Youthful Praise is an American gospel choir led by James "J.J." Hairston who directs the choir and composes most of their material.

Biography

Youthful Praise originated at the Bridgeport, Connecticut church Turner's Faith Temple. The outfit was originally known as Teens of TFT. They released their first album Awesome God in 2001 with Evidence Gospel, a division of online news magazine GospelFlava.com. The title track became a popular with church choirs and helped make their debut album a success. The album earned Youthful Praise two Stellar Award nomination in 2003 for Choir of the Year and Contemporary Choir of the Year. The group was also nominated for a Soul Train Award for Gospel Artist of the Year, and the GMWA Excellence Award

Gospel Music Workshop of America

Gospel Music Workshop of America is an international music convention founded by Rev. James Cleveland along with Albertina Walker in 1967.-GMWA membership:...

 for Choir of the Year.

The group's sophomore release Thank You For The Change raised their profile even more by featuring a guest vocal performance from Coko

Coko

Cheryl Elizabeth "Coko" Clemons is an American gospel and R&B singer, and lead singer of R&B group Sisters With Voices .-Musical career:...

, former lead singer of SWV

SWV

Sisters with Voices, better known as SWV, is an American female R&B trio from New York. Formed in 1990 as a gospel group, SWV became one of the most successful R&B groups of the 1990s. They had a series of hits, including "Weak", "Right Here/Human Nature", "I'm So Into You", and "You're the One"....

 on "Up There" and containing the highlight song "Deliver." YP matured their sound even more on the next release Live! The Praise... The Worship which delivered the hit singles like "Incredible God, Incredible Praise" and "You Are So Awesome."

Youthful Praise continued expanding their borders with television appearances on Late Night with Conan O'Brien

Late Night with Conan O'Brien

Late Night with Conan O'Brien is an American late-night talk show hosted by Conan O'Brien that aired 2,725 episodes on NBC between 1993 and 2009. The show featured varied comedic material, celebrity interviews, and musical and comedy performances. Late Night aired weeknights at 12:37 am...

, The Stellar Awards

Stellar Awards

The Stellar Awards is the first Gospel Music Awards show in the country, honoring Gospel Music Artists, writers, and industry professionals for their contributions to the Gospel Music Industry. The Stellar Awards ranks high in status as the only Gospel Music television awards program syndicated in...

, and Bobby Jones Gospel. The ensemble was soon invited to perform with Joan Osborne

Joan Osborne

Joan Elizabeth Osborne is an American singer-songwriter. She is best known for her song "One of Us". She has toured with Motown sidemen the Funk Brothers and was featured in the documentary film about them, Standing in the Shadows of Motown.-Biography:Originally from Anchorage, Kentucky, a suburb...

, Shirley Caesar

Shirley Caesar

Shirley Ann Caesar is an American Gospel music singer, songwriter and recording artist whose career has spanned six decades...

, and Destiny's Child

Destiny's Child

Destiny's Child was an American R&B girl group whose final line-up comprised lead singer Beyoncé Knowles alongside Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams. Formed in 1997 in Houston, Texas, Destiny's Child members began their musical endeavors in their pre-teens under the name Girl's Tyme...

.

Exalted, an exciting collection recorded live in Baltimore, Maryland was released on both CD/DVD in 2007. The following year saw a recap of their success with the compilation The Best of Youthful Praise. Their most recent album Resting On His Promise was released September 1, 2009 and features guest appearances from Pastor Shirley Caesar, Myron Butler

Myron Butler

Myron Butler is a Grammy award winning record producer, singer-songwriter, music director, vocalist, organist, and pianist. Most notably, he is known as the leader of the gospel choir, Myron Butler & Levi...

, worship leader Steven Hurd, and Dorinda Clark Cole

Dorinda Clark Cole

Dorinda Clark-Cole is a two-time Grammy Award winning American evangelist and gospel singer. She is best known as a member of The Clark Sisters and as a daughter of pioneering choral director Mattie Moss Clark.-Early life:...

.

Founding member of Youthful Praise, Pastor Shawn M. Brown died unexpectedly on January 31, 2010. One of the original co-directors of YP, Brown was the songwriter behind the group's first hit "Awesome God." More recently, he formed the group Shawn Brown & Key of David and released an independent album in 2008.

YP's upcoming album Praise, Thanks and Declaration will be released in Spring 2012.

Discography

• Awesome God (2001)
• Thank You For The Change (2004)
• Live! The Praise... The Worship (2005)
• Exalted (2007)
• The Best of Youthful Praise (2008)
• Resting On His Promise (2009)
• Praise, Thanks and Declaration (2012)

External links

• GospelFlava.com
• Cathedral of Praise COGIC (formerly known as Turner's Faith Temple)
• Light Records