The band originally went by the name Vespera, but after unsuccessful touring, two member departures, and legal threats from another band with the same name, they took the name I Am Empire in August 2008. Following the name change, the band independently released a self-titled album,
I Am Empire, in April 2009. While the album itself did not chart, its two singles, "You're A Fake" and "The Elevator", peaked at No. 15 and No. 11 on
Billboard/
R&R's Christian Rock chart. They toured through the remainder of 2009 and toured in 2010 including an appearance at
SXSW. Features on
AOL.com, KingsofA&R, and
Myspace Music, garnered the attention of
Tooth & Nail Records. The band was signed to Tooth & Nail Records in May 2010, on which they released their second album,
Kings, on January 25, 2011. It went on to make Billboard's
Top Christian Albums and
Top Heatseekers charts, peaking at No. 35 and No. 40 respectively. In support of Kings, I Am Empire has toured with
Emery,
Brian "Head" Welch,
Project 86,
The Letter Black,
Icon for Hire and
Children 18:3, as well as headlining the "Kings and Queens Tour" with support from
Nine Lashes and Blood and Water. In December 2011, I Am Empire performed at
Christmas Rock Night 2011 in Ennepetal, Germany. On June 7, 2012, drummer Eric Martin officially announced via a blog post on Tooth & Nail's website that the band was recording their second album with producer
Brian McTernan at his Salad Days Studio in
Baltimore, Maryland. The new album,
Anchors was released on March 26, 2013. Andrew Stanton, the lead guitarist, left I Am Empire to play with the band
Disciple. Eric Martin, the band's drummer, left in 2013 to play with the band Talkie. In 2020, I Am Empire released an EP, ''Another Man's Treasure
, recorded during the Anchors'' sessions but never before released, featuring three new songs, "Airwaves", "Clever Nightmare", and "On a Rainy Sunday", as well as acoustic renditions of "You're a Fake" and "Foxhole". == Band members ==