DONALD LAWRENCE & CO. THE LAW OF CONFESSION PART 1 Grammy-winning producer, composer and recording artist Donald Lawrence is one of the most influential figures in modern gospel music. After a stint as music director for soul legend Stephanie Mills, Lawrence made a splash in the gospel world by reshaping the regional Tri-City Singers in the 1990s and transforming them into an internationally acclaimed choir. As a producer, Lawrence has collaborated with artists as diverse as Mary J.… DONALD LAWRENCE & CO. THE LAW OF CONFESSION PART 1 Grammy-winning producer, composer and recording artist Donald Lawrence is one of the most influential figures in modern gospel music. After a stint as music director for soul legend Stephanie Mills, Lawrence made a splash in the gospel world by reshaping the regional Tri-City Singers in the 1990s and transforming them into an internationally acclaimed choir. As a producer, Lawrence has collaborated with artists as diverse as Mary J. Blige and jazz pianist Ramsey Lewis, Hezekiah Walker and the legendary Clark Sisters. Now, Lawrence is producing himself again (along with Daniel Weatherspoon) for his sophomore solo CD The Law of Confession Part 1 (Quiet Water/ Zomba Gospel). Inspired by the forthcoming book “The Law of Confession” by Bill Winston (Lawrence’s pastor at Chicago’s Living Word Christian Center), Lawrence has crafted an epic recording that revolves around a simple Biblical tenet. “A law is simply a principle, based on the predictable consequence of an act,” Lawrence says. “Confession in the Greek language is homo-logeo which means to say what has been said. There is a spiritual law for confession: you just say what God has already said…`Speak The Word.’” Lawrence and his ten-plus member backing ensemble, The Co. (which backed him on his Grammy-nominated 2004 I Speak Life solo CD debut), create a warmly engaging atmosphere on this stellar project. “I picked lead singers based on the feel and color of the song,” he opines. “Since I’ve worked with so many singers and I believe some of the best singers on this planet – I’m extremely picky when it comes to lead vocals. They must have a lot of heart!” The new incarnation of The Co. features such notables as Dewayne Woods (who won the Stellar Award for Best New Artist of the Year in 2008 following his smash hit “Let Go, Let God”), the effervescent Kim McFarland-Anderson, the dynamic Jason Nelson and Latrice Pace of the Anointed Pace Sisters. The group is rounded out with Lisa Jones, Tobbi White-Darks, Tommie White, Dawn Jordan, Blanche McAllister-Dykes, Anita Wilson, Michael Smith, and Floyd Wilkinson.
