Charles Jenkins & Fellowship Chicago The Best of Both Worlds EMI Gospel/Inspired People (2012) www.emigospel.com By Bob Marovich for The Black Gospel Blog. It could not have been easy for Charles Jenkins to succeed the iconic Rev. Dr. Clay Evans as Pastor of Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church in Chicago. Evans, a Civil Rights leader and founder of “The Ship,” had taken his church from very humble roots to one of the nation’s most significant religious institutions. Fellowship’s radio choir was no less celebrated than the church it represented. Directed at the beginning by Willie Webb and later by Evans’ sister, ...

“The Only God” Livre’ Glory2Glory Records/PRODIGY Entertainment Group http://livreofficial.blogspot.com/ Available on iTunes On their single, “The Only God,” Livre’ (pron. liv-ray – it means “free” in Latin) praises in tight, bright harmonies evocative of foreverJONES.  Theirs is a gentle, pretty sound that blends CCR and gospel. While singing at the Bronx Mass Choir Reunion program, this twelve-member group (seven singers and five musicians) from New York City caught the attention of Alicia Keys’ managers Jeff and J. Conrad Robinson.  They subsequently backed Keys on her “How Does it Feel to Fly,” and she will reciprocate on their debut CD, currently ...

  “I Remember” Wincey From the CD Time to Say (2012) www.winceycomusic.com “I Remember” is an uncomplicated, smooth-as-caramel contemporary gospel song with cheerful vocals by Wincey Terry-Bryant. The Newark native sings praises to the one who has “always been there for me,” in good times and bad, for the hurt and for experiences “too good to be true.” Wincey brings to the table a professional and eclectic vocal resume that includes the church choir as well as work with Grover Washington, Jr. and Sesame Street.  In 1988, she founded a performing arts troupe called WinceyCo that educates audiences about serious ...

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Preashea Hilliard Live Out Loud Blacksmoke Music Worldwide (2010) www.preshmusic.com To Preashea Hilliard, “LOL” means Live Out Loud. And loud – in energy, enthusiasm, volume and message – is exactly what her debut project, Live Out Loud, exudes. The Houstonian vocalist is the youngest daughter of Bishop I.V. and Lady Bridget Hilliard of Houston’s New Light Church, where the CD was recorded live in April 2010. Preashea smartly assembles songs from talented writers such as Deitrick Haddon, Israel Houghton and Kurt Carr, and contributes a few of her own compositions, to create an impressive debut album, produced by Grammy Award-winning ...

“Surrender” Carla Martin 5:11 Music Group (2011) http://www.amartinproduction.com/ With a rocking beat that speeds along like a brakeless freight train, “Surrender” riffs on the irony that in the midst of trials, it is in surrendering that life begins. Don’t give up, she sings, give in. First place winner at the 2002 McDonald’s Gospelfest, Evangelist Carla Martin now lives in Orlando, Florida and is married with seven (!) children. Her voice is reminiscent of Cher’s no-nonsense alto, which is appropriate to the content and message of the single.

The Showers Family Singers Hear My Prayer Aquila and Priscilla Records (2010) www.cdbaby.com/cd/sfgs Ten siblings – ten! – who are the offspring of a pastor and his missionary wife from Louisiana blend their voices as The Showers Family Singers. Their star is on the rise, as they won Best Traditional CD of the Year at the 2010 Ensound Music Awards for their eleven-track debut Hear My Prayer, and are nominated for three Rhythm of Gospel Awards. Hear My Prayer introduces a larger audience to their straight-ahead mix of contemporary, praise and worship and traditional gospel performance styles. And it’s a decent ...

Kassandra McGhee Completely (2007) http://www.mypower4living.com/ Singer-songwriter Kassandra McGhee of Forest Park, Illinois, a suburb west of Chicago, has sung background or shared the stage with such notable contemporary gospel and praise and worship artists such as Edwin Hawkins, Phil Tarver and Vanessa Dukes of the Brown Sisters. Not surprisingly, given McGhee’s performance experience and service as a praise and worship leader, her self-produced debut CD Completely is an assemblage of P&W songs she composed. Her sweet, breathy soprano reminds me of Deniece Williams, who started singing gospel as a member of the COGIC church in Gary, Indiana before moving into ...

Can’t Break Us” DJ Morph feat. Frontlynaz From the CD International Adullam House 2008 More Holy Hip Hop from Frontlynaz, but this time, they assist the Chicago-born and now South Florida native DJ Morph with his single, “Can’t Break Us” from Morph’s fifth CD, International. “Can’t Break Us” is HHH versus the record labels and the music industry for all but ignoring the style despite its popularity, the artists’ professionalism and the dues they’ve paid, as well as its Christian-centered message. On the other hand, being ignored might not be so bad. “I don’t care if the labels won’t sign ...

Frontlynaz Game Over Frontlynaz, Inc. 2008 www.frontlynaz.com Say what you will about Holy Hip Hop, but the Stellar-nominated HHH group Frontlynaz spits rhymes and drops beats with the power and urgency of a brakeless freight train. Their Game Over grabbed my attention and held it with clenched fists from beginning to end. Captivating and compelling, Frontlynaz has a lot to say about today’s state of affairs and how grace can transform a person from spiraling downward to an upwardly mobile (i.e., positive, not materialistic) life that means something and is, in itself, transformative. Just as importantly, the album dresses the ...