Yolanda Adams (born in 1964) is one of the most popular gospel music artists of the contemporary period. Along with Kirk Franklin (who she has toured with), Adams is one of the first artists to blend R&B and gospel music, an achievement which, while it initially caused criticism among the conservative Christian church, later helped gospel gain airplay in secular venues.

Yolanda Adams' mother had studied music while at college, so Adams grew up listening to jazz and classical music as well as gospel artists such as James Cleveland and the Edwin Hawkins Singers and R&B vocalists like Stevie Wonder and Nancy Wilson.

Adams originally worked as a schoolteacher and part-time model in Houston, Texas. Inspired by her mother, Adams turned to music and released her first album, Just as I Am, in 1988. By the mid-1990s, Adams was a popular and well-known performer, and in 1999 signed a major-label deal with Elektra Records, resulting in a number of successful albums.

Her first release on Elektra, Mountain High...Valley Low, won the 2000 Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Soul Gospel Album, and its single "Open My Heart" was a Top 10 R&B hit and won the 2000 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Song. Two years later, she won a second Grammy for Best Contemporary Soul Gospel Album, this time for 2001's The Experience. In addition, Adams has received the Image Award for Outstanding Gospel Artist three times (in 2000, 2001, and 2002), and the 2001 Image Award for Outstanding Female Artist.

Discography

Albums

Sounds of Gospel Release

• 1998: Just as I Am

Wikipedia
All Music Guide