’s going to be an online release only and will hopefully be out in mid-November sometime. The title is “This Good Night Is Still Everywhere” and it contains 8 covers and 2 Christmas originals. I love Christmas music so it was a lot of fun to do this and I’m glad I get to share it with you guys." "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)" was posted on Kensrue's website on November 15.
This Good Night Is Still Everywhere was released digitally through Vagrant Records on November 18. Kensrue also added vocals in the song "The Contender" on the album "Pierce the Empire With a Sound" by experimental act
The Out Circuit released on February 12, 2008. A music video for "This Is War" was released in December 2009.
2013: The Water & the Blood On October 1, 2013, Kensrue released his third studio album
The Water & the Blood, which includes the song "It's Not Enough" and "Grace Alone". The project is a collection of mostly original corporate worship songs written while he was the Worship Pastor of Mars Hill Church Bellevue and intended to be sung at church. According to Kensrue, "all the lyrics of the record are very, very rooted in Scripture", and added: "There is power in the Word of God. As much as you stick close to that, there is power in the lyrics as well." The album debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard Christian chart and No. 52 on Billboard 200, selling 7,000 copies in its first week.
2015: Carry the Fire On April 21, 2015, Kensrue released his fourth solo project,
Carry the Fire, which includes the song "Back to Back". The album debuted at No. 110 on
Billboard 200, and No. 18 on the Top Rock Albums chart.
2016: Thoughts That Float on a Different Blood His fifth album, a live album of cover songs,
Thoughts That Float on a Different Blood, was released on March 18, 2016, with
Vagrant Records, and this album charted on three
Billboard magazine charts. He also released an EP,
More Thoughts That Float on a Different Blood, on November 25, 2016, on
7-inch vinyl for
Record Store Day. == Religious views and leadership ==