About Chelsea
Chelsea Hamshaw is a worship leader, singer-songwriter, and bible teacher based currently in Florence, SC. Pulling on alternative folk and gospel styles, her music aims to find the intersection of poetry and music.
About Chelsea.
Chelsea was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where her father served as a minister in the Episcopal (now Anglican) church. She is the youngest of five children.
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Growing up, she sang alto in church and school choirs and took one year of piano lessons—likely one year too many for her piano teacher. Throughout her childhood, Chelsea developed a deep love for music, often sitting at the piano and pulling out whatever melodies came to her mind. In late elementary school, she picked up brass instruments and continued to play in the school band throughout high school. Guitars were always lying around the house, and though she played them poorly, they were an essential part of her musical world.
It was in high school that Chelsea discovered a profound love for classic British literature, particularly the novels of Jane Austen and the plays of William Shakespeare. Over time, her passion for the English language shifted to a deeper focus on the great hymn writers and the metaphysical poets. Their cadence and poetry still reverberate through the ages, and Chelsea continues to find inspiration in their words.
In late 2008, Chelsea felt a pull to move to South Carolina, where she quickly met Jason Hamshaw, then the Youth Minister at Prince George Church in Georgetown. They married in January 2010 and now have four boys, who bring them great joy. In 2017, they moved to Florence, SC, when Jason was called to serve as the Rector of All Saints’ Anglican Church.Chelsea currently serves at All Saints’ as the Director of Music and Church Administrator, and one of her greatest joys is teaching Bible Studies and sharing God’s word at conferences and retreats.
Songwriting came to Chelsea almost unbidden in mid-2020, as she immersed herself in biblical studies and poetry. It began as a way to explore the intersection between the flow of poetry and the melody of song.In October 2023, Jason was suddenly diagnosed with stage 4 colorectal cancer, and their lives changed dramatically. The songs that followed were deeply shaped by this experience, as Chelsea learned to hold praise and lament together, finding the Lord’s mighty presence in the midst of it all.
About her songwriting.
Chelsea’s story is nothing without the Lord's mercy in leading her on the pilgrim’s road. Drawn to the acoustic beauty of folk and indie music, she weaves her songs with the threads of Scripture, each lyric a step forward, each chord a call to press on toward the eternal.
From her youth, music has been both confidante and compass, leading her from the vigor of marching bands, through the harmonies of choirs, to the tender assemblies of youth worship. Yet, like a pilgrim discerning each unseen bend in her path, she could not have known that music would one day become the pulse of her soul’s journey. In the quiet fellowship of leading worship in Bible studies, a calling took root—a calling that would, in God’s time, lead her to conference stages, roles as a worship minister, and now, to the recording of an album. Many worship songs on her journey became acts of surrender, prayers of proclamation to her Savior, as she learned to follow unseen paths.
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When her husband was called to shepherd a church in Florence, Chelsea found herself stepping not only into a place of worship but into a role where her heart for worship music was continually informed by the Word of God. Here, she longed for Scripture to shape the very tone and direction of the service music, allowing the Word itself to become the melody’s guide. Walking alongside fellow ministers, she discovered joy in crafting worship that brought hearts closer to Christ. She saw how, as praise ascends like incense, God moves among His people, transforming melody into a meeting between heaven and earth—a holy conversation. Her Anglican tradition, with its rich and ancient liturgy, frames worship in Word and sacrament, highlighted by music woven throughout the service.
For Chelsea, worship songs are no mere tunes; they are battles fought and won in the spirit. Worship, to her, lifts the heart from struggle to strength, welcoming God’s presence to fight on behalf of His people. She treads this pilgrim’s path with humility, so that others may find strength in the sacred act of song, knowing worship is at the heart of God and His people.
In every journey, there are moments lit by heaven’s own fire, pierced by that still, small voice. One such moment came when Gloria Kwashi, wife of Bishop Benjamin Kwashi of Jos, Nigeria, prayed over her, speaking of an anointing for worship leadership that God had already begun stirring within her. Her words became a beacon—a holy confirmation of Chelsea’s path, one she had not sought but now embraces with joy and reverence.
With a pilgrim’s heart bowed before God’s mighty hand, Chelsea steps forward in trust, pursuing the One who calls her onward. Here, music becomes more than melody—it becomes a language for life’s joy, sorrow, and mystery. Each song she writes flows naturally from her reflections on Scripture, shaped by her love for music and poetry, inviting others to press forward in faith.
Her journey has been one of growth, shaped by study, fellowship, and the kindness of those who walk alongside her. The poetry and hymns of her youth remain threads in her story, weaving her songs with the richness of theology, the reverence of liturgical tradition, and the honest cries of the Psalms. She leans into Scripture and contemplation, always seeking to deepen her understanding of God’s Word so that her songs may join the timeless symphony of worship lifted by saints through the ages.
Chelsea’s hope is simple—that her music might draw hearts to Jesus, whatever their season. This hope has been her strength, especially in dark valleys, as she and her husband entrust each step of his illness to God. The Psalms have taught her that every emotion—joy, sorrow, and everything in between—finds its place at Christ’s feet.
With gratitude for the road traveled thus far, Chelsea presses on, her “eyes fixed on Christ, who ran the race set before us.” She invites all to join her in these pilgrim songs, that together they may glorify God and seek His presence, step by step.