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My childhood was limited to mostly gospel music. We didn't have, like, a lot of records in our house, you know. It was like my grandparents who raised me. They were pretty old-fashioned in their religious ways, so it was like church, church, church, school, school, school.

I grew up in a religious family, and we weren't allowed to listen to rock music.

I was raised on gospel. I remember hip-hop and rock music were secular, so basically, for my first ten years living in Detroit, I was on gospel. But when I moved to Houston, that's when I got to open up my musical horizons.

Church was a requirement - there was no choice in the matter; so was vacation bible school. Gospel has been in me since I was a kid.

Writing songs out of my faith was a real natural progression. I grew up singing in my dad's choir and singing with my family. Christian music became the music that I identified myself with and was a way that I expressed my faith. Even at a public school I would take my Christian music in and play it for my friends.

Gospel music played a huge part of my life. I was too scared to audition for the choir, but through my own music, I was also able to find spirituality for myself.

Music was a central part of my childhood because my mother played organ and piano in the church, and that meant all us kids had to be in the church choir.

I had been raised on country and western in Missouri. But gospel was great.

I still have all the faith and love for my music and yet I'm still playing places for kids.

I grew up in Synagogue in the boys' choir. We didn't listen to music in the house; only at temple. Then I went to a mostly African American high school on the South Side of Chicago and joined a gospel choir.