Dr Ron Kenoly (1944-2026): A father of the global worship community

Worship leader and singer-songwriter, Dr Ron Kenoly, has died aged 81. Known best for songs such as ‘Ancient of days’ and ‘Jesus is alive’, Noel Robinson pays tribute to a man who led by example and united God’s people in worship wherever he went 

I first met Dr Ron Kenoly on the set of a BBC live radio broadcast in Birmingham in the mid-1990s. I knew his name, of course, but I hadn’t really followed his music closely. At the time, I was deeply immersed in the worship songs of Don Moen through Integrity Music, and I was also on a personal journey - searching for identity within the UK Christian music community.

That meeting with Ron, where I was serving as musical director, marked a turning point for me. One of the first things he said was: “I’m a worship leader, not an artist.” It stopped me in my tracks. It was the first time I had ever heard a Black man use that language so clearly and unapologetically. It shifted something in me.