10 tips for choosing tracks for your praise team

1. Know the correct name of the song and the original artist.
Nothing is worse than buying a track and discovering you bought the wrong one. (Yes, I've done this.) Make sure you know who sings the song.

2. Read the description of what's on the cd. 
The cover will state the keys or ranges of the songs and the back cover will state whether there are background vocals or not. I tend to lean toward tracks that have background vocals for all keys.

3. Find out how long the track is. 
I had to retire a song simply because I didn't realize that the song was over 7 minutes long when I bought it. I don't know about you, but that's a LONG time for one song. Determine if there's a good place to stop the track if you don't want to sing the track in its entirety.

4. Listen to the track before you purchase it. 
This is especially crucial if you don't know what key you need. When I purchase online, they don't play the entire song, but will have a snippet of the original key (usually.) Some songs modulate so know the song before you buy it!

5. Be aware of the keys.
Most tracks have a high, original, and low key, but not all. Sometimes that's still not helpful. I don't know what key we sing any of our songs, but I do have a basic foundation in reading music. If you don't - ask someone who does to help you before you buy the track.

Here's the best tip I can offer you: Make sure the track has the song in the original key. If you know the original key is too high for you, purchase a track that has a 1/2 step down. For example, if the song is sung in D, buy D flat (or C#) if that's an option. I feel like a 1/2 step down is safe. If they don't have D flat, choose C. It's tricky, so again, ask someone who knows or reads music to help.

6. Buy more than 1 if you love the track.
I don't think you can burn them, so go ahead buy a second cd if you love the track. CDs get knicked easily so it's good to have a back-up before it goes bad.

7. In terms of gospel, I love Soulful Sounds tracks. 
The keys they offer generally work for my team. I've purchased Daywind, Mastertrax, and Ultimate tracks too - all solid, but Soulful Sounds seems to be a good fit for me.

8. You can buy some tracks on iTunes... (mostly solos)
Just remember, if it's only on your phone, you'll need to download it to a CD or save to a computer so the team can sing it in your absence. Also, I bought a track on my iPhone 7 and forgot that you need a special jack to plug and play via stereo system. (Kind of embarrassing!) You need to have the proper equipment/set up to get things from your phone to the sound system.

9. Karaoke cds can be hit or miss.
Some companies offer karaoke cds which have a mix of songs on them. You get a lot of songs, but only in one key and it may not have background vocals. Buy at your own risk.

10. Buy a few at a time.
I suggest that you buy more than 1 track at a time. Sometimes you'll find that the one track you thought would be awesome doesn't work for whatever reason. Better to buy 2 or 3 for that reason alone. You'll use them.

Back to tracks

Just when I thought we had our music situation under control, it looks like we're back to square one. No worries. That's what tracks are for.

I just ordered a gang from Whitmore Music - my favorite place to buy accompaniment cds due to the great selection and quick service.

Here's what we'll be singing in the near future:
All Of My Help - Geoffrey Golden
You're All I Need - Hezekiah Walker
Ten Thousand Reasons (Bless The Lord) - Matt Redman
Awesome God - Maurette Brown-Clark
Amazing - Ricky Dillard & New G
Agnus Dei / Worthy - Third Day
It Is To You - Byron Cage
God Is Great - Ricky Dillard & New G
The Anthem - Todd Dulaney

As you can see have a mix of newer and older songs. I find that we tend to get more participation with gospel so I've ordered accordingly.

I predict that among these songs 10,000 Reasons will be our next big hit.

Blessings

Tips for worship team members part 2

Here's a recap of the final tips for worship members (part 2). If you missed part 1 click here.

6. Treat every second of rehearsal time like it's golden. (Rehearsal time is for rehearsal; not set up, not catching up, etc.)
7. Be spiritually prepared.
8. Don't copy the bad habits of others.
9. Follow instructions well.
10. Know the songs well.

To read more about year tip, check it out here on innovativecwc's blog.

Blessings

Why Generation X doesn't go to church

In a candid conversation yesterday with some of my peeps, here's what I learned about why they don't go to church.

1.Church does not fit into their schedule and culture. It's not only that church is too long, but you can't multi-task at church. It's rude to check your phone and it takes out a big chunk of your day. There's Sunday School, and morning worship, and eating/fellowship. All of this is seen as church and for most black folks, this is an all-day event.

2. Church people are mean. They have bad attitudes and generally do not seem happy. They are unpleasant to be around. They judge all the time and don't get to know people. They don't treat others the way they'd like to be treated. Sure they don't steal or kill, but they don't treat others right. Church people are very hypocritical!

3. Church is not welcoming. Someone is always holding a seat for someone who isn't there and  guests have to find seating elsewhere, or stand, or go to the overflow room (also known as I could've stayed at home and watched church on TV). Would you come back to someone's home if they didn't offer you a seat and you knew they would be there for a while? Someone also expressed that church is exclusionary. If you don't fit a certain mold, you feel out of place.

4. Church people are crazy. God said this. God said that. Don't date - God told me you would be my wife. Wait, what? I didn't get any of these memos. My peeps were extremely leery of all of these specific messages. Basically, when did God become so talkative about so many interpersonal topics?

Now here's the kicker - all of these people believe in Jesus Christ and what He came to do. What I heard from the conversation is that their experience with church does not reflect their values and what they believe the message of Christ is.

It's easy to say "get over it - someone didn't offer you seat," or "you can't make everyone act right" but can you see the problem here? It's not Jesus that's the problem, it's His people. We are the problem!

We are the modern day Pharisees! We think we know so much about God and His word, yet still can't seem to make church a pleasant, welcoming, accepting community where people come drink of the waters of life. And the bad part is that we refuse to change. We refuse to make church shorter, we look down on preachers who make the messages more simple (saying they're not teaching people nothing because it's not fire and brimstone), we don't announce to our congregations not to hold seats, or teach people to be careful and wise about sharing prophesy. Yet we think folks should just "come to church" because its the right thing to do.

Newflash: people don't go to places where they don't feel wanted. They don't go to places that seem laborious. They don't go to places where people who have attitudes go. They don't go to places where the people are pretentious.

My experience as a lifetime church-goer is that we'd rather place all of the burden on the non-church-goer than to place the burden on us to change. Until we change, we can expect for Generation X, Y, and all that follow to remain non-church-goers.

6 things to consider when leading P&W

I strongly believe that one needs to prepare for praise and worship similar to how one would prepare to make an important presentation at work. Even though we want the Holy Spirit to bless and annoint us, we need to do our part to help increase the likelihood for success.

Besides choosing your song list, here are 6 more things you should think about when preparing to lead P&W or are singing at an event.

What's the occasion?
Is it a special service? Is there a special theme? This might influence your song list.

What is the congregation/audience like?
This is closely related to the first question. If you're singing at the senior's service, you might pick songs you believe an elderly crowd would enjoy. 

How is the stage set up? 
Are there enough mics for your team members? Is it easy to see the musicians? Are there trip hazards like long cords or speakers in the way? Is there a certain way you need to go to get to the stage?

When are you expected to sing?
Always arrive to a service or event early. You might get called earlier than you were originally told. I think its the Christian-like thing to do to be gracious enough to go early if asked. Conversely, always stay a while after you sing. It will appear arrogant to leave as soon as you're done.

How much time do you have?
Adjust your song list accordingly. It's fine if the spirit hits and you're in your own church and have freedom to go over your allotted time. As much as possible do what you're supposed to do in the time you're supposed to do it in.

What could you easily sing if there are technical difficulties?
What songs are popular or easy to sing if you had to use an alternate musician? What songs are easy to sing if your lyrics can't be displayed for the audience? Can you start a song in the right key if you can't hear the music? Have at least one song in your arsenal for this occasion.

Remember: planning is more than half the battle!

Vanilla and Rocky Road

Scene from Blackish where the choir sings How Sweet Is (To be Loved by You). Hilarious!

A post I read by Carlos Whittaker affirmed some thoughts that have been taking roots in me.

Don't Dilute the Flava God Made Ya has nothing to do with praise and worship specifically. It's more about being your authentic self and not changing that authenticity when you don't fit into the mold of what others might be looking for.

At this point in my journey, I'm not this super verbal, entertainer type worship leader. I know we all like charismatic worship leaders, but I don't really do the whole "hype em up" thing. I could get up there and scream "When I think of the goodness of Jesus...", but that's just not me. I like to worship, I like to sing, so I worship and I sing. I used to be a cheerleader, but because worship is kind of my thing, I don't feel led to call up that skill set. Sure I encourage people to press in, but you're not gonna get a lot of talking out of me. God hasn't given me a word to share with His people so I'm not gonna stand up in front of a congregation and just start talking prophetically or even matter-of-factly. It's just not me.

I think Carlos's post drives home that whatever God made you to be, be it. Everyone won't like your style, but someone will.

The diversity of the church amazes me. There is room for vanilla, Rocky Road, and every other flavor imaginable.

Blessings

A song to lift your spirit during turbulent times

 

Today I am so saddened by all of the violence that's been going on. Not that I haven't been previously, but when a black men gets shot at point blank in his car with his loved ones inside (one of which was a child) and I see the video of the aftermath, my heart breaks. My God, are we (black people) not human? Do we not deserve a chance to take out our license like we've been asked to do without being shot? And now the police being killed in Dallas! Jesus take the wheel, like frfr!

What's worse is that people are so critical of each other at this time. We criticize the #blacklivesmatter movement. We criticize when someone paints a mural of the deceased. We criticize when celebrities speak out about social injustice. We criticize the NAACP for not doing enough. Tensions are high on every level.

If you are like me, your spirit is impacted by the loss of lives that seem senseless and is crying out to God for help. I know personally that music helps me get through things. So today I offer you the song that's been on repeat for me for about a week now, Baba Oh, from Jonathan Nelson's latest project.

"Open the floodgates in abundance and cause your rain to fall on me"

It drives me crazy when...

I was reading a gospel artist's post on Instagram and got irritated. (One reason why I'm not on FB - more dummies sharing their dumb posts.) It drives me crazy when people think that there's only one "sound of heaven" and that songs that sound more secular aren't God-given. Please get off of your soap box!

People said the same thing when BeBe and CeCe Winans got big. "You can't tell if they're singing about God or a relationship between a couple." They said the same thing about Kirk Franklin and God's Property. They said the same thing about Mary Mary. However, when people who don't have a big name in the industry put out their music somehow "it's not the sound."

Us church people really rip into others far too much, particularly black church people.

I may not know everything about worship, but I know that this "sound" is not this big deal in other cultures. And it's not even about a "sound" per se, it's people's opinions about what is and is not acceptable as praise or worship. All throughout Africa, people dance regularly at the drop of a hat - even to praise music. Hillsong Young & Free sounds so of the moment, if you weren't listening to the words you think it was the next pop artist on the radio. And I personally loved 5 Seconds by Canton Jones. I was two-stepping to that joint until they stopped playing it!

Look people, let's stop talking about the "sound of heaven" as if we've been there! Yes, there are songs that are anointed, but our God is bigger than our sphere of thinking. I think that as long as the message is right, the genre/artist/expression is not as important.

Blessings

The simple is often the profound

I recently took out a book from my public library called Take Your Soul to Work. When I gave it some thought, I realized that not only am I leader at my church, but also within my church district, and at work. (No wonder I get burned out rather easily at times!) I like devotions and I figure I could definitely use some soul-searching when it comes to my day job.

One of the first activities was to write a prayer about your leadership no longer than 3 sentences long. I have to say, after writing my brief prayer, I was amazed at how profound it was.

Lord,
Let me lead with others in mind - with clarity and inspiration. Give me insight on how to face and overcome challenges; do not let me be overwhelmed or exceedingly stressed. Teach me how to become a better leader.

Honestly folks, I don't think I've ever prayed anything this good ever. Not even in lengthier prayers. This is how I want to lead, not only at work, but in every area of my life. Taking a few minutes to think about it and pray about it can only help.

Blessings

My mic sounds nice check 2

A few weeks ago I wrote about the lousy PA system we have. To reiterate how lousy it is, my dad jimmy rigged one of our mics with tissue so that the inner cord wouldn't make so much noise whenever somone moved the mic. (Yikes!)

In an effort to upgrade us, I did some research and ended up buying a Shure SM58. I was all excited because I just knew this would be the end of our technical problems. And then I found out that the amp we're using for vocals is actually a guitar amp. No wonder the sound isn't great! Now we have these nice mics and still sound like crap.

Clearly, this is why churches have technical staff who specialize in AV. Small churches like mine don't have this luxury. I have no idea what we need - other than Jesus. I have a friend who DJs, so now I'm gonna ask him for his advise cuz we gotta get our stuff together.

I decree that in 2017, I will not be posting about our mic system. In Jesus's name!

3 pointers for those not on the praise team

I'm totally convinced that our district congregation is wack. Yep, I said it.

Recently we had a great P&W set. (Yes I'm tooting my horn - beep, beep!) Definitely the best of our last three, but somehow there was still some wackness going on within the congregation.

I'm not gonna even waste my brain cells trying to figure out why the audience was half dead, but here are some pointers for all of you who are not on a praise team.

• The best way to kill a service is by not participating. You don't have to be able to sing to make a joyful noise. You can lift your hands, wave your hands, sway, dance, clap, smile, etc. These are all ways to participate. There's nothing worse than looking at an audience of blank or angry faces.
• When you're excited about something, you don't sit all the way in the back. You don't have to be on the front row, but sitting on the periphery is a sign of where you are mentally and dare I say spiritually.
• Get over yourself and your issues. You are not responding to the praise team, per se. Praise and worship is your time to connect with God. Quit looking at the praise leaders as performers or as people in general who you may or may not even like. It's not about the praise team. It is about your response to God. We are mere conduits/facilitators.

There was a really popular secular song out a few years ago that had this really catchy line: "if you ain't got no money take your broke $%% home!"  Basically, don't try to kick it if you can't afford it. You'll kill everyone's good time trying to hang out when you're worried about keeping it cheap. That's kinda how I feel about P&W these days. If you didn't come to church to praise God maybe you should just stay home. (And please don't start thinking "well, sometimes people just need to hear a word or get prayer.") We need to quit coming to church to get something. This is not a welfare line.

So yeah...it's not always the praise team or the soloist or the preacher; it's you.

Running on E

Did you miss me while I was gone? I usually post every week, but I didn't have much to say for the month of February so I took a break.

I also am usually very upbeat, but for whatever reason, I'm not feeling very chipper these days.

In short, I think I need a Sabbatical. I won't spend a lot of time explaining everything in great detail, but I bet if you're following this blog you probably feel the same way at times. If you are like me, you wear multiple roles at your church. (#smallchurchproblems) I called myself stepping back from the youth leader role, but because our national youth convention isn't in the U.S., I've been thrust back into organizing. Then, besides leading the worship team, I also sing a solo most Sundays. Finally, I agreed to help with our district praise team this year and things are really about to pick up.

Sometimes when you have a lot of responsibilities you start to resent being involved so much. Not to mention I work full time, am a mom, and wife. I have friends, but honestly I can go well over a month without seeing them. I feel like I'm running on empty here. And not in the physically exerted way; in the personal/spiritual way. And I don't mean in the religious sense. It's more like I'm doing so much for everything and everyone and I'm not replenishing myself.  I'd like to chalk it all up to the winter blues, but it's almost spring. (I say that while it's snowing at this very moment and it's March.)

So that's where I am. Stick with me as I try to bounce back.

The conference phenomenon

Today we are gonna talk about something that I'll call the conference phenomenon. You know what I'm talking about...

There is a sense of expectancy when we meet at a conference. We are looking for a great word, a great worship experience, a refreshing, anointing, vibrancy, a move of the Holy Ghost. We come on time. Shoot, we even come early for pre-service prayer. We sing in the audience like we're part of the choir. We take notes. We come up for prayer. We are ready, even anxious or excited for God to speak directly to us. We can't wait to hear from Dr./Bishop/Prophet/Apostle ________. We buy the cd, dvd, download the podcast. We replay it hoping to keep the fire kindled.

But when we go to our individual church on a typical Sunday - dead.

What does it mean when we can praise collectively at another venue, but not at our individual churches?

As a praise leader, we are part cheerleader, part minister, part entertainment. But as congregants, we need to stop expecting the praise leader to be all things every Sunday. Are you coming to church on Sunday with the same expectancy, excitement, and praise that you came to that conference/women's retreat/concert with? If not, you are part of the problem.

What I think I know about worship is that God desires us to experience His presence at our regular Sunday services. (And even beyond that!) A move of God is not just for special events. Not just when that major recording artists performs. Not just when the bishop is in town. We need to bring that same expectancy and readiness with us each Sunday, otherwise what's the point?

Blessings

Great Expectations

We had an awesome service the last Sunday in December. I expected that the first service of 2016 would be great as well... Well, that didn't happen.

• We started church ~ 15 minutes late. Strike one. 
• I ended up leading praise and worship (P&W) by myself, unless you count the 30 seconds my dad, the deacon, was up there before he realized he had other stuff to do and left. Strike 2. 
• People were really late and kind of dead despite my best cheer-leading effort. Strike 3. 
• The kids (including mine) weren't on their best behavior. Strike 4 - This isn't baseball; I have more strikes.
• I didn't follow the message well because I had to step out of the sanctuary with my kid and never was able to catch up or because the message wasn't very linear. Strike 5
• Finally, we ended service later than usual due to starting late, long-winded announcements, and having communion. I typically have no problems with a 2 hour service, but because everything seemed so disjointed and flat to me, I was irritated at the time. Strike 6.

So there. 6 strikes = 2 outs. Good grief!

I suppose I shouldn't be shocked. We had a great service the previous week and I attended my monthly women's prayer and it was great too. 2 people want to join the praise team now. I even wrote a song Dec. 31 after a very uninspired few months. I guess the devil couldn't wait to discourage me.

If I were new to Christ, Sunday might have been my last day at my church for a while, but I understand that we cannot be moved by what we see or even what is. I declare that what happened this Sunday is not going to be indicative of the rest of the year. As Tasha Cobbs reminded us last night on the iLead escape, according to Mark 11:23-24, "We shall have whatever we say."

Songs for Thanksgiving

I have to admit, Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. No presents to buy. All of your favorite comfort foods. Spending time with family and loved ones. Watching/playing football. Going to the movies. Being thankful for another year. This is a holiday everyone can get behind.

Here's a short list of songs for you to consider this month as we celebrate all of the blessings God has given us.

Grateful - Hezekiah Walker - My favorite song on this list. Brings me to tears almost every time.
Oh Give Thanks - Judith McAllister

I Just Want to Praise You - Maurette Clark Brown
Thank You Lord for All You've Done For Me - Walter Hawkins
I Just Want to Thank You Lord - Everybody and their momma :)
And one I just stumbled upon that is really nice... Thank You Jesus - Hillsong

NLC's sunrise service on the beach

NLC is my "other" church

This Saturday is New Life Covenant's Sunrise Service on the lovely shore of Lake Michigan in Chicago. (6300 S. Lake Shore Drive) I went last year and it was great.

Get there by or before 4:00 a.m. if you want to find parking. NLC doesn't mess around. These are some church-going folks!

Check out the church's calendar for more info.

Smokie Norful - No One Else

Here's a great upbeat praise song to add to your set. Leggo Chicago!

And it don't stop

A big shout out to all my new subscribers who signed up for the blog at the #UPCAG conference!

Now let's get started.

What did I learn about praise and worship (P&W) while attending our national conference? The beat goes on. (In my Whispers voice - I added the link for the sake of my "new school" readers.)

People don't show, the beat goes on.
Tracks don't play, the beat goes on.
Mics don't work, the beat goes on.
Attitudes flare, the beat goes on.


Bottom line: it don't stop!

Our special musical guest had the worst time with audio, but she pressed through with grace. The mics weren't to our musical director's likings, but everyone kept going. There were people who normally sing on the praise team who didn't (myself included), yet there was still a praise team.

Regardless of the of the obstacles we might encounter, we have to keep going when we are leading others into worship because whether we do or we don't, the "show" will still go on. As praise team leaders/members, it's our job to set the atmosphere and we can't do that if we decide to quit or have an attitude because things don't go right. Let's continue to press toward the mark!

Blessings

Going Hillsong

Since my post about the Hillsong movie seems to be pretty popular, I thought maybe I'd do a little series related to the Hillsong phenomenon.

To be honest, I know the name Hillsong, I know a little about the churches, and that the worship band is extremely popular, but I couldn't name one of their songs. Nonetheless, I'm very excited about their upcoming movie Let Hope Rise because I think its wonderful that a documentary about a worship team with a great message is going mainstream.

Surely, Hillsong has been mainstream for years and I have been a bit oblivious to it. I decided to listen to some of their songs just because I should, as a worship leader.

Their vibe is reminiscent to Coldplay. It sounds like liquid gold. It's contemporary, but not especially trendy. It's lyric-forward. It's worship-forward. It's rock-star-like without the rock-star showiness. It seems sincere and humble. I kinda love them.

Even though I love what I've heard, it's hard for me to picture my uber urban congregation embracing the songs wholeheartedly without force-feeding it. Our congregation, when they listen to Christian music at large, primarily listens to gospel. But maybe this is just my brain going straight to all the reasons why something won't work.

Yes, that's exactly what just happened!

I think what I'll do is find a song that I think will work and give it a try. I'll update you guys later in the year on this.

Blessings!

P.S. Before anyone thinks or says it, I'd just like to add that there are a lot of people who attend small churches, living in their own niche who are not up on a lot of music in the Christian genre. Conversely, there are a lot of people who attend large/popular churches, living in their own niche who are not up on Gospel music. It's all love! We are one!