Started in August 1996 as a free web page on Angelfire.com, the site soon became the flourishing brainchild of 16 year old creator John DiBiase. Two years later, DiBiase partnered with a major Christian record company to birth Jesusfreakhideout.com (JFH), featuring music reviews, artist interviews, contests, concert reviews and movie reviews. Fall 2001 found JFH ending its partnership with the record company and branching out on its own, adding an ever-growing artists database, lyrics database, album preview reviews, a recurring photo caption contest, and its own merch store.

Today, the little page that was created and maintained by a high school-aged music fan has become one of the industry’s major players in keeping Christian music fans up to date with all the latest information on their favorite artists and has expanded its staff to a team of over 15 writers. Jesus Freak Hideout receives nearly 25,000 unique visitors each day with 36,000 – 41,000 visits. There are roughly 100,000 page views daily and just over 1 million hits per day. The site has been mentioned in CCM Magazine, Billboard, Reuters, Yahoo News and The Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Music, as well as having countless artists and labels, including RSJames.com, SparrowRecords.com, AudioA.com, SanctusReal.com, Relientk.com, EssentialRecords.com, JarsofClay.com and many more, either mentioning JFH or including links to the site.

Additionally, Jesus Freak Hideout has featured 120 contests, with the most participated in receiving more than 5,200 entries for a Jars Of Clay CD Library. The most recent and extensive contest has been the “10 Til 10 Contest,” giving away prizes each day for the 10 days leading up to the 10th Birthday. Prizes include pre-release copies of new albums from Krystal Meyers, Sarah Kelly and Jars of Clay, and autographed CDs from Red, Day of Fire, and Pillar as well as a complete Audio Adrenaline CD library and an autographed Third Day “Where You Are” Special Commemorative Gold Collection Box Set or t-shirt. Other current give-aways include a Leeland Guitar Give-Away and upcoming contests include prizes from Audio Adrenaline and Krystal Meyers.

Wanting the site to serve as a ministry in addition to a music information site, weekly devotionals, written by J.M. Farro, were also added as a regular feature on the site in 1999, and in 2004, Farro’s columns were collected into the Life On Purpose series of devotional books published by Harrison House Publishers. The devotional series has sold well over 60,000 copies collectively and has been translated into several different languages. A fourth book, Life On The Go Devotionals for Dads, released this past June.

“I had started The Jesus freak Hideout because of my love for Christian music and because it had affected me so greatly as a youth that I wanted to help share that with as many as possible. I feel JFH is just one of the ways we can give back, explains DiBiase. “It never ceases to amaze me to see what God has done with a young teenager’s dream! He truly can use the least of these and it’s been a humbling experience.”

With content updated daily, it is not surprising that music industry professionals and even artists stop by DiBiase’s site to catch up on the latest happenings within the music industry. Artists like Sarah Kelly, Fireflight, Nevertheless, Leeland and GRAMMY winners Jars Of Clay even sent in photo Birthday greetings to show their appreciation for the site.

"In a world of over-produced music that caters to an industry making money instead of creativity, (both mainstream and Christian) it is so refreshing to see John and everyone at Jesus Freak Hideout keeping it real. The reviews are not guided by sales or promotion dollars but true heart and true music....” exclaims Kelly, an artist on Gotee Records. “Congratulations guys on ten years of fighting an upward battle for the sake of art!!!! I love you and respect what you do...."

Brian Peterson, associate director of interactive marketing for Provident Music Group/Sony BMG adds, “JesusFreakHideout.com is one of the first places we think of when letting music fans know about our artists and their music.”

Faithful visitors and fans of the site also took time over the past few weeks to leave special messages, expressing their gratitude...

“JFH has been such a great source for music news and reviews, as well as DVD and movie reviews. The weekly devotionals by J.M. Farro are such a blessing! I hope you guys do this for another ten years- at the very least! Thank you, JFH staff! “ (Gabriella G., FL, USA)

“JFH has helped me on my walk with God in keeping me in touch with the Christian side of music when I started falling away from God last year…” (Chloe K., Auckland, New Zealand)

“JFH is wonderful. It's the best Christian site around. It's jam packed with interviews, Crazy Captions, and everything about my favorite bands! If I'm looking for band information--this is my first stop! You gotta love a website that isn't afraid to serve our God!” (Kyrsten C., CA, USA)

DiBiase looks to the future. “I am excited to see where God takes Jesusfreakhideout.com next. We hope to continue to be a relevant voice in the Christian music industry, helping to highlight the artists who are bridging the gaps between the Christian and the mainstream, all the while remaining to be bright lights in a dark world. We’re firm believers that ministry through music can be conveyed with artistic integrity and that just makes us all the more eager to see what God will do in the decade to come.”

For more information about Jesus Freak Hideout or to become part of the community, please visit www.jesusfreakhideout.com.

Artists Celebrate JFH's 10th Anniversary:

Jars Of Clay	Sarah Kelly	Nevertheless
Leeland	Leeland	EleventySeven
Fireflight