Westside Stories: Alex & Corey Fleeman

Corey and Alex Fleeman wear a lot of hats. Staff at Westside. Parents to two daughters and one very energetic, very allergy-inducing cockapoo puppy. And two-thirds of Oh Sparrow, a Christian songwriting group that's spent years turning hard questions into songs that help people worship.

Their story, shared this week on Westside Stories, is about what it actually takes to create something and hand it to the world.

Corey and Alex met and built a life together in Los Angeles, both on staff at a thriving church community that eventually crumbled. In the diaspora that followed, a phone call from a former colleague led them to Atlanta, somewhere Alex had never even visited. Seven years later, Westside is home.

Music, though, has been a thread through all of it. Alex traces her own hunger for God back to a moment as a twelve-year-old at camp, sitting on the floor with a room full of girls singing harmonies to an acoustic guitar, a moment she describes as transcendent even though, on paper, it was ordinary. That instinct, that creating and worship are woven together, shows up throughout Oh Sparrow's music.

One of the most honest parts of their conversation is about how their songs actually get written. Corey describes going into a writing session with their collaborator Chris with nothing but hard questions and no answers, two full days of wrestling before an old church liturgy, Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again, finally gave them somewhere to land. It became the foundation of one of their most meaningful songs.

Corey and Alex are also candid about the fear that comes with creating. Alex's advice for anyone afraid to put something into the world: don't start with the world. Start with one trusted person. Let a song, or any act of creativity, learn to fly a little before you send it out further. Corey adds that creativity isn't a lightning bolt, it's something earned through showing up and writing, even when most of what you write isn't very good. As he puts it, out of a thousand songs, maybe one is great, but none of it is wasted.

As you listen, we want to invite you to sit with one question: how could the Lord use what you create, personally or professionally, and multiply it abundantly to bless others?

And a challenge, if you're willing: go listen to an Oh Sparrow song and worship alongside Alex, Corey, and Chris, wherever you are.

Listen now on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or find the full episode on our website.