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It all began in a small Baptist church in Pell City, Alabama called Eden Westside. Scott Smith was serving as an assistant to the youth pastor, Benny Bowman. They were aggressively working to build a solid and powerful youth program for the church. One thing that was missing from the youth program was music.  They decided to start a small praise and worship band to use during the youth services on Sunday nights. Unfortunately, the only person that could play an instrument was a student named, Ben Pierce.  Ben was a very good guitar player.  Although Scott had the voice talent, he didn't know how to play a guitar so he quickly began learning. 

The combination of Ben's guitar and Scott's voice was a good combination. There's was an immediate need for a bass guitar player. One of the teachers in the youth department was Kelly Perrin.  Kelly had always wanted to play guitar but never had the opportunity. At the invitation of Scott (his longtime friend), Kelly began taking lessons to learn to play the Bass Guitar. With the addition of student, Brandon Jones on drums, their youth band was finally formed. For many months the Eden Westside youth band would perform at the Sunday night youth functions and occasionally during the normal worship service at the church.

In 1999, the youth band was in need of a drummer. Kerry Hollis had been a member of the church for several years, but he wasn't involved in the youth program. Scott and Kelly approached Kerry and asked him if he would be interested in playing the drums in their youth band.  Kerry had been praying for an opportunity to play again and immediately agreed to be a part of it. The band began to play different worship services at the church and decided that they wanted to take their music to other churches and youth groups. To do that, they also needed a sound man. The current audio man at the church was Steve Ayres. Steve, too, was praying for an opportunity to use his talents more effectively. He immediately accepted the invitation to join the guys in their venture.  With everything in line, they needed a name. They decided to call themselves.........

L to R - Kelly Perrin, Steve Ayres, Kerry Hollis, Scott Smith, Ben Pierce

Servant, became their name for the next several months. They played many local event and churches and even ventured off into Virginia. Even though they were still learning the "ropes", their message was solid and Scott's voice became the trademark for the band.

photos from the first few concerts

In early 2000, the band realized their need for a keyboard player.  It just so happened that there was a keyboard player that had recently joined the church. Jason Flebotte was known, not only for his voice and keyboard talent, but also for his creativity.  He and his friend Joey Rich, Jr. had formed a parody team called the "Moody Boys". The "Moody Boys" became popular in the Birmingham area for their parody songs that were featured on the Rick and Bubba Radio Show. Their most popular song was called "The Spam Song".  When Jason and Joey joined the church the band immediately knew that they wanted them to be a part of Servant. It didn't take long before Joey and Jason were members of the band and the wheels began turning quickly.

It didn't take long for the band to realize that Servant was a very popular name for bands. The guys began praying for a new name. Kelly's wife, Tammy, suggested the name Floodgate, when she came upon it in the NIV version of Malachi 3:10.  Kerry quickly went to his computer and within a few days,  the Floodgate name and logo was born.

It was the perfect combination. The new name seemed to give new life to the band.  God began to open many doors of opportunity. The band kept getting better and better and God began giving new songs to Scott and other members of the band.  

By 2001, the venues began getting larger, and the schedule began to get busier.  Ben had to leave the band to pursue his education. Ben was the lead guitarist from the beginning and was an incredible guitarist. The rest of the band hated to see Ben leave but they were intent upon continuing the ministry. With much prayer they began to pray for God to send them a new guitarist and within weeks, Taz Turner showed up.

photo from Taz's first concert with Floodgate

  Taz had recently rededicated his life to Christ and after 20 years of playing in bars, wanted to use his talent for Christ.  He ran into Kelly at his place of employment and one conversation led to another.  Taz quickly auditioned for the band and they immediately knew that God had answered their prayers. Taz joined in the fall of 2001 and, in the summer of 2002, the band finally got to record their debut CD, Are You Ready?.

2002-2003 was a whirlwind for the band.  God blessed them in so many ways. He opened doors that they thought would never be opened. They became a very popular band in the state of Alabama and throughout much of the southeast.  

In October 2003, Joey Rich, Jr. decided that he needed to leave the band to continue to pursue his education in Theology. Joey was an incredible asset to the band and his presence would be sorely missed.  Floodgate was determined to press on.  They continued working feverishly to complete their second CD and in July of 2004, they finally released, Hero after over 9 months of writing and recording.  The project was a huge financial undertaking costing more than twice the amount of their first project. 

Through 2004 and most of 2005,  Floodgate continued to travel around the southeast in support of their "Hero" CD.  In late 2005, Taz Turner left the band to pursue other interests.  Taz's musical and lyrical talents were a major influence in the development of Floodgate's music and he will always be considered a part of the Floodgate family.

In February of 2006, God sent a familiar face back to Floodgate.  Ben Pierce, the original guitarist when Floodgate formed (as "Servant") in 1999, returned from Nashville with his new bride in tow.  Anxious to begin playing again, Ben quickly came up to speed on Floodgate's latest music and easily fit back into the band as they spent 2006 performing at many different venues.

Floodgate knows deep within their hearts that God has a special plan for their ministry and are determined to enjoy every minute of it.