Author: Libra Boyd

Libra Nicole Boyd, PhD is a musician, award-winning author, gospel music aficionado, and the founder and editor of Gospel Music Fever™. Her commitment to journalistic integrity includes bringing you reliable gospel music content that uplifts and advances the art form. Libra is presently working on several scholarly projects about gospel music in the media as well as gospel music in social movements.

"I Trust in God" – John Thorpe and Family

“I Trust in God”
John Thorpe and Family
From the CD, Child Of God (2012)
Available at CD Baby

John Thorpe and Family "Live" with Dr. Bobby Jones art work

Kudos to the groups and choirs of today that reserve spots for a traditional, minimally altered hymn or two in their otherwise trendy, radio-friendly repertoires.

McCollins Thorpe, Sr. solidifies this space for John Thorpe and Family with “I Trust in God,” an arrangement of the W.C. Martin hymn, “My Father Watches Over Me.”  It’s Thorpe, Sr., the eldest brother of the 14 siblings, whose vibratic tenor hinges on the upswings and downward slopes of every note to create a moderately slow but soulful number that baptist pastor Martin himself, were he to overhear from Glory, would give a nod to.

While John Thorpe and Family are a choir that occasionally consists of all 14 brothers and sisters plus a niece and nephew, their material is crafted with a traditional quartet-like vibe—a subgenre in which the Thorpe brothers, who are the primary lead singers, are firmly planted.  This is why Thorpe, Sr. is able to guide them from the flowing expressive verses right into a toe-tapping chorus and vamp with ease, adding just the right amount of spice to the sweetness of the early 20th-century composition.

2012 BET Awards Nominees Announced

Kim Burrell

Yolanda Adams, Kim Burrell, James Fortune & FIYA, Fred Hammond, and Trin-i-tee 5:7 are the Best Gospel Artist nominees for this year’s BET Awards.

The show will air live July 1, at 8 PM EST, on the BET network with Samuel L. Jackson as the host.

See the complete list of nominees here: BET Awards ’12 Nominees.

"Don't Forget About Me" – Cat Cole

“Don’t Forget About Me”
Cat Cole
From the digital mixtape, Strait from Da Soul of Cat Cole (2012)
Available at Soundcloud

“Can I do an old Tommy Ellison song?” Cat Cole asks at the start of “Don’t Forget About Me.”  Cole has a way of merging sounds of yesteryear with a style that appeals to gospel quartet lovers, R&B heads, and young folk alike.

Right after his question, the song he’s asking about struts off in shuffle rhythm while Cole pours out his lines with the intensity of a 1970’s soul singer.  About halfway in, the rhythm falls into a good ol’ straight quartet pocket as he turns the corner on the run and petitions, “Come on, Jesus.”  The background vocalists sing the same, falling slightly behind the beat.  It’s a groove you have to hear for yourself.  And you can–absolutely free.

Cole, whose real name is Castro Coleman, made this and several other tracks available online for free, last month.  He says Strait From Da Soul of Cat Cole is the first of several mixtapes that will drop every 90 days while he works on his upcoming album, The Favor Factor, which is scheduled for release later this year on the 4Winds/Malaco label.  Cole is the lead singer of Castro Coleman and Highly Favored and the music director for the Williams Brothers.

"Lord, You're the Landlord" – Mississippi Mass Choir

“Lord, You’re the Landlord”
Mississippi Mass Choir
From the CD, Then Sings My Soul (2011)
www.mississippimass.com

It takes an aggregation like Malaco’s tenured Mississippi Mass Choir to pull off lines like, “Lord, You’re the landlord, and there’s a leak in Your building. Fix it, fix it like You said You would.”  Voiced by some other choirs, such words might come off as demanding; to the new school, maybe even a little corny.  Not so with Miss Mass.

Original member and principal vocalist Lillian Lilly capably leads this Frederick Knight composition (previously recorded by labelmate Eddie Ruth Bradford) with the faith-filled fervor that the informal and simplistic lyrics call for, while the multi-award winning choir concurs: “I can’t fix it….You’re my landlord….Fix it like You said You would.”

The metaphor may not necessarily strike a chord with younger listeners, but “Lord, You’re the Landlord” is definitely your grandmother’s kind of hand-clapper.

Pastor Marvin Winans robbed, carjacked

“This kind of nonsense just has to stop,” Pastor Marvin Winans told ABC7 Action News Wednesday afternoon after being assaulted, robbed, and carjacked while pumping gas at a Detroit Citgo.  He spoke further with ABC7 Wednesday night upon leaving the hospital with a fractured finger.

The pastor of Detroit’s Perfecting Church, Winans is also a Grammy-winning singer.  His current musical collaboration, “Let the Church Say Amen,” features him with Andraé Crouch on Crouch’s The Journey project and has become an instant classic.  Winans also appears in a recurring acting role on Tyler Perry’s House of Payne, and he recently gained even more prominence as the eulogist for the homegoing of Whitney Houston.

Helen Baylor breaks silence on music industry pitfalls and her recent addiction

Helen Baylor recently sat down with CBN’s Efrem Graham (May 10), and candidly addressed the negative influences that pervade the gospel music industry.

During her interview, Baylor–recognized in gospel for her riveting testimony and thankfulness for having “a praying grandmother” (The Live Experience/Word Records)–also discussed her marriage, which ended after 30 years, and the recurrence of her struggle with drugs.

Aretha Franklin to be inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame

GMF is excited to learn that Aretha Franklin will be added to the Gospel Music Hall of Fame this August in Tennessee.  It is another well deserved honor for the “Queen of Soul,” whose roots in gospel music run deep.  CBS News is one of several outlets that shared the announcement a few days ago: Aretha Franklin to Join Gospel Hall of Fame.

You can listen to a few of Aretha’s classic gospel pearls on the YouTube channel of GMF’s partner, Gospel Experience.  The channel has an entire playlist (below) devoted to her.

Related Story
Aretha Franklin: Pumping Out Soul and Preaching Up Gospel


Song by Renee Spearman and Prez pays respect to mothers

(Hollywood, CA)  Established in 1908 to honor mothers worldwide, Mother’s Day is now one of the world’s most beloved holidays.  To mark the occasion, award-winning inspirational duo and JDI recording artists Renee Spearman and Prez have released a classic Mother’s Day song entitled “Happy Mother’s Day,” featuring Prez Blackmon.

The song is available on iTunes.

"No Weapon" – Pastor Linwood Dillard and The Voices of Citadel

“No Weapon”
Pastor Linwood Dillard and The Voices of Citadel
From the CD, Pastor Linwood Dillard Presents Churchin’ with The Citadel (2012)
http://citadelofdeliverance.com

Put your dancing shoes on, because you will surely need them for “No Weapon.”  Pastor Linwood Dillard and The Voices of Citadel’s exuberant single is an extended praise break with a layer of lyrics proclaiming the obvious: “No weapon formed against me shall prosper.”

The high energy stomper begins with an igneous 13-second homily before the band thrusts the choir into its emphatic declaration.

Superintendent Linwood Dillard, Jr. is the founding pastor of Citadel of Deliverance Church of God in Christ in Germantown, TN, and the International Youth Department President of the Church of God in Christ, Inc.

“Turn It Around” – Tim Rogers & The Fellas f. John P. Kee

“Turn It Around”
Tim Rogers & The Fellas feat. John P. Kee
From the upcoming CD, Real (Available June 19, 2012)
Blackberry Records

Question: What do you get when you put one of the baddest rising quartets and the “Prince of Gospel” in the same studio?
Answer: You get one head-bobbing inspirational tune that’s shaking up radio and uplifting hearts all over the country.
“Turn It Around” is the current single by Arkansas’s Tim Rogers & The Fellas featuring John P. Kee.  The 32 year-old singer/songwriter/pastor and Kee deliver this mid-tempo bounce so earnestly that by the time they finish hurling their doses of encouragement (“Even if your life is still in a mess, believe God for your blessing–it’s comin’ to your address”), your faith in the power of God is unwavering.
“Turn It Around” is from Tim Rogers & The Fellas’ forthcoming CD, Real, scheduled for release in June.