Heather Headley

For Gospel music fans, a Smokie Norful duet is reason enough to be interested in a release by a new artist. Of course, Heather Headley is hardly a ‘new’ artist, even though many fans of Gospel music may have never heard of her – Audience of One is, in fact, Headley’s third major album release, but her first in the Gospel music genre. A multiple award winner for her Broadway and R&B work, this preacher’s kid from Indiana (by way of Trinidad) serves up ten tracks of light pop ballads and lushly orchestrated barn-burners that rarely delve into the funkier R&B of her previous work – while this might disappoint some fans, the uninitiated will never know the difference and will enjoy the album for what it is – a soulful and reverent musical testimony of faith.

Headley is a balladeer in the same league as Yolanda Adams, and glancing at the CD cover, bears an almost shocking physical resemblance to the singer. Like Yolanda, on Audience of One Headley proves that she has an impressive set of pipes and can handle big ballads (of which there are several) and light R&B: as if to prove she can also get down church-style, Headley struts her best Gospel-stuff on “I Know The Lord Will Make a Way,” a track that trades in the lush big production sound for piano, drums, bass and Hammond B3.

Unlike so many Gospel artists that seem desperate to prove they can get down and funky with the best of them, Headley approaches Audience of One from the other side of the equation: having already proved herself to a secular market, she comes to this project seemingly to establish her Christian credentials in a very Adult Contemporary mode. With big, string-heavy arrangements on songs like “I Wish,” “The Power of the Cross,” and “Zion,” gentle ballads like “Simply Redeemed,” and believer-friendly moments like the powerful Hymns Medley (including “I Need Thee Every Hour,” “Tis so Sweet to Trust in Jesus,” and “I’d Rather Have Jesus”), it’s clear that the message from Heather Headley is, “been there, done that – now I want to do this.” The Praise & Worship favorite, “Here I Am to Worship,” serves to cover all bases for those looking for a familiar Sunday morning feeling. The only ‘contemporary’ moments here occur on the duet with Norful (The Commodores’ hit, “Jesus is Love”) and the bouncy, percussive, “Ordinary Me.”

For those looking for a new Gospel Diva (and that term actually is an oxymoron – or should be!) who can deliver smooth soul in a contemporary style and alternately handle power ballads with ease and vocal fluidity, Heather Headley is here – there are even a few moments where she seems to casually throw around Patti LaBelle-style vocal licks without much effort! Although there might not be enough modern beats for those looking for a more urban sound, there’s no denying that Yolanda will be looking over her shoulder if Headley continues to produce Gospel albums. Producer Keith Thomas, who sometimes has a bit of a heavy hand, might have thought about letting Headley let her hair down a bit more often on this project, but this is certainly a strong musical statement by an artist that’s been around the block already but is new to the Gospel music scene.

After listening to Audience of One, fans of Heather Headley’s Broadway stage work will realize that she’s singing about a Lion/King of another kind.

Tagged as: Audience of One, Heather Headley

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