Cliff Young (born August 25, 1972) is an American musician, pastor, and media director best known as the founding lead vocalist of the contemporary Christian band Caedmon’s Call and as the youngest son of longtime Second Baptist Church pastor Ed Young Sr..
Over more than three decades, Young has built two parallel careers, one as a touring folk-rock musician who sold over two million records, and another as the media director behind Second Baptist’s worldwide broadcast ministry, The Winning Walk.
Cliff Young at a Glance
| Personal | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Cliff Young |
| Born | August 25, 1972, Houston, Texas, USA |
| Age | 53 (as of 2026) |
| Nationality | American |
| Spouse | Danielle Young, née Glenn (married since the mid-1990s) |
| Children | Multiple children, including two daughters |
| Parents | Homer Edwin “Ed” Young Sr. (father); Jo Beth Young (mother, d. 2017) |
| Siblings | Ed Young Jr., Ben Young |
| Music Career | |
| Band | Caedmon’s Call (founder, lead vocals, rhythm guitar) |
| Formed | 1993, Fort Worth, Texas |
| Genre | Contemporary Christian, folk-rock, world music |
| Notable albums | Caedmon’s Call (1997), 40 Acres (1999), Long Line of Leavers (2000), Share the Well (2004) |
| Awards | GMA Dove Award, Best Alternative/Modern Rock Album (1998) |
| Ministry Career | |
| Title | Associate Pastor and Media Director |
| Church | Second Baptist Church, Houston, Texas |
| On staff since | 2006 |
| Denomination | Southern Baptist |
Early Life and Background
Cliff Young was born on August 25, 1972, and grew up in Houston, Texas, the youngest of three sons born to Ed Young Sr. and Jo Beth Young.
His father took over as senior pastor of Second Baptist Church in 1978, when Cliff was six years old, and the church grew into one of the largest congregations in the country over the course of his childhood and teenage years.
Cliff grew up singing at Second Baptist alongside two future bandmates, Danielle Glenn and Cari Harris, well before any of them had a name for what they were doing.
Both of his older brothers also built careers connected to ministry: Ed Young Jr. went on to found Fellowship Church, a Dallas-area megachurch, and Ben Young became senior pastor of Second Baptist Church itself in 2024.
Music Career: Founding Caedmon’s Call
Cliff Young attended Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, where in 1991 he met Aaron Tate, a fellow student living in the same dorm who shared his interest in songwriting.
The two struck up a creative partnership, and in 1992, Young formed a band with Tate, Danielle Glenn, and drummer Todd Bragg.
Tate introduced Young to guitarist Derek Webb the following year, and Webb joined as a full member while Tate stepped back into a songwriting-only role.
The band took its name from the story of Caedmon, a seventh-century Anglo-Saxon cowherd who, according to legend, was too embarrassed by his lack of musical talent to sing at gatherings until a dream convinced him to sing verses about creation.
Young, Danielle Glenn, and Tate each encountered the story independently within the same week and took it as a sign to name the group Caedmon’s Call.
Building a Career in Christian Music
Caedmon’s Call self-released two albums before signing with Warner Alliance, then Essential Records, releasing their major-label, self-titled debut in 1997.
The album entered the Billboard Top Contemporary Christian Albums chart at number one in its first week and won the band a GMA Dove Award for Best Alternative/Modern Rock Album in 1998.
Young typically sang lead on songs written by Aaron Tate, while Derek Webb sang lead on his own more personal compositions, splitting vocal duties for most of the band’s run.
The band’s follow-up records, 40 Acres in 1999 and Long Line of Leavers in 2000, both charted on the Billboard 200 and cemented the group’s reputation as what fans and critics often called a “thinking Christian’s band,” known for lyrics that leaned on biblical, historical, and literary references rather than simpler praise-and-worship songwriting.
Over roughly 15 years of touring 48 states, Caedmon’s Call released 16 albums and sold more than two million records.
Share the Well and the Dalit Freedom Network
In 2004, the band released Share the Well, a missions-focused album recorded after trips to India, Ecuador, and Brazil with Compassion International.
The album addressed global hunger and the caste discrimination faced by India’s Dalit community, sometimes referred to by the slur “untouchables,” a group Young became personally committed to advocating for well beyond the album’s release.
Young began traveling to India annually to visit schools supporting Dalit children, sat on the board of the Dalit Freedom Network, and helped Second Baptist Church support Dalit-focused schools that teach English and the Bible.
He has spoken publicly about how the Gospel’s message to the poor and marginalized shaped his conviction to keep that work going long after the band’s touring schedule slowed down.
Ministry Career at Second Baptist Church
In 2006, Young began working full time at Second Baptist Church as media director, a role that runs alongside his continued involvement with Caedmon’s Call.
He oversees production of the church’s worldwide broadcast, The Winning Walk, and has produced commercials, documentaries, and short films for the church over the years, work that eventually grew into Second Films, the church’s in-house media production arm.
Young also coordinates Vacation Bible School programming and organizes beach retreats for the church’s high school and junior high students, keeping him closely involved in hands-on ministry alongside his production work.
Rise to Prominence
Caedmon’s Call built its following gradually through relentless touring of college campuses and Christian music festivals across the South and Midwest through the mid-to-late 1990s, long before the band’s commercial breakthrough.
That grassroots following, combined with the band’s reputation for lyrically dense, literate songwriting, made Young and his bandmates fixtures of the Christian music scene through the late 1990s and 2000s.
Young’s profile grew again in a different direction after 2006, as Second Baptist’s broadcast ministry expanded its reach through The Winning Walk, giving him influence over the visual and production identity of one of the largest Southern Baptist churches in the country.
Books, Albums, and Publications
Young’s primary body of work is musical rather than written. Notable Caedmon’s Call albums featuring Young on lead vocals and rhythm guitar include:
- Caedmon’s Call (1997), the band’s major-label debut and a Billboard number one Contemporary Christian album
- 40 Acres (1999)
- Long Line of Leavers (2000)
- Back Home (2003)
- Share the Well (2004), the band’s missions-focused album addressing the Dalit community in India
- In the Company of Angels II: The World Will Sing (2006)
- Overdressed (2007) and Raising Up the Dead (2010), both recorded after reuniting with former member Derek Webb
In 2022, the band’s original lineup, including Young, reunited to re-record their 1997 self-titled debut through a Kickstarter campaign and performed a reunion concert at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville.
Personal Life
Cliff Young married his bandmate, Danielle Glenn, who had been singing alongside him since before Caedmon’s Call formally existed.
The couple has multiple children together, including two daughters, and Danielle has continued performing and writing with the band throughout their marriage, including co-writing the song “Piece of Glass” on the album Long Line of Leavers.
Outside music and ministry, Young is known among bandmates and friends as an avid fly fisherman, a hobby that has become something of a personal trademark within the extended Caedmon’s Call community.
Theology and Ministry Philosophy
Young has described his approach to music as inseparable from craft and excellence, telling one interviewer that doing the best possible work as an artist honors God more than chasing an emotional worship moment in the studio.
That philosophy shaped Caedmon’s Call’s reputation for dense, carefully constructed songwriting rather than simpler, more formulaic praise music.
Notably, Young’s own theological instincts and public tone differ from those of his brother, Ed Young Jr., whose sermons at Fellowship Church have leaned toward showmanship and pointed criticism of Reformed theology.
Caedmon’s Call, by contrast, developed a reputation among fans for lyrics with clear Reformed and Calvinist leanings, particularly in songs written by former bandmate Derek Webb, a contrast that has occasionally puzzled outside observers given the brothers’ shared family background.
Influence and Legacy
Caedmon’s Call helped define a specific lane within 1990s and 2000s Christian music, blending folk instrumentation and world music influences with lyrics that avoided the genre’s more simplistic tendencies.
The band’s willingness to address subjects like caste discrimination and global poverty on Share the Well pushed contemporary Christian music toward subject matter it rarely tackled directly at the time.
Inside Second Baptist Church, Young’s media work has shaped how one of the largest Southern Baptist congregations in the country presents itself to a national and international broadcast audience through The Winning Walk, work that continues well beyond his music career’s commercial peak.
Criticism and Controversies
Young himself has not been the direct subject of significant public controversy. He has, however, been connected by family ties to the major legal dispute currently facing Second Baptist Church, where a group calling itself Jeremiah Counsel has sued his brother, Ben Young, their father, and other church leaders over changes to church bylaws made in 2023, alleging the changes stripped members’ voting rights and consolidated control over the church’s roughly $1 billion in assets.
Young is not named as a defendant in that lawsuit, and it remains unresolved, with a jury trial scheduled for July 2026.
Net Worth and Financial Information
There is no independently verified net worth figure for Cliff Young. His income has come from more than a decade of touring and recording with Caedmon’s Call, along with his ongoing salary as Second Baptist Church’s media director since 2006.
Neither figure has been publicly disclosed, and Flicxa does not attach a speculative number to his finances.
Interesting Facts About Cliff Young
- He met Aaron Tate, Caedmon’s Call’s primary early songwriter, simply because they lived in the same college dormitory at Texas Christian University
- He, his future wife Danielle, and Aaron Tate each independently encountered the legend of Caedmon within the same week before naming the band after it
- He sits on the board of the Dalit Freedom Network and travels to India most years to visit schools serving Dalit children
- His brother Ed Young Jr.’s theology has drawn criticism from Reformed Christians, while Caedmon’s Call built much of its fanbase among listeners with Reformed and Calvinist leanings
- The band’s original lineup reunited in 2022 through a Kickstarter campaign to re-record their debut album and played the historic Ryman Auditorium in Nashville
Timeline of Key Events
- August 25, 1972: Born in Houston, Texas
- 1978: His father becomes senior pastor of Second Baptist Church
- 1991: Meets Aaron Tate at Texas Christian University
- 1992 to 1993: Forms Caedmon’s Call with Tate, Danielle Glenn, and Todd Bragg; Derek Webb joins soon after
- 1994 and 1995: Self-releases the band’s first two albums
- 1997: Releases the band’s major-label debut, which reaches number one on Billboard’s Contemporary Christian Albums chart
- 1998: Wins a GMA Dove Award for Best Alternative/Modern Rock Album
- 1999 to 2000: Releases 40 Acres and Long Line of Leavers, both charting on the Billboard 200
- 2004: Releases Share the Well after mission trips to India, Ecuador, and Brazil
- 2006: Joins Second Baptist Church staff full time as media director
- 2017: His mother, Jo Beth Young, dies
- 2022: Reunites with Caedmon’s Call’s original lineup for a Kickstarter-funded re-recording and a Ryman Auditorium reunion concert
- 2024: His father retires as senior pastor of Second Baptist Church; his brother Ben Young succeeds him
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Cliff Young?
Cliff Young is the founding lead vocalist of the Christian band Caedmon’s Call and the media director of Second Baptist Church in Houston, Texas, where his father, Ed Young Sr., served as senior pastor for 46 years.
Is Cliff Young related to Ed Young?
Yes. Cliff Young is the youngest of three sons born to Ed Young Sr., the longtime pastor of Second Baptist Church Houston. His brothers are Ed Young Jr., founder of Fellowship Church in Grapevine, Texas, and Ben Young, the current senior pastor of Second Baptist Church.
What band was Cliff Young in?
Cliff Young founded and fronted Caedmon’s Call, a contemporary Christian folk-rock band that formed in 1993, released 16 albums, and sold more than two million records over roughly 15 years of touring.
Does Cliff Young still work at Second Baptist Church?
Yes. Young has served as Second Baptist’s media director since 2006, overseeing the church’s worldwide broadcast, The Winning Walk, and producing films and commercials for the church.
Is Cliff Young married?
Yes. He is married to Danielle Young, formerly Danielle Glenn, who sang alongside him from the earliest days of Caedmon’s Call and remains a member of the band.
Final Word
Cliff Young has spent more than three decades building two careers most people never manage to combine, fronting a nationally touring Christian rock band while also running the media operation behind one of the largest Southern Baptist churches in the country. Between the Dalit Freedom Network, a Kickstarter-funded band reunion, and a Ryman Auditorium show three decades after his college dorm friendship started it all, Young’s story keeps circling back to the same instinct: use whatever platform you have to point somewhere bigger than yourself.
Read Also
- Ed Young Jr.: Biography, Age, Wife, Children, Books & Fellowship Church Ministry
- Rick Warren Biography: Age, Ministry, Wife, Net Worth, Books & Legacy
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- Joel Osteen Biography
- Bishop David Oyedepo: Biography, Faith, Net Worth & Legacy
- T.D. Jakes Biography: The Life, Ministry & Legacy of Bishop TD Jakes
- New Believer’s Bible Review: The Best Bible for New Christians?
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