BIGSONG:
Contemporary gospel singer Tamela Mann is known for her strong and powerful soprano singing voice. Beginning her professional life as a member of Kirk Franklin’s vocal stable, she acted in Tyler Perry projects, including starring as Cora on TV’s Meet the Browns, while embarking on a solo singing career. She updated the faith-based gospel sound established on 2005’s Gotta Keep Movin’ with contemporary R&B touches on 2009’s The Master Plan, then hit a career-high number 14 on the Billboard 200 with the gospel number one Best Days in 2012. Her fifth solo album, 2021’s Overcomer, included appearances by the likes of Franklin, Wyclef Jean, and Todd Dulaney.
Born on June 9, 1966 in Fort Worth, Texas, the youngest of 14 children, Mann’s childhood was centered by the presence of the Church of God in Christ (where her mother often served as psalmist). She was singing in the church’s adult choir by the time she was 12, often as a soloist, and continued singing in choirs throughout high school. Her professional singing career began in the ’90s, when she joined Kirk Franklin & the Family’s gospel organization and eventually was spotlighted on several tracks.
The Live Experience
After she left Franklin’s organization, Mann’s acting career began with a role in David E. Talbert’s He Say…She Say…But What Does God Say?, a gospel musical. Mann moved on to play the character Cora Simmons in several Tyler Perry stage, film, and television projects, including I Can Do Bad All by Myself, Diary of a Mad Black Woman, and Meet the Browns, the last of which developed into a television series that featured her and husband, David Mann. Busy as she was, Mann established a solo career with the gospel album Gotta Keep Movin’ in 2005 and the concert audio/video release The Live Experience in 2007 before adding stronger elements of contemporary R&B to her sound on 2009’s The Master Plan. Released in 2012, Best Days debuted at number one on the Billboard Top Gospel Albums chart and peaked at number 14 on the Billboard 200. One of its singles, “Take Me to the King,” earned her a Grammy nomination for Best Gospel/Contemporary Christian Music Performance.
One Way
After the conclusion of the second season of her comedic series Mann and Wife, Mann delivered her fourth solo album, 2016’s One Way, another gospel-chart topper. Between roles on the stage and in TV movies, she released a duets album with Mann, Us Against the World: The Love Project, in 2019 and joined the cast of the series Tyler Perry’s Assisted Living (as Cora) in 2020. With all-star guests including Franklin and Wyclef Jean, the solo album Overcomer saw release in mid-2021.
