Artist:Kirk Franklin
Song:Looking For You
Album:Hero
Kirk Frnklin's mix of traditional gospel themes, old school R & B and hip hop has made him the best selling gospel artist today and has paved the way for black gospel artists to cross over to mainstream music. He was born Jan. 26, 1970 in Riverside, TX. He didn't know his father and was abandoned by his mother so his Aunt Gertrude raised him in the church. She collected aluminum cans to pay for his piano lessons. By age 11, he was musical director at the local church choir. Of course he was rebellious as a teen but when one of his friends was killed, he returned to the church. Franklin put Vicki Mack Latandaille's tiny GospoCentric label on the map with his group The Family. Franklin did sing at first but he's not a good singer and now he hires real singers and sticks to composing & arranging. The 1997 smash hit Stomp from the God's Property CD was his first crossover hit. Everything since then has gone straight to the top of the charts. This includes his latest CD Hero and the first single Looking For You. Looking For You is a reworking of a Patrice Rushen disco hit from the 70s. I've heard the original and Franklin's version isn't much different except for the gospel message and vocal arrangement. It crossed over to the top of the R & B charts. He also won two Grammys for Hero. Kirk Franklin's next project will be a biopic called Church Boy for Lions Gate Films. He's currently writing the script. And I'm sure he's working on a new CD too. He's the first artist I recommend if you're looking to get into contemporary gospel. Here's Kirk Franklin's video for Looking For You.
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