Mandisa

The last time Mandisa released a studio CD, excluding her recent Christmas music interlude, the soulful singer responded to Simon (American Idol) Cowell’s cruel ribbing about her weight troubles with the-looks-aren’t-everything statement, True Beauty. Now, many pounds lighter, Mandisa is celebrating her recent weight loss with Freedom, a mostly joyous collection of songs.

Mandisa makes it perfectly clear she doesn’t take life’s victories for granted with the album opener, “My Deliverer”, when she announces, “You rescued me from all that held me captive.” TV music critics may flippantly laugh at overweight performers and their battles with the bulge, but weight problems are no laughing matter. News reports tell us a high percentage of Americans are much too heavy to be healthy and that our waistlines are expanding every year. So when Mandisa happily says goodbye to her captors in “My Deliverer,” she could, of course, be talking about sin’s bondage in general. But it would be equally appropriate for her to be singing about wishing her extra pounds good riddance, as well. “Freedom Song” builds on the exodus message of “My Deliverer”, but does so in even a more upbeat manner. It opens with a choir singing as Mandisa has church, so to speak, while exclaiming, “Lift your hands up in the air / Shout hallelujah.”

God oftentimes brings us through difficulties so we can help those following along behind us. This is precisely why Mandisa can provide bold encouragement via “Leave It in the Valley” by saying, “I know you’re going through the valley but you’ll be alright.” The song is, indeed, a ‘let go, let God’ moment. “Leave it in the valley tonight,” she later advises.

Although Mandisa delved deeply into the whole topic of self-image with True Beauty, she apparently still has a lot of those kinds of issues on her mind. With “Definition of Me”, for instance, she gets sassy, in an old Destiny’s Child kind of way, to assert emphatically that it is her devotion to Christ, not her looks, that ultimately defines her identity.

Looking at this new release as a whole, in many ways Mandisa details the multifaceted nature of God with these various songs. In addition to being our deliverer, “How Much” reminds us that God is one who loves us more than we can even imagine. Then on “Not Guilty”, a stirring strings and piano ballad, God is portrayed as our attorney; one who declares us innocent before God’s judgment seat. Lastly, “He Is With You” declares that God is our constant companion, and with us through both good times and bad.

Although Freedom includes many decent songs, there isn’t one clear show-stopper, which stands out above the rest. Mandisa sings wonderfully throughout, but she’s just not given many outstanding lyrics to dig her teeth into. It would be an amazing collaboration, for instance, if Mandisa’s voice were matched to Nichole Nordeman’s brand of special musical poetry.

Instead, what we’re left with is a fine voice, singing relatively predictable songs. So while Mandisa most likely has a great album in her, Freedom just isn’t it.

Tagged as: Freedom, Mandisa

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#1 Mandisa “Freedom” reviews | Filipino Christian Blogger Ganns Deen - Your Source for New Christian Music on April 12th, 2009 at 3:37 am

[...] Mandisa on Soul Audio [...]

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