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Sheard is a partner in ministry with her husband, Bishop J. Drew Sheard, Pastor of Greater Emmanuel Institutional Church of God in Christ in Detroit, MI, where she serves as First Lady. Learn 50 things about the singer.
1. Gospel music legend Karen Clark Sheard is renowned throughout the music industry for her signature musical style, her one-of-a-kind multi-octave vocal range and her inspirational messages.
2. A long-time favorite with gospel music lovers, the multiple GRAMMY®, Stellar and GMA Dove Award-winner also is wowing audiences in contemporary music venues, and remains a legendary influence on a diverse range of female artists from Beyoncé and Mariah Carey, to Mary J. Blige, Faith Evans and Missy Elliott.
3. Clark Sheard continues her extraordinary musical journey with the release of her highly anticipated sixth solo album, Destined to Win. The CD marks a new direction for the artist, aimed at both feeding the faithful and expanding the reach of her music and message of hope and encouragement to further connect with new and broader audiences beyond the gospel music and church communities.
4. A vocalist, songwriter, entrepreneur, wife and mother, Clark Sheard is a part of a musical dynasty.
5. She is a daughter of pioneering gospel choir director and gospel music icon Dr. Mattie Moss Clark.
6. She is a member of the legendary gospel group, The Clark Sisters.
7. She is also a mother of gospel superstar Kierra Sheard.
8. She is also a mother to multitalented musician and producer J Drew Sheard II.
9. She also is a partner in ministry with her husband, Bishop J. Drew Sheard, Pastor of Greater Emmanuel Institutional Church of God in Christ in Detroit, MI, where she serves as First Lady.
10. In addition, they are partners in their family-owned label, Karew Records, which they established in 2009.
11. The label's music is distributed by Motown Gospel and Entertainment One Music.
12. Karew's first release was Clark Sheard's All in One (2010), her GRAMMY-nominated urban-style gospel CD which also garnered her a Stellar Award win for Best Female Vocalist, followed by The Clark Sisters' Family Christmas (2010) and Kierra Sheard's fourth and fifth albums, Free (2011) and Graceland (2014).
13. The family was also the subject of BET's docu-drama series, The Sheards.
14. The Sheards premiered on the BET's network on April 7, 2013.
15. Music has always been a part of Clark Sheard's family life. Mattie Moss Clark formed her five daughters into the Clark Sisters when Karen was barely a teenager.
16. In 1973, they recorded their first album, Jesus Has A Lot to Give.
17. In 1983, their signature song, "You Brought the Sunshine," from the album of the same name, became a smash hit-as popular on dance floors as in churches.
18. Over the years, the sisters have recorded 20 albums, including GMA Dove Award-winner and GRAMMY® Award-nominated Heart and Soul (1987) and GRAMMY® Award-nominated Conqueror (1988) and Sincerely (1983), while crafting enduring gospel anthems such as "Endow Me," "Pray for the USA," "Name It Claim It" and "Is My Living in Vain?"
19. In 1997, Clark Sheard launched a solo career with Finally Karen on Island/Def Jam. An instant hit, it sold nearly half a million copies, garnered four Stellar Awards (Female Vocalist of the Year, Contemporary Female Vocalist of the Year, Music Video of the Year, and Best Children's Performance for "Will of God, featuring daughter Kierra Sheard), a Soul Train Lady of Soul Award for Best Female Vocalist, and a GRAMMY® nomination.
20. Clark Sheard continued her solo career with other hit CDs, including 2nd Chance (Elektra, 2002), The Heavens Are Telling (Elektra, 2003), the GMA Dove Award winner, It's Not Over (Word Records, 2006) and her award-winning Karew Records release All in One (2010).
21. A decade later, she reunited with her sisters for their #1 comeback CD, Live...One Last Time (EMI Gospel), for which the Clark Sisters won the 2008 GRAMMY® Award for Best Gospel Album.
22. They won a second GRAMMY® for Best Gospel Performance for "Blessed and Highly Favored," the lead single from that album.
23. Clark Sheard, who wrote and led the song, won a third GRAMMY® that year for Best Gospel Song (a writer's award).
24. The Clark Sisters also won four Stellar Awards for the album, including Artist of the Year and CD of the Year. "Blessed and Highly Favored" was as popular with record-buying audiences as it was with music critics. The song, shot to #1 on Billboard's Hot Gospel Songs chart, where it remained for seven weeks.
25. In 2010, Clark Sheard stepped away from her solo work to record "Wait On The Lord," a duet with Donnie McClurkin from his album, We Are All One.
26. The record with Donnie McClurkin won a GRAMMY® Award for Best Gospel Performance, raising Clark Sheard's GRAMMY® Award total to four.
27. That year she also received a GMA Dove Award for Special Event Album of the year for her performance on Oh Happy Day and a Stellar Award for Special Event CD of the Year for her performance on A Tribute to Maze.
28. At the 2012 BMI Urban Music Awards, she gave one of the evening's most memorable performances in a tribute to Mariah Carey.
29. Clark Sheard is expanding her horizons in new directions. In her newest venture, she is working toward the upcoming release of a clothing line, beginning with her dress line.
30. Most important to her, she continues to travel the country, spreading her message of hope and encouragement as both a singer and a speaker in a variety of venues.
31. Karen Clark-Sheard is an American gospel four-time Grammy Award winning singer, musician, and songwriter.
32. She is the youngest daughter of pioneering gospel choral director Mattie Moss Clark.
33. After her debut album success and much touring, Sheard was hospitalized in 2001 after one of her blood vessels burst during a minor surgery, resulting in doctors giving her a 2% chance of survival.
34. Her testimony inspired the title name for her long-awaited sophomore project, Second Chance released in 2002, featuring a "Secret Place" - which is now considered a classic amongst fans.
35. Sheard recorded two more live albums, including The Heavens Are Telling and It's Not Over (which featured some studio recordings), before releasing All in One, Sheard's first all-studio-recorded album in 13 years.
36. Sheard released her latest single "Sunday A.M" in 2014, which is nominated for the Best Gospel Song in the 57th Aunnal Grammys.
37. She has five older siblings : Leo, Jacky Clark Chisholm, Denise Clark-Bradford, Elbernita "Twinkie" Clark, and Dorinda Clark Cole.
38. On June 16, 1984, Karen Clark wed John Drew Sheard, a minister.
39. Together they have 2 children: Kierra (1987), who is also a gospel recording artist, and John Drew Sheard II (1989), a young musician and up-and-coming producer.
40. Singers Mariah Carey, Faith Evans, Coko of SWV, Jovan Lacroix, Blu Cantrell, Lil' Mo, Missy Elliott, and Fantasia all count Karen Clark Sheard as one of their vocal influences.
41. After Yolanda Adams, Karen Clark Sheard became the 2nd gospel artist to sign to Elektra Records. She released her Elektra debut album 2nd Chance in 2002 (so named because of the "second chance" she was given by God after her near-death experience - which is referenced in her daughter Kierra's song "You Don't Know")
42. The 2003 followup The Heavens Are Telling fared well, but came at an awkward time when Elektra Records was being dissolved into Atlantic Records and so failed to match the commercial success of Sheard's previous albums, peaking a whole 106 places below 2nd Chance at #188 on the U.S. Billboard 200 - though it managed to reach a respectable #44 on the U.S. Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, a high #3 on the U.S. Billboard Gospel Albums chart and was her first album to chart on the U.S. Billboard Christian Albums chart, where it peaked at #11.
43. In 2005, after a bidding war with several labels, Sheard finally signed with Word Records and issued It's Not Over, (Originally Finally Karen 2: There's Something About Worship). the following year.
44. Most of It's Not Over was recorded live in 2005 at Karen's home church in Detroit, Michigan while the last three tracks were studio-recorded.
45. It was Sheard's first solo album not to feature guest vocals from her daughter (Kierra Sheard) and was the first to include production from Israel Houghton - who handled the majority of the project.
46. As the songwriter, on February 10, 2008, Sheard won the Grammy Award for Best Gospel Song for "Blessed & Highly Favored" sung by The Clark Sisters.
47. The Clark Sisters' Christmas album - which was released in October 2009 - was the first project to be released from Karew Records.
48. On January 31, 2010, Karen won the Grammy Award for Best Gospel Performance for Wait on the Lord which she was featured with Donnie McClurkin.
49. On April 6, 2010, Sheard released her fifth album (and first on her newly founded own record label - Karew Records) titled All in One, which features additional vocals from her daughter Kierra Sheard, son J. Drew Sheard II, sister Dorinda Clark Cole, niece Angel Chisholm and cousin J. Moss.
50. Though her first all-studio-recorded album since her 2002 release 2nd Chance, All in One managed to debut and peak at #98 on the U.S. Billboard 200 (her second highest charting on that chart to date) and #3 on the U.S. Billboard Gospel Albums chart, while the album's lead single - "Prayed Up" - peaked at #9 and stayed over 22 weeks on the U.S. Billboard Hot Gospel Songs chart.
Source: facebook.com/officialkcs, Wikipedia.org
