Nick DePartee

— Guitar —

I was born and raised in Southern California. Music has been part of who I am since I was a little kid. My parents raised my brother and I in the church and with and openness to try things on our own and learn lessons the hard way a lot of the time. Basically, since I was little, I was the kid who spent more time with soap in my mouth than food. I am grateful for this now that I'm older because it taught me to both think before I spoke… and it kept me skinny.

My dad raised me on some great music, and actually taught me my first chords on the guitar. I grew up listening to Simon & Garfunkle, Eric Clapton, and an assortment of blues my dad had on cassette. (Those are small devices used to record and play music before the fancy compact disc was created!) I would suggest to anybody interested in learning music, especially guitar, to get a hold of some music from both these above-mentioned artists. You won't regret it, I promise. My dad is the man I want to be when I become a husband and a father someday. He is the epitome of a Christian man in my eyes and I love him dearly.

My mom is one of the most amazing mom's ever. Though she was one of the 2 parents who spanked me on a pretty regular bases growing up, (I deserved it every time) she has taught me the patience of God, and the importance of seeking His will above my own in life. I'm still learning how to do this every day, but she means the world to me for these and many other reasons.

My brother.... my brother was my best friend growing up and still is to this day. He is 3 1/2 years older than I, but he always let me hang with his friends and him no matter what through our younger years. We definitely got each other into trouble here and there, but he is one of the main reasons I was ever able to overcome my childhood struggle with being shy by letting me hang out with him and all his friends growing up. To say I love my brother is an understatement. My brother truly is my best friend, and I am grateful to God for putting him in my life, especially in the form of a brother.

Back to music, I started playing guitar when I was about 10 years old. As stated earlier, my dad taught me my basic chords and would help me learn with him accompanying me on harmonica. After learning the chords and how to switch between them while staying on beat (which is a nightmare by the way. for those of you who haven't learned guitar), I started my first band called Kraving Kansas when I was about 15. We were a pop/emo band and we loved every moment of the new challenge of creating our own music and melodies. That band changed into my second band, which was known as The Acidic Front (no we weren’t an Iron Maiden cover band). Long story short we continued playing through high school playing more and more local churches and venues in Southern California until we changed our name one more time in October of 2005. The new band was called America Dramatica and we were DETERMINED to make this name stick! We had plans to get signed and be HUGE AND FAMOUS!!! However, God had other plans. After touring throughout the beginning of 2006 and completing our first little west coast tour, God began working on my heart and telling me it was time to give up that band.... I was stubborn and ignored him for a couple more months.

In June of 2006 I got a call from my good friend James Mead, and he informed me that Kutless were looking for a guitar tech and was curious if I'd be interested in giving the job a whirl. I was still working full force with my band, but thought this was definitely too good of an opportunity to pass up so I agreed to go try out for a few shows as guitar tech.

The shows went well and I was asked to stay on full time w/ Kutless. I knew this would most likely mean the end of my band and (what I thought would be) the end of my dream to be in a signed band for a career. I had a meeting with my band and we all agreed God was calling all of us to other things in our lives and we called it quits once and for all.

From June 2006 through April 2007 I worked as Kutless' guitar tech. through that year after I let go of my band and left the comforts of home for the road life with my new Kutless family, I saw God move in so many ways it would take days to tell you all of it. To be concise, I’ll just say this.... God is real, He has a plan for every one of us and if we are willing to sacrifice our lives to take on His will for us, He will bless you and the desires of your heart to the fullest!

In April 2007, I received a phone call from Kutless telling me that our good friend Ryan Shrout had resigned from the band due to God's own call on his life to return to home life with his wife and newborn baby (who had been diagnosed with some medical problems with her vision). After hearing this news, I was shocked, sad, yet very relieved to hear that God was moving in the situation and that Ryan was happy and peaceful with the decision.

After this news, I was asked to become the new guitarist for Kutless. My whole last year kind of flashed before my eyes for a moment. I saw my first guitar lesson with my dad, I saw the garage my band learned how to write music in, I saw the kids who my band played for throughout high school, I saw my band playing our last show and our meeting which ended our group. I saw the entire last year of touring with kutless, all the good, all the bad, and most of all I saw God gracefully moving in my life. I saw Him opening a door in front of me and telling me "This is what I’ve been preparing you for, it's time to take my hand and move"

If you are still reading this bio, first of all, congratulations on getting this far. You just passed the high school equivalency test for reading. AND, if there is one thing I wanted to get across in this bio it is simply this:

There will be times in your life that life itself won't make sense. The truth is, there is a God, he has a will for your life, and if you will just strive with everything you have to seek him in all that you do, He will make that path clear to you. Sometimes the path itself won't make sense, but if you take those steps of faith, even without complete human understanding, the results are surreal. I don't deserve to be on a stage, playing guitar for a living with such an amazing group of guys, but I thank God for the opportunity He has set before me. And I want to encourage all of you who read this to follow Him, and when you fail (like we all do every day), He is ready, waiting, and willing, to pick you back up and wash you clean again.

Thank you all for your support of the band and ministry of Kutless. I am grateful for you all, and am so excited to be a part of this band. I hope to see you all soon. God bless you.

- Nick

"Take this heart of darkness, I give it up, and all the emptiness, you fill it up, the times that I feel nothing, you bring enough, so I can live for something, you lift me up."

- Further Seems Forever