Zahriya Zachary “Rediscovery” Album Review

Prime Cuts: Better Than I Thought, Rediscovery, Loved by Love

Overall Grade: 4/5

Zahriya Zachary, one of Bethel Music's most compelling emerging voices, brings a quiet strength and radiant sincerity to her long-awaited debut album, Rediscovery. Born and raised in Spring, Texas, Zachary didn't grow up in a musical family, yet her love for worship began at a young age while learning piano. Later, in college, she felt a divine call to lead worship-a calling that would eventually bring her to Bethel Music, where her moving performances on songs like "Back to Life" and "If the Lord" garnered widespread attention. Known for her pure tone, emotional depth, and unguarded authenticity, Zachary now steps forward with a project that is wholly her own: an album that captures her personal journey of faith, surrender, and transformation.

From the opening title track, Rediscovery establishes a contemplative tone. Gentle piano and ethereal vocal layers evoke a sense of awakening-as if the soul is learning to breathe again. The transition into Better Than I Thought (Prelude) and Better Than I Thought unfolds like a prayer, confessing that God's kindness continually surpasses expectation. The lyrics are stunning: I walked around on a tightrope/Like if I messed up too bad, You might let go/I thought I'd reach the ceiling of Your grace/But You've got more mercy than I've got mistakes.

Keeper of My Heart and Shine On Me (featuring Edward Rivera) carry the hallmark warmth of Bethel's sound-ambient guitars, swelling dynamics, and reverent textures-but Zachary's voice gives them new intimacy. She sings not to an audience but to a Friend, her phrasing both tender and resolute. There's a quiet authority in her delivery that recalls Steffany Gretzinger or Amanda Cook, yet her restraint and sincerity set her apart.

The centerpiece of the record, Loved by Love, inspired by Philippians 2:6-8, distills the album's theology into one breathtaking truth: "To be loved by Love Himself is the miracle." The melody rises gently, echoing both the humility of Christ and the wonder of being fully known. This is worship stripped of pretense-an unfiltered adoration of a God who gives everything without reservation.

Other standouts include Heart Strings and Captured My Heart, songs that balance lyrical introspection with luminous production, allowing space for every word to resonate. Too Much meditates on divine abundance, while the final track, Relief, closes the album in stillness-like a benediction over a soul finally at rest. What makes Rediscovery exceptional is its coherence. Each song feels like a continuation of the last, threads in a single prayer tapestry. The production mirrors the album's theme of surrender: lush but never excessive, letting Zachary's voice and message take center stage.

However, with that said, Rediscovery does suffer from a certain sameness across its thirteen tracks. While Zachary's contemplative songwriting is cohesive, the album leans heavily on slow to mid-tempo ballads built around similar piano-and-swell arrangements. Many songs blend seamlessly into one another-beautiful, but at times too uniform. The absence of rhythmic contrast or unexpected melodic shifts means that after several tracks, the emotional arc flattens. Songs such as Heart Strings and Captured My Heart, though lyrically sincere, echo the same sonic palette as earlier numbers. Listeners yearning for a dynamic rise or a bolder musical risk may find themselves longing for more variation.

Ultimately, Rediscovery is more than a debut-it's a confession of faith set to music. Zachary calls it "a stone of remembrance," a place to return to when faith falters. Listeners will find the same: a sanctuary of songs that remind us that God's love is not an idea to grasp but a presence to dwell in.

 

 

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