Tag: Contemporary

"Confident" – Modern Day Cure

“Confident”
Modern Day Cure (2017)
www.moderndaycure.com

Modern Day Cure Confident cover artBy Janie Sheeley-Torain
GMF Special Contributor

More than ever, we as the people of God and especially our young people, need music that encourages us to not only confidently face day-to-day situations, but face the future with confidence in the Lord.  Thanks, Modern Day Cure.  

“You know–that you know–that you know!”  Modern Day Cure, a Nashville-based worship band, helps listeners be self-assured that they will not be abandoned; left to their own devices.  Rather, they will look back over the challenges that God has brought them through and be “Confident”!

– Confident that God finishes what He starts!
– Confident that God will honor His promises!
– Confident that God will be with you until the end and forever more!

Modern Day Cure is led by Aaron and Tamar Chipp.  “Confident” is the contemporary worship single from their forthcoming EP.

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Janie Sheeley-Torain, Ed.D, is a gospel music enthusiast, author, National Board Certified Teacher, and life-long educator. She is an advocate of invigorating gospel music that inspires, elevates, and encourages the listener. She has published and is currently working on manuscripts that embolden the musicians of gospel music.

"I Found a Friend" – John Joyner

“I Found a Friend”
John Joyner (2016)
Available at CD Baby

John Joyner "I Found A Friend"

By Libra Boyd
Gospel Music Fever

“I Found a Friend” is the newly released single from NC minister and musician, John Joyner.  Joyner’s silvery tenor lends itself to ballads, which he demonstrates in a pair of verses describing discouragement, dismay, and loneliness.  “When my friends, they turn their backs on me,” he sings, “I can say I have a best friend, and He’s all I need.”

“I Found a Friend” is produced by Brian Foster.  Joyner leads Order My Steps Outreach Ministry in Oxford, NC.

"Say Yes" – Tiffany Jeffers

"Say Yes" Tiffany Jeffers art work“Say Yes”
Tiffany Jeffers (2016)
Write Haus Music Group
www.tiffanyjeffers.com

By Libra Boyd
Gospel Music Fever

The intro of Tiffany Jeffers’ single “Say Yes” could easily be part of an old Nintendo game.  But get this: just as quickly as the synth sequence catches your ear, the classically trained gospel singer’s richly textured vocal comes to the fore and the music mellows into R&B and soul sweetness.

“Say Yes” is the single from Tiffany’s debut EP by the same name, which features 10 songs produced by Morgan Turner and Josh Lay of Rhyme and Reasons Productions.  The song’s message is solid and straightforward–surrender to God’s will–and the vibe is palatable to listeners with urban gospel tastes.

Tiffany hails from Baltimore, MD.

"Author" – Latice Crawford

“Author”
Latice Crawford
From the upcoming project, Diary of a Church Girl (Available 2016)
Available at iTunes

Author - Latice Crawford - art workBy Libra Boyd
Gospel Music Fever

Hearing Latice Crawford intertwine the lyrics and melody of her current single “Author” is like reading, or listening to, an aural diary.

“Author, please write me better / Potter, mold me better,” she sings.

The fact is, intimately and steadily, Latice delivers the same impressive, impassioned vocal that landed her in the top three on BET Sunday Best 2.

“Author” is the second single from Latice’s forthcoming project, Diary of a Church Girl.

"I Got a Good Feeling" – Tam Johnson and God's Favor

Tam Johnson and God's Favor Miracle cover art
“I Got a Good Feeling”
Tam Johnson and God’s Favor
From the CD, Miracle (2014)
www.facebook.com/tamjohnsonandgf
By Libra Boyd
Gospel Music Fever
 
Using alternative hip-hop group Arrested Development’s early 90s arrangement of “People Everyday” (which heavily borrows from Sly the Family Stone’s “Everyday People”) as their music sample, Tam Johnson and God’s Favor deliver a hefty dose of optimism with “I Got a Good Feeling.”  Johnson, the singers, and the band enthusiastically proclaim that everything’s gonna “be all right” over a mid-tempo groove.
Tam Johnson and God’s Favor hail from Wilson, NC.  “I Got a Good Feeling” is featured on their current CD, Miracle.

"On My Journey" – Clarice Hall

“On My Journey”
Clarice Hall (2015)
www.msreecie.com

Clarice Hall - On My Journey - art work

Clarice Hall’s vocals are soulful and crisp—a lovely complement to the contemporary gospel styling of her mid-tempo single, “On My Journey.”

And just when her skillful yet unforced riffs get your head bobbing, she pays tribute to the old school with a turn of phrase (“Church folks sing it like this, y’all…”) that segues into a 20-second a cappella interlude.

Clarice’s vocal flair reaches across the genres of gospel, jazz, and R&B, and her music résumé includes performances with heavyweights in each genre.

Clarice is a native of Raleigh and a member of Word Empowerment Church in Durham.  She concurrently serves as minister of music at Durham’s Mt. Olive AME Zion Church.

Official Video – "Mighty God" – Valerie Woodard

Enjoy the official music video “Mighty God” from Whole Armour Recordings artist Valerie Woodard. The tune, available at iTunes, is written by Woodard and produced by Lee Tate.

"Good News" – Deborah Brown

“Good News”
Deborah Brown (2014)
Purpose Driven Records

No doubt about it, good news is welcomed amid the chaotic nature of daily encounters, and Atlanta’s Deborah Brown delivers with her upbeat rhythmic single “Good News.”

‘Tis a contemporary gospel bounce that’s dominated by a repeated electric piano chord progression and syncopated horns. The “good news” that Deborah (bearing a smidge of tonal resemblance to Twinkie Clark) sings about throughout the tune turns out to be all the joys that accompany the birth of Christ: “Peace on earth / goodwill towards men / a child is born / a son is given / government on His shoulders…” These proclamations translate into the song’s head-bobbing vamp.

Deborah, along with her husband Dr. Jerry Brown (founder and CEO of Purpose Driven Records), was recently featured on The Don Frost Music City Gospel Show.

"A Lil' Louder (Clap Your Hands)" – The Rance Allen Group

“A Lil’ Louder (Clap Your Hands)”
The Rance Allen Group (2014)
Tyscot

Rance Allen Group - A Lil' Louder artwork

For much of his 40-plus year career, Rance Allen has described his brand of gospel as R&B—Rhythm and Bible. Now the Rance Allen Group has added the new single “A Lil’ Louder (Clap Your Hands)” to the list, making it nearly impossible for fans to wait for the International Gospel Music Hall of Famers’ full-length project, due out later this year. 

Blazing horns, synths, and percussive hand claps—along with Rance’s trademark growls, grunts, and falsetto—drive this feel-good groove. Dr. Leonard Scott, Tyscot Music & Entertainment founder, calls it the “modern-day ‘Miracle Worker.'”


“A Lil’ Louder (Clap Your Hands),” co-written by Rance and Floyd “Timeless” Thomas, is an invitation to praise that could’ve easily been a smash back-in-the-day collab with Stevie Wonder, James Brown, Ray Charles, The Tops, and The Miracles.  That’s the flavor of “R&B” this is, and take my word for it, you’ll be doing more than clapping your hands on this one. 

"God's Been Good" – Carol Maraj

“God’s Been Good”
Carol Maraj (2014)
Fame Star Records/MDM Music Group
Available at iTunes

Carol Maraj has no qualms about letting the world know that God has sustained her through experiences that some others didn’t survive (see her interview with GMF here).  She is alive and has overcome because “God’s Been Good.”

Maraj’s single, “God’s Been Good,” cites healing from cancer and protection from a shooting in its verses, as testimonies of the perpetual goodness of God. The contemporary pop synth gospel tune has been creating a buzz since early this year.

Maraj currently resides in New York and heads the Carol Maraj Foundation, an advocacy organization for victims of domestic violence.