Doris Troy was an American R&B singer and songwriter, known to her fans as "Mama Soul". Her biggest hit was "Just One Look", a top 10 hit in 1963.
The Clark Sisters are an American gospel vocal group originally consisting of five sisters: Jacky Clark Chisholm, Denise "Niecy" Clark-Bradford, Elbernita "Twinkie" Clark, Dorinda Clark-Cole, and Karen Clark Sheard. The Clark Sisters are the daughters of gospel musician and choral director Dr. Mattie Moss Clark. They are credited for helping to bring gospel music to the mainstream and are considered pioneers of contemporary gospel.
Lisa Melonie Fischer is an American singer and songwriter. She found success with her 1991 debut album So Intense, which produced the Grammy Award–winning hit single "How Can I Ease the Pain". She has been a back-up singer for a number of artists, including Sting, Luther Vandross, and Tina Turner, and she toured with The Rolling Stones from 1989 to 2015.
Rodney Roy Jerkins, also known by his stage name Darkchild, is an American record producer, rapper, and songwriter. He has collaborated with a broad range of popular artists.
Karen Valencia Clark Sheard is an American gospel singer and songwriter. Clark-Sheard is the youngest member of gospel group the Clark Sisters, which was formed in 1973. She is also the mother of contemporary gospel singer and actress Kierra "Kiki" Sheard, with whom she frequently collaborates. She has released five solo albums and 17 with the Clark Sisters.
Elbernita "Twinkie" Dionne Clark is an American Grammy Award-winning gospel singer, songwriter, composer, record producer, musician, and evangelist. Clark is best known as the chief executive writer and member of the American gospel singing group the Clark Sisters. Often called the "Mother of Contemporary Gospel Music"; Clark possesses an incredible 6 octave vocal range spanning from Bass and Baritone notes to High Soprano and whistle register notes. NPR named her one of the 50 Great Voices. Known for her use of the Hammond Organ, she is often referred to as the "Queen of the B3 Hammond Organ", and was inducted into the Hammond Hall of Fame in 2014. Clark is principally credited as the originator of "The C.O.G.I.C. Shout Sound". She is a BMI Gospel Trailblazer honoree, the recipient of multiple Grammy Awards, and continues to inspire generations of artists today. Artists such as Beyonce, Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, Mary J. Blige, Faith Evans and also her sister, Karen Clark-Sheard have cited Clark as a major influence on their singing and vocal style and have also sampled her music in various songs of their own.
Mary Mary is an American urban contemporary gospel duo composed of sisters Erica Atkins-Campbell and Trecina Atkins-Campbell. Formed in 1998, Mary Mary was launched into mainstream recognition following the release of their best-selling debut album, Thankful (2000), which contained the hit single "Shackles ". Their followup album Incredible (2002), reached number one on the Top Gospel Albums chart. Their self-titled third album, Mary Mary (2005), which contains themes the public interpreted as a channel to the group's experience,. That album also contains the worldwide hits "Heaven", "The Real Party", and "Yesterday".
PAJAM is an American songwriting and production team, made up of Paul Allen, J. Moss and Walter Kearney, all of Detroit, Michigan. The team works with gospel, soul and R&B artists.
Top Gospel Albums is a music chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States, ranking the popularity of gospel albums. As of Tuesday, January 31, 2017, it uses the same multi-metric methodology developed for the Billboard 200, which incorporates traditional album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA).
I Owe You is the debut studio album by American gospel singer Kierra "Kiki" Sheard. It was released by EMI Gospel on September 7, 2004 in the United States. Sheard worked with a variety of producers on the album, including Warryn Campbell, Rodney Jerkins, PAJAM, and Tonéx. I Owe You debuted atop the US Billboard Top Gospel Albums and the Heatseekers Albums. It also reached number four on the Top Christian Albums and number 29 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums.
You Don't Know is the debut single by gospel artist Kierra "Kiki" Sheard, released August 17, 2004. The song was chosen as the lead single for Sheard's debut album, I Owe You. The song was specifically written and produced for Sheard by Rodney Jerkins for Darkchild Productions.
Walking Miracle is the eleventh overall album by gospel singer Vanessa Bell Armstrong, and her first for EMI Gospel.
Kierra Valencia "Kiki" Sheard-Kelly is an American gospel singer and evangelist. She is the daughter of gospel singer Karen Clark-Sheard and COGIC Presiding Bishop J. Drew Sheard and the granddaughter of gospel choral director Mattie Moss Clark. After appearing on her mother's and aunt's albums, Sheard debuted to the music scene with the release of her debut album I Owe You in 2004. Her hit single "You Don't Know" was inspired by her mother almost losing her life in 2001 to a fatal blood clot. Sheard portrayed her mother in the hit Lifetime movie, The Clark Sisters: First Ladies of Gospel.
WOW Gospel 2005 is a double CD gospel music compilation album in the WOW series. Released on January 25, 2005, it has thirty-one tracks. The album cover pays tribute to Washington, D.C.
WOW Gospel 2006 is a gospel music compilation album from the WOW series. Released on January 31, 2006, it comprises thirty-two songs on a double disc album. The release reached 20 on the Billboard 200 chart in 2006, the highest peak of any of the WOW Gospel series thus far, and made number one on the Top Gospel Albums chart. The album cover pays tribute to Chicago, Illinois.
WOW Gospel 2008 is a gospel music compilation album in the WOW series. Released on February 12, 2008, it comprises thirty-three songs on a double CD set. It reached 34 on the Billboard 200 chart in 2008, and number one on the Top Gospel Albums chart. The album cover pays tribute to Dallas, Texas.
The 1991 Soul Train Music Awards aired live on March 12, 1991, honoring the best in R&B, soul, rap, jazz, and gospel music from the previous year. The show was held at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, California and was hosted by Patti LaBelle, Luther Vandross and Dionne Warwick.
Mama I Want To Sing! is a 1983 musical based on the life and times of African-American singer Doris Troy.
Vy Higginsen is an American theater producer, playwright, former disc jockey, and radio and television personality. She is the founder and executive director of the Mama Foundation for the Arts, and the co-writer of the 1983 musical Mama, I Want to Sing!, the longest running black off-Broadway musical in American history.
John Drew Sheard Jr. is an American pastor and minister from Detroit, Michigan, who is the current presiding bishop of the Church of God in Christ, a 6 million-member predominantly African-American Holiness Pentecostal denomination that has now grown to become one of the largest African-American Pentecostal denominations in the United States.
