Page 239: Jamie MacDonald: “Desperate” Singer Share Journey to Identity in Jesus
The Unfolding
Northwestern Media
4.9 • 809 Ratings
🗓️ 9 May 2025
⏱️ 35 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
She’s the voice behind the hit song Desperate—a powerful anthem that soared to number one and struck a chord with thousands. But Jamie MacDonald’s story runs much deeper. In this episode, Jamie shares about growing up in a house where singing was banned and hope felt out of reach. After being kicked out at 15 and dropping out of high school at 16, she spent years bouncing between couches and group homes—no phone, no address, no one in her corner. But even in the darkest moments, a flicker of faith from a childhood church camp refused to go out. Join us as Jamie shares how one desperate prayer changed everything—and how her pain gave rise to a song that’s giving hope to so many.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Page 239 of the unfolding is the story of Jamie McDonald. |
| 0:05.0 | I constantly struggle with the enemy accusing me of who I used to be. |
| 0:09.1 | It was hard for me to see myself not scarred and broken. |
| 0:12.7 | The biggest lie the enemy had over me is what made you think you can stand up and sing in front of these people? |
| 0:17.7 | Don't forget, you're just a high school dropout. |
| 0:20.6 | God's story has been unfolding. |
| 0:24.0 | Since the beginning of time. |
| 0:27.0 | He invites you to be a part of it. |
| 0:32.6 | Another page in the unfolding. |
| 0:36.8 | Hey, this is Meredith Foster. Jamie McDonald has become known for a song that |
| 0:42.2 | raced its way to number one earlier this year. Desperate. It's an anthem, a cry to God for help |
| 0:49.4 | and breakthrough. And it was written by a woman who knows what it means to be desperate. Jamie grew up in a home |
| 0:55.8 | where singing was banned and hope was hard to come by. After her parents' divorce and a rocky |
| 1:01.5 | relationship with her stepfather, Jamie was kicked out of the house at 15. For the next few years, |
| 1:07.1 | she was couch surfing, living in group homes, no phone, no address, and no one to believe in |
| 1:13.2 | her. But a seed planted at church camp when she was 12 and encounter with the love of Jesus never |
| 1:19.2 | fully died. Years later, tired of the chaos, Jamie cried out to God, a desperate prayer for help. |
| 1:27.2 | I was born in the peak of my dad's professional |
| 1:30.5 | boxing career in Nashville, Tennessee. And so it was a crazy time for our family. My mom really |
| 1:37.1 | was kind of on her own, raising two young girls. And my dad was traveling a lot, and he ended up |
| 1:43.6 | fighting the world title three times around the time |
| 1:47.0 | that I was born. Although it was like exciting, it was also pretty unstable time to start a family. |
... |
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