From gospel singer to reality star We want to stop and give a big Happy Birthday to Kierra Sheard!!!
Born in Detroit, Michigan and raised in the suburb of West Bloomfield, Sheard spent her formative years surrounded by the influences of her family, their faith, and their music. At age 6, she began singing in the choir at Greater Emmanuel Institutional Church of God in Christ, pastored by her father Bishop J. Drew Sheard. Even at a young age, Sheard had a preternatural grip on the signature “Clark sound” pioneered by her mother and aunts, executing high and fast melismas, riffs, runs, and deep, throaty growls sometimes referred to as “squalls” (the latter is prominently displayed on “Done Did It”, a traditional gospel leaning track from her album I Owe You).
2008–2009: Bold Right Life
In October 2008, Sheard released her third album, Bold Right Life. The album spawned the two lead singles “Praise Him Now” and “Won’t Hold Back”. Sheard was also featured on what would be the biggest single of her career to date, “God In Me“, from Mary Mary‘s The Sound album.
In January 2009, Sheard appeared at the BMI Trailblazers performing “Jesus Is a Love Song” as a salute to her aunt, Elbernita “Twinkie” Clark.
Sheard released a greatest hits EP entitled KiKi’s Mixtape on September 22, 2009. The EP included 3 new unreleased songs, 2 remixes, singles from previous albums and “This Christmas” with Marcus Cole.
2010–Present: Free and The Sheards
Kierra had a role in Preacher’s Kid (starring platinum-selling R&B artist LeToya Luckett, Durrell Babbs, Clifton Powell, Gregory Alan Williams, Sharif Atkins) which was released in theaters across the U.S. on January 29, 2010 and was released on DVD and Blu-ray disc on May 4, 2010.
Kierra Sheard’s fourth album, titled Free, was released on October 18, 2011. This, being Kierra’s 1st album on her family’s gospel label, Karew Records (pronounced Kuh-Rue). Originally scheduled for a July 2011 release, the album was leaked and subsequently pushed back and reformatted with a different tracklisting.[9] The album features Kierra’s BRL (Bold Right Life) Choir.
On April 7, 2013, Kierra and her family debuted in a new BET reality series entitled, The Sheards. The show is based on the lives of Kierra, her brother and producer, J. Drew, and her parents, Grammy-award winning Karen Clark Sheard and Pastor J. Drew Sheard Sr. Season 1 had a run of eight episodes, and it was announced by the BET Twitter account that Season 2 will debut in Fall 2013.
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bio courtesy of Wikipedia.com
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO KIERRA “KIKI” SHEARD TODAY!!! was originally published on praisecleveland.com
