When Emily Susan Pack sent out a call on social media for youth to sing on her new single, some young women drove hours across states to be involved.
The song, “Amen (Song for Young Women),” which is co-produced with Chris Hudson, celebrates the meaning behind the new Young Women age-group names—and amplifies the voices of youth themselves.
The day after the Church announced the new names, Emily shared a simple video of herself singing the song with piano accompaniment. Even though she didn’t expect the video to take off, it quickly received hundreds of positive comments.
Many people expressed appreciation for her positive perspective, noting that it changed their initial feelings about the update and reminded them of the true audience for the names.
“I think the young women love the new names, so they really are names for their time,” Emily says. “We have so much to learn from the youth. … We don’t really need to be telling them what to do; we just need to be giving them a microphone.”
“Just Come Like You’re Coming to Mutual”
As she prepared to record an official version of the song, Emily invited any interested young women to come together for a choir. Twenty young women showed up and were excited to lend their voices to the song—even if they didn’t live near the recording studio in Gilbert, Arizona.
“Some girls drove like three hours to come sing,” Emily says. “I had a friend who was actually driving back home to California [from a trip], and they turned around … to come over and record.”
Ultimately, Emily wanted to give young women a chance to be involved and show up as their authentic selves. “I told the girls, ‘Just come like you’re coming to Mutual, and I’ll see you there.’ I think that was kind of an intentional thing to make this feel like real life and really celebrate what Young Women actually is: It’s girls showing up.”
Singing Like a “Battle Cry”
The singer says she was touched by the enthusiasm and power the young women brought to singing the song.
“They just came in, and they were belting,” she says. “My producer and I were like, ‘We need to add more drums behind these girls. They’re singing it like a battle cry.’ And that just reaffirmed to me how much the girls are psyched about these new names—and any opportunity to share their voice, get direction, and build up their confidence.”
Emily believes that as we embrace these new names, we can empower young women to walk with Christ.
“The new names are about discipleship and action,” she explains. “You give these girls such clear encouragement. … Like, ‘Here’s who you are, and here’s what you can do: You go be a builder. You be a gatherer. You be a messenger.’ How cool is that?”
Watch a clip from the new song below.
Celebrate young women’s voices
Listen now on Spotify or Apple Music.
Album artwork: “Ascending Together” by Erin Nimmer
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