Duncan: "We get on great, actually. It's a really good mix. It's a lot of different cultures thrown in there together, but we get on like brothers."
Phil: "I think we�ve got enormous respect for one another and that takes time. It takes time to really begin to understand each other's good points and maybe not so good points, and to understand each other's strengths and weaknesses. So that really helps with the songwriting because we know where each others' strengths lie and we also respect each other enough that we can bring ideas to the table and we're not going to be laughed at and that sort of thing. We may laugh, but we know that at the end of the day, this is more like a family than just a bunch of guys, at the end of the day we're going to be brothers still."
Peter: "To remain friends and strong brothers, as close as we are now, you know, till we start dropping off... (laughs) I think we as a band, we know who we are. We don�t have any preconceived ideas, and that comes from God, that's not anything we've done. It is a big blessing to be in a band with people who are very talented players and they're great people and they're really serious, not about themselves, but about this faith."
Phil: "Peter and I live in a little town called Franklin outside of Nashville, we live about four doors away from each other. Jody and Jeff live next door to each other, they�re neighbors, and Duncan lives somewhere in the middle."
Peter: "We're always together before the show. Sometimes we all split up during the day and go to bookstores or coffee shops or whatever, just go and drift around, and so we don't see each other all day. So it's kind of a nice thing just before the show. We're just together and it's kind of good, you know. We realize that we have this common bond that we share."
Phil: "I've learned that I'm not the most discerning person when it comes to people. I think everyone is wonderful, ya know? I think we�re great! I think we all have our sinful nastiness sides... But, unfortunately, I have been burned a lot. I've tried, especially being from another country and being in a land with no friends other than the Newsboys who are my best friends but, wanting to make new friends as well outside of that and having to learn the hard way that sometimes people aren't wanting to be your friends for who you are. So I'm becoming a little more guarded in some areas, but it's really helped me solidify and value the friendships that I have. And it made me realize that friendships aren't easy to come across, not good ones and when I say good ones, I think of the ones we have in the Newsboys, actually. Some of those friendships are amazing because we'll beat each other up (laughs) and we�ll wound each other. And the wounds of a friend are good. I can�t exactly quote what it is in Proverbs and how it's spoken but I think that's how it's said. We'll let each other know how it lies, even when it's not good. And that's cool."
Jody (in the GP liner notes): "...And most of all, thank you Jesus for fulfilling the desires of my heart and for giving me the best friends in the world to do it with."
Jeff: "I wouldn't trade it for anything. But it's not quite as glitzy and glamorous as people think it is. We sleep on the bus, wake up, hop on our BMX bikes and go check out stuff before we have to perform. You get to meet a lot of people and see some incredible things, so there's always stuff to write about. But the pace is pretty hectic. When you're living in a bus with 13 guys, you've got to become a family. That's the only way to survive out there."
Phil: "Peter's been off the road for a couple of days 'cause he's not feeling too good, and man, we really missed him! It's the same with any of us though, when one of us isn't there, man we go 'whoa,' like we're not complete! This sounds really corny but it's true."
Peter: "It's great to be a man with these kinds of friends, rather than just be a group of guys with the same drive or ambitions."
Jeff: "In 1994 we did 240 shows, and this year we've done 180 or so, and it's like... to be able to face each other every day after so many shows... you'd think we wouldn't want anything to do with each other! But it's really funny that when we do have a couple days off, we might spend a day at home and do whatever but then the next day I'm over at Jody's house and he's cooking dinner for me and I'm over eating at his house, you know, hanging out... so I guess we're just stuck with each other."
Phil: "I think we're really beginning to grow up, and become the men we're meant to be, and that's cool! And we're doing it together. The five of us, we see the good, the bad, and the ugly of each other every day, but at the same time we have a wonderful understanding of God's grace and mercy and we see each other change, we see each other just grow, leaps and bounds, all the time, which is so cool! People ask us, 'How do you get fed out on the road spiritually? How does this function?' And we've got five guys, and our managers, Wes and Steve Campbell, who've been with the band a long time, so you've got a bunch of guys just constantly sharpening one another. It's iron sharpening iron and it's a blessing, it's a wonderful place to be. I don't know how other people do the nine-to-five stuff! I'm sure God provides for them in different ways but for me this is how he provides. I've just seen the band grow and grow over the last four years and I'm really looking forward to the future. Good things are on the horizon."