Have you been so unfairly maligned at your office where you have been surrounded by gossip-bait myths?  All day long you try to dart those "I-can't-believe-she-did-that" eyes of your colleagues.  And you could swear you could smell the ink of the imminent pink slip. Wouldn't you wish there was someone who would just enough Godly courage to stand up and defend your innocence?  Or imagine you are at the crossroads of a career decision and you have been seeking the Lord.  Only to find that heaven seem to be so perfectly crusted that there is not even a single crevice of a break through. Wouldn't you wish there was a brother in Christ who would come beside you and say with a prophetic authority, "Don't despair, our God knows what He's doing, let me pray for you."  Listening to Kevin Lemons and Higher Calling is like having not one but a choir of 65 like-minded Christians coming alongside of us in such circumstances and saying, "Brother or sister, you are not alone in your trails.  We stand in solitary with you and let us call on the Lord together."  Naysayers, who say that choir fronted Gospel music is already passé, don't understand the power of united worship.  There is something revolutionary powerful when all of God's children sing in unity calling upon God for his justice, attention and grace.

When "The Declaration" recently debut at number 10 on Billboard's Gospel album chart, it has further caused false clairvoyants who have predicted that choir-fronted Gospel is no longer in vogue to be eating up their own words.  Lemons comes from a long legacy of choir directors: in fact, his grandmother Mrs. Annie Ruth Lemons was the founder of Atlanta Masonic Choir which was organized in 1942 and still exists today.  And Kevin's dad, Wilbert was also an accomplished director with his mother Ann being a powerhouse choir vocalist.  Kevin himself felt God's call into the music ministry in 1996 where he formed his own choir the Higher Calling.  Under Lemons' own leadership, the choir grew from strength to strength as they began touring right across America.  Together Kevin Lemons and Higher Calling released their debut, albeit independently released, "Destined for Greatness."  From which the title cut "Destined for Greatness" was later recorded by Ricky Dillard and New Generation.

"The Declaration" is Lemons and his 65-voice strong choir's sophomore record.  Recorded live at the New Beginning Full Gospel Baptist Church in Georgia, "The Declaration" opens with the finger snapping superbly catchy "Prayer and Faith." Lemons and his team show us what a spiritual force they can be via their united faith-affirming sound.  While the groove gets deeper and funkier with the encouraging "I Will Make It" that features a Shirley Caesar-like female lead who can literally bring the whole ceiling down with her powerhouse delivery.  While Lemons works his vocal magic with the ballad "Oil of the Lord."  This is a gorgeous almost 10-minute piece of worship heaven where we get to taste and see the goodness of the Lord.  And if you are feeling discouraged, just give the title cut "The Declaration" your ear. Coming alongside us with empathy yet with a divine authority, Lemons and his 65-voice choir reminds us rightly that God has so much more in store for us if we step out in faith and just declare his promises.

And if you ever had any reservations that church can be fun, take a listen to "He'll Work It Out." This song is a faith-building foot stomper at its all time high.  Nevertheless, Lemons and Higher Calling are not immune to fillers: "Just Churching in B Flat" and "Declaration (Reprise)" are more extended "praise breaks" or interludes. This puts the album proper only at eight rather than ten songs; a tad on the shorter side in terms of the number of songs.  Despite such a quibble, the value of listening to an album like "The Declaration" is that when we are suffering from the Elijah syndrome of "Woe-is-me-because-I-am-so alone," Lemons and Higher Calling remind us that not only is that not true but there are still may other voices who are willing to stand beside us to help us to call upon the gracious name of the Lord.       

Kevin Lemons and Higher Calling "The Declaration" [VIDEO]