Amanda Lindsey Cook

Amanda Lindsey Cook, born Amanda Lindsey Falk, is a Canadian singer, songwriter, pianist and worship leader known for her introspective approach to contemporary Christian music. Originally from Niverville, Manitoba, Cook began performing and writing music at a young age before establishing herself as a recording artist under her maiden name, Amanda Falk. She later became widely known as Amanda Cook through her work with Bethel Music, where she became one of the collective’s prominent worship leaders and songwriters.

Cook’s music blends contemporary Christian music and worship with a more atmospheric, intimate songwriting style. She is best known for songs including “You Make Me Brave,” “House on a Hill,” “Awakening,” “Pieces,” “Closer,” “Brave New World” and “King of My Heart.” Her career has included award-winning solo albums, collaborative worship projects and music released under the name Falcon, reflecting different sides of her artistic identity.

Her career has also been shaped by an unusually personal approach to songwriting. Cook often writes about faith, uncertainty, hope, loss, healing and the everyday experience of being human. That quality became especially evident in albums such as Brave New World and House on a Hill, where worship is presented through intimate, emotionally reflective songs rather than simply through conventional praise music.

Quick Facts

Early Life and Musical Beginnings

Amanda Cook grew up on a grain farm near Winnipeg, Manitoba, as the only daughter in her family. She was homeschooled through her primary and high school years, and music was a constant presence in her childhood. Her father was a musician, and she began playing piano competitively when she was six years old.

By the age of ten, Cook was already singing with her father at church services and local events. She also developed a broad musical curiosity through her father’s vinyl collection, listening to different genres and artists while growing up. That early exposure helped shape the eclectic musical sensibility that would later become part of her own songwriting.

By her late teens, Cook was writing songs of her own. She began performing with a local faith and worship team at around 16 and gradually moved from being a young musician in her community to an emerging Christian recording artist. Her early influences included artists such as Sarah McLachlan, Nichole Nordeman, Norah Jones and John Mayer, whose songwriting approaches helped inform her own interest in melody, atmosphere and emotionally honest lyrics.

Recording Career and Rise to Recognition

Cook released her debut album, Amanda Falk, in 2004 through Winnipeg-based Avante Records. The album established her as a new voice in Canadian Christian music and eventually earned the 2006 Juno Award for Contemporary Christian/Gospel Album of the Year. She followed it with Beautiful in 2007, further establishing her reputation in the Canadian Christian music scene.

Her early success was accompanied by recognition from the Gospel Music Association Canada. Cook won the organisation’s Female Vocalist of the Year award four consecutive times from 2005 through 2008. She also received recognition at the Western Canadian Music Awards and the Shai Awards during the same period.

In 2010, she released In Between the Now & Then through Signpost Music. That same year marked a major change in her career when she moved to Redding, California, and joined the worship community at Bethel Church. She became part of Bethel Music, the worship collective associated with the church, and began contributing as a worship leader, songwriter and vocalist.

Her involvement with Bethel Music introduced her music to a much larger international audience. She appeared on numerous Bethel recordings and became particularly associated with the song “You Make Me Brave,” a worship anthem that became one of her signature performances.

Brave New World and House on a Hill

Cook’s first major solo release with Bethel Music was Brave New World, released in 2015. The album marked the transition from Amanda Falk to Amanda Cook as her principal recording name and represented a significant expansion of her international profile.

The album reached No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Christian Albums chart and No. 20 on the Billboard 200. It also won the 2016 GMA Dove Award for Inspirational Album of the Year. Songs such as “Brave New World,” “Pieces,” “Closer” and “Heroes” helped define Cook’s emerging sound as a solo artist.

Four years later, she released House on a Hill, an album that revealed an even more personal side of her songwriting. The project was created during a period when Cook stepped away from public life and spent two months in an unfurnished house in the hills of Tennessee. The isolation gave her space to process heartbreak, disappointment, faith and personal change.

Cook worked on the album with producers Jason Ingram and Paul Mabury, as well as longtime collaborators including Steffany Gretzinger and Jeremy Riddle. Rather than treating the difficult period simply as material for songs, she described the process as a period of healing and rediscovery.

The resulting album included songs such as “Awakening,” “House on a Hill,” “Comforter,” “The Clearing,” “New Country” and “Still.” Critics noted the album’s intimate writing, spacious production and reflective approach to worship.

Musical Style and Notable Songs

Cook’s songwriting is often more contemplative than overtly celebratory. Her music explores the intersection of Christian faith with ordinary human experiences, including doubt, grief, love, uncertainty, hope and the search for meaning. She has described music as a way of processing overwhelming emotions and finding a sense of connection and belonging.

Her sound combines contemporary worship with atmospheric pop, piano-led songwriting and expansive production. While her work with Bethel Music has produced large-scale worship anthems, her solo albums frequently move in a quieter and more intimate direction.

“You Make Me Brave” remains one of her most recognisable songs. Released through Bethel Music, the song became a significant worship anthem and was recognised by GMA Canada, winning both Song of the Year and Praise & Worship Song of the Year in 2014.

Other notable songs associated with Cook include “King of My Heart,” “Pieces,” “Closer,” “Awakening,” “House on a Hill,” “Still,” “The New Country,” “Mercy” and “I Am Because You Are.” Her catalogue also includes collaborative recordings with artists and groups such as Mack Brock, Steffany Gretzinger, Maverick City Music, Hillsong United and Bethel Music.

Falcon and Later Work

In 2020, Cook introduced another side of her musical identity under the name Falcon. She released the album Nova, followed by Nova (Piano Sessions) in 2021. The project moved further into pop and alternative territory while retaining the emotional and melodic qualities that had characterised her earlier songwriting.

She returned to releasing music as Amanda Cook with State of the Union in 2022. The album included songs such as “While We Wait” and continued her exploration of faith, identity and emotional honesty.

Cook subsequently began the SURVEY series. SURVEY: Part 1 arrived in 2023, followed by SURVEY: Part 2, Live at St. John at Hackney in February 2025. Recorded at the historic St. John at Hackney Church in London, the live project contains 11 songs, including live versions of “New King,” “Survey,” “You Make Me Brave,” “Simply Jesus,” “Extravagant,” “Only One Worthy,” “Shalom” and “Covenant.”

The SURVEY projects represent a continuation of Cook’s interest in creating music that sits between personal reflection and communal worship. Rather than simply revisiting earlier successes, the recordings bring together different stages of her musical journey.

Awards, Collaborations and Legacy

Amanda Cook’s career has been recognised by major Christian and Canadian music organisations. Her 2006 Juno Award for Contemporary Christian/Gospel Album of the Year was an important early milestone, while her 2016 GMA Dove Award for Inspirational Album of the Year recognised Brave New World. She has also accumulated multiple GMA Canada Covenant Awards and Western Canadian Music Awards during her career.

Her influence extends beyond her solo catalogue. Through Bethel Music, Cook became part of a generation of worship writers whose songs travelled across churches and Christian communities internationally. Her collaborations have included Steffany Gretzinger, Mack Brock, Hillsong United, Maverick City Music, Jason Ingram, Paul Mabury and numerous other worship musicians.

What makes Cook distinctive is the balance between the scale of modern worship music and the vulnerability of a singer-songwriter. Her strongest work does not avoid difficult emotions in order to arrive quickly at a message of hope. Instead, she often allows uncertainty, grief, silence and faith to exist alongside one another.

From her beginnings on a Manitoba farm to award-winning recordings in Canada and international recognition through Bethel Music, Amanda Lindsey Cook has built a career around music that is both devotional and deeply personal. Her later work, particularly House on a Hill, State of the Union and the SURVEY projects, has continued to show an artist more interested in honest exploration than in fitting neatly into a single musical category.