Benny Hester

Updated: May 30

Benny Ray Hester (born May 3, 1948) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and recording artist. He is perhaps best known for his CCM songs "When God Ran" and "Nobody Knows Me Like You," and for producing the groundbreaking tween/teen music-driven sketch comedy and dance television series Roundhouse on Nickelodeon. Hester received a television Cable Ace Award for the song "I Can Dream" and a collection of nominations for writing and producing a featured original song for each weekly episode of Roundhouse during its successful four-year run. He has written and recorded more than 25 number one and top ten songs.

Hester's recording of his song "When God Ran" touched the consciousness of Christians worldwide, and is one of the longest running number one songs in contemporary Christian music history, number one for 13 weeks, and the number three song in the 60-year history of Word Records. "When God Ran" continues to be rerecorded by artists in many languages and musical genres, including adult contemporary, pop, rock, R&B, alternative, and Southern Gospel, making it to the top of the charts repeatedly.

The title track from his third album, Nobody Knows Me Like You, reached number one on the Christian Music chart and became the first contemporary Christian music song to break the Billboard Top 50 Adult Contemporary chart, debuting at number 44 on November 7, 1981 and peaking at number 41 three weeks later, spending a total of nine weeks.

Hester's first contemporary Christian music singles, "Jesus Came Into My Life" and "Be a Receiver," were breakthrough recordings for radio, blurring the lines between pop, rock, and inspirational music, and becoming the first contemporary pop rock songs to be universally accepted and widely played across all Christian Radio formats. His 1978 self-titled second album Benny Hester, re-released in 1983 as Be a Receiver, influenced the burgeoning contemporary Christian music scene, and ranks among the first "Contemporary Christian Music" albums as the musical landscape shifted with the end of the Jesus Music era and the birth of the industry known as contemporary Christian music.