Sold-out crowd enjoys Christian music concert at Cape church

More than 1,200 people came out to Cape First Church in Cape Girardeau for the "We Cry Out" tour with Christian musicians Jeremy Camp, Francesca Battistelli and Adam Cappa.

Organizers said they were pleased with Friday's turnout.

"This is a pretty big deal," said Michael Stewart, marketing director and events manager for the Extraordinary Women Conference, which hosted the concert. "There's a lot of stuff going on, so to sell out is pretty significant."

He said tickets for the concert sold out at 7 a.m. Friday.

More than 65 people attended the VIP meet-and-greet session before the concert.

For Abigail Reazer of Cape Girardeau, this was her first concert experience. She said she enjoyed the VIP experience and described the concert as "fun."

"It was really cool," Reazer said. "I got to take my picture with Jeremy Camp and Adam Cappa, and it was fun to listen to their answers."

Reazer said she was most excited to hear Battistelli.

"I love her voice and her songs because I can really relate to them," she said.

Chad and Leigh Hampton of Cape Girardeau have been fans of Camp and Battistelli for years.

"I love coming together with other Christians and hearing great music from quality people who are not just about the performance but the worship," Leigh Hampton said.

Cappa began the night performing songs from his debut album, "The Rescue." Cappa had the crowd standing, clapping and joked about his youthful appearance. He finished his set with the worship song, "Our God is Greater."

Brian Rulo of Scott City said Cappa's songs "touched me a lot."

"This whole concert has increased my faith tremendously," Rulo said.

Cappa said he was encouraged by the audience.

"I feel God's going to do some great things here," Cappa said. "It felt great, people responded well and were engaged in worship, which is what this is all about."

Battistelli performed a medley of her old and new songs. She also used well known songs to introduce her own. Battistelli sang a rendition of Gershwin's "Someone to Watch Over Me," as a lead in to her own song "Angel." She followed with a few lines of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow," played with ukuleles, mandoline and banjos, to introduce her song, "This is the Stuff."

Battistelli introduced her band, including husband and drummer Michael Goodwin. The couple are expecting their second child. Battistelli closed her set with the Grammy-nominated song "Free to Be Me."

"She was awesome," Reazer said.

Jeremy Camp played original songs as well as worship songs. He began with his own, "We Will Cry Out to You" and "Raise a Shout." He encouraged the audience to sing and shout along. He lead the crowd in the worship song, "Everlasting God."

Camp also told stories about his family, read favorite Scriptures and encouraged the audience to stay strong in their faith and read their Bibles.

"How much more do we need to sit at the feet of the Lord?" asked Camp from the stage.

"This is a fun show," said Laura Ryan of Cape Girardeau. "There's no better way to spend a Friday night."

The tour was done to help support charitable organizations. Presentations were given about International Crisis Aid and Compassion International. Crisis Aid is a home for women rescued out of sex trafficking and Compassion is a child development agency that sponsors impoverished children through local churches. More information can be found at crisisaid.org and compassion.com.

Pertinent address:

254 S. Silver Springs Road, Cape Girardeau, Mo.