Gospel Singer Marvin Sapp to Record First Album Since Wife's Death
Marvin Sapp, whose wife passed away in 2010 after a battle with cancer, has announced plans to record songs for a new album expected to be released in 2012.
Sapp, who wowed fans with his 2010 Here I Am album, will be recording his next body of work live on Oct. 7, at Evangel Cathedral in Upper Marlboro, Md., near Washington, D.C.
The album was expected to address how Sapp overcame the loss of several people in his life, including wife MaLinda Sapp, who passed away in September 2010 due to complications from colon cancer.
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"The focus of this record is how you can come through situations and still remain on top. It's about how the enemy has a way of hitting you with stuff to cause you to fold and buckle, but I'm still standing," Sapp told Billboard.com.
Sapp noted that although the album would be recorded live "some will sound like it's studio. We're gonna mix it up."
As for why Sapp, pastor of Lighthouse Full Life Center Church in Grand Rapids, Mich., planned to record the music at a church in Maryland, the minister said Washington, D.C., is home to some of his biggest supporters.
"D.C. is one my largest audiences. They buy tons of records of mine in Washington, D.C. ... So we're going to do something different and see how it works," he told Billboard.com.
The gospel album to be released in 2012 will be Sapp's seventh, according to his official music website.
Sapp's 2007 album "Thirsty" went gold and won seven Gospel Stellar Awards in 2009. His 2010 album, "Here I Am," won several Stellar awards and a Dove Award. "Here I Am" was also recorded live.
Sapp debuted in the 90s as a gospel singer with the group Commissioned before launching his solo career in 1996.
"I am a preacher, called by God, who happens to sing," was how Sapp defined his ministry.
