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We are blessed to have with us today Karen Gibson, the founder and conductor of the acclaimed British Gospel choir The Kingdom Choir; greetings and salutations, Karen! Before we meander down the musical Q&A pathway, how is the freshly-minted autumn of 2023 treating you?
Autumn is going just fine, thank-you! I’m always sad to see the summer go, but we’ve got some nice things coming up that will make up for the darkening days.
Major congratulations on the wide release of the beautiful new single from The Kingdom Choir, Be Alright! What inspired this gem of a tune?
Thank-you!
Be Alright, was a written in the aftermath of the death of George Floyd (as well as others), and the unrest in the months following. Jake Isaac, Sharlene-Monique and I felt that we wanted to write a song that addressed issues such as racial justice or gender inequalities – any inequality in general, really.
You wrote Be Alright alongside Jake Isaac, Sharlene-Monique and Jonathan Owusu-Yianomah. What was that collaboration process like among the four of you?
Jake is an old friend of the choir and an immense talent. As we have collaborated with him before, we approached him to write with us as we had some ideas about things that we wanted to speak about in a creative way. Sharlene-Monique, Jake and I actually met over zoom to write the song, in the end. In fact, we met a few times and as the song developed the themes resonated with us more and more, so we ran with it.
We took a rough draft of the track to Jonathan Owusu-Yianomah, another member of the choir who also writes and produces for us. Through the production, Jonathan completed the feel and sound of the final version.
Can you introduce our ever-inquisitive readers to the members of The Kingdom Choir?
I would love to, as they are honestly such a wonderful group people. However there are about 40 of us, so I’m not sure if you have time to get to know everybody individually right away. We are a collection of people who initially came from churches, mostly in the south London. There have been a few changes since those early days, and members of the choir now include peers from the gospel scene, personal friends, young singers that I have worked with, and even some ex-students. Our age range is from the mid-20s to early 60s. We love to sing, we love to laugh, and we love to connect with people!
On the heels of the release of the inspirational new single Be Alright, The Kingdom Choir is set to headline a special sold-out 30th anniversary concert at London’s Queen Elizabeth Hall on November 30; congratulations! Can you talk about what this particular performance means to you and the members of The Kingdom Choir?
Our 30th anniversary concert is a huge deal for us. We are working hard and are quietly confident that it will be a beautiful time of celebration. We will of course be singing some of our most popular songs including some of our new music. We also have some special surprises, but they will have to remain a secret until the day of the show. We hope our fans will love the journey that we take them on, telling them a bit of our story, and showing a big part of our hearts.
Thirty years can seem like a long time, but it goes by in an instant. Did you think when you founded The Kingdom Choir in 1993 that the group would be around and still vital all of these years later?
Wow hasn’t time flown! It is incredible to me to think that we have been going so long. I must admit that I would never have thought that we would be going 30 years later, and have had all the wonderful experiences that we have been privileged to have.
The choir kind of began organically, and it was really driven along by the passion that we had for singing together. I think now we are much more purposeful, and our experiences have taught us how important singing and music is for people generally. We are privileged to be doing what we love doing all these years later.
Along with the upcoming concert performance at London’s Queen Elizabeth Hall, we understand that The Kingdom Choir is also penciled in for a special appearance on December 18! Can you talk a little about this upcoming performance?
Yes, we’re very excited to be performing at Trevor Nelson’s Soul Christmas, live at the Royal Albert Hall. As you know, Trevor is a well-known pioneer for the genres of Soul and RnB and we are honoured to be appearing besides some of the country’s best performers of the music, alongside the incomparable BBC Concert Orchestra. It’s going to be an awesome evening.
What music inspires you, both past and present?
Of course, I love gospel music, old and new, but I have to say that I have been very inspired by the new gospel choirs that have been hitting the mainstream. Kanye West’s Sunday Service Choir blew up just before the pandemic and brought something fresh and new to the world. Their conductor, Jason White, is simply phenomenal. I also absolutely love ‘Joy’ by Pharrell’s Voices of Fire.
Other inspirations range from gospel favourites Andrae Crouch, Kim Burrell, The Winans, Kirk Franklin, Donald Lawrence, The Clarke Sisters, to more contemporary mainstream music such as Stevie Wonder, Chaka Khan, Anderson Paak, Yebba and Lucky Daye.
With such a busy 2023, can you give fans a hint or three as to what’s coming up for The Kingdom Choir in 2024?
We’re thrilled about more headline shows coming up, and possible touring. As always, there are also some things in the pipeline that we can’t talk about yet, but it’s great news that we can’t wait to share on our socials!
Why do you feel that the music of The Kingdom Choir is more popular now than ever before?
It’s been important for the choir to release music with a positive message to counteract the negativity that seems to be around. We know first-hand the power of music to lift the soul and to bring unity, connectivity and hope in very challenging situations. The music speaks to us as well as to our listeners.
At the end of the day, what do you hope listeners walk away with after giving many-a-spin to the amazing The Kingdom Choir single Be Alright?
We want to encourage listeners that even though we might not see it now, troubles won’t last always. The message of this song harks back to the mantra of the 1960s civil rights movement, which tells us that we will overcome and that it will be all right.
LISTEN HERE
