Richard Smallwood, the legendary gospel composer and worship chief whose music formed generations of churchgoing Black of us — and crossed into mainstream tradition by means of voices like Whitney Houston and Future’s Little one — has died. He was 77.
A consultant for Smallwood confirmed to Selection that he died Tuesday from issues associated to kidney failure on the Brooke Grove Rehabilitation and Nursing Middle in Maryland.
A classically skilled pianist, songwriter, and choir director, Smallwood grew to become synonymous with gospel excellence, incomes eight Grammy nominations and a number of Dove and Stellar Awards throughout his profession.
Because the founder and chief of the Richard Smallwood Singers and later gospel backing choir Imaginative and prescient, he created a few of the most enduring worship songs of the trendy gospel canon, together with “Complete Reward,” “Belief Me,” and “I’ll Belief You.”
Whitney Houston famously recorded Smallwood’s “I Love the Lord” for ‘The Preacher’s Spouse’ soundtrack, introducing his work to an excellent broader viewers. Future’s Little one later paid tribute to his legacy by performing “Complete Reward” as a part of their 2007 a cappella “Gospel Medley,” cementing his affect throughout generations and genres.
Born in November 1948 in Atlanta, Smallwood was raised in Washington, D.C., the place his musical items emerged early. He started enjoying piano at simply five-years-old and shaped his first gospel group by age 11. A proud Howard College alumnus, Smallwood earned a level in music and was a member of the college’s first gospel ensemble, the Celestials.
In 1977, he based the Richard Smallwood Singers, later signing with Onyx Information and releasing their self-titled debut album in 1982. The mission spent an astonishing 87 weeks on Billboard’s Non secular Album Gross sales chart. Their 1984 album ‘Psalms’ earned Smallwood his first Grammy nomination, and the group went on to launch a number of extra acclaimed data.
Within the early Nineteen Nineties, Smallwood disbanded the Singers and shaped Imaginative and prescient, a choir that will accompany him by means of a number of albums over the subsequent twenty years. Their music “Belief Me” reached No. 9 on the Scorching Gospel Songs chart and earned Smallwood his remaining Grammy nomination in 2012 for greatest gospel music.
In 2019, he printed ‘Complete Reward: The Autobiography,’ providing readers a deeply private have a look at his household, religion, and musical journey. In his later years, Smallwood lived with gentle dementia and different well being challenges that restricted his capacity to file new music — however his current physique of labor continued to minister to listeners worldwide.
Richard Smallwood is survived by his brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews, and godchildren.
