Vicki Yohe

By Rene Williams

Praise and worship has started to become very popular in the black church. Artists such as Fred Hammond, Israel Houghton, Byron Cage and Judith Christie-McAllister have opened the door to a new style of worship and new style of praise. Not so long ago, the black church wasn’t quick to embrace praise and worship. But Fred Hammond through a prophetic word from God, “lifted God up as high as he could and watched what He would do,” not knowing that he would almost single-handedly create a new genre in black gospel.

Although the genre has long been popular in Contemporary Christian music, it’s just starting to catch on in gospel. Artists on the CCM side like Twila Paris, Michael W. Smith and Third Day started the trend and it continues to grow. But what’s truly interesting is that white praise and worship artists are starting to gain popularity in black gospel. One of those artists is Vicki Yohé. Known for her mega-hit Because Of Who You Are, she has taken gospel by storm. Although she’s been in the industry for years, especially on the Christian conference circuit, it was only recently she started getting major attention from black gospel radio. Her project, I Just Want You (PureSprings Gospel) , soared to #7 on the Billboard Top Gospel chart and exposed the world to this anointed woman of God. Singing with a rarely found soulfulness, she has left many black churches in awe of her talent and gifting.

Take a moment to listen as she talks about her upbringing, where her ministry lies, what worship means to her and why some Christians haven’t gotten the blessings they’re seeking.

Gospelcity.com: Tell us about your church background.

VY: I grew up in a Pentecostal denomination. My father was a pastor who pastored a congregation that was about 30% African American. That’s where I got into black gospel. I was around it my whole life.

GC: Your music is popular in CCM circles. Would you say that’s where you got your start?

VY: My cousin produced my first project and he’s a more contemporary type of guy. Every producer I’ve had has been contemporary. It hasn’t necessarily been my first love; Black gospel has always been my first love. But I’ve never been connected with anybody that could take me down that path…until CeCe Winans. I’m the first artist on her record label. She saw me on Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN) and God spoke to her and told her that I was to be the first artist on her record label. It was really an answer to prayer. CeCe said, “Do whatever you want to do.” She knows I love praise and worship; it’s my heart. I realize what worship does to Him; our worship affects Him. It causes Him to smile. So that’s my heart and this album, I Just Want You is my heart. It’s a really good representation of who I am.

GC: Do you think that’s why it’s crossed over? Because Of Who You Are is on almost every gospel radio station.

VY: I know. I am surprised, and yet I’m so happy. I’ve told people many times that that’s my audience. I travel and do about 180 dates a year and 99.9% of the places I go to are black churches. I’ve done that for about the last 5 or 6 years. But my music wasn’t part of black gospel radio station formats -- some CCM, but not much. I would pray to God, “I know where I’m supposed to be, but who will take me there?” So when CeCe wanted me to be on her record label, I was like, “Thank You, Jesus!” For God to put me with a company with integrity…it’s just an answer to prayer.

GC: Why do you think there is an acceptance with your music at this point in your career?

VY: I think there was an acceptance before. I’ve been on the road for 14 years. I’ve been out there for a long time. I find it funny when people say, “I’ve never heard of you. You’re a new artist, right?” I have to say, “No, no, no”. I’m not a new artist [laughs]; I’m just in a new season. This is a new season that I’ve prayed for. CeCe Winans and PureSprings Gospel is a big part of that. Some people get signed to a record company and then all of the sudden, bang, they’re out there and everybody knows who they are. For me, it’s been a process. I’m on my seventh album. I went on TBN about 4 or 5 years ago. It hasn’t been all of the sudden that people know who Vicki Yohe is. It’s been hard work for me. I knew who my audience was.

GC: How did you got started in praise and worship and become a part of the music industry?

VY: Since about the age of 5 or 6 years old, I would always tell people when I grew up, I was going to travel and sing. So I never wavered from that. At eighteen, I went right into music ministry as minister of music for a church. I think I missed about one Sunday in my five years because I wanted to give my very best. I just knew that was where I was supposed to be at that time.

Singers and worship leaders say to me, “I would love to do what you do. I would love to travel around like you do.” The first thing I tell them is to stay faithful to your local church. I say to them, “You need to be faithful in the small things. Stay in that local church and be the best worship leader you can be.”

My cousin encouraged me to do my first album when I was 25 years old; now I’m 38 and seven albums later. When my first album came out…after I sold my uncle 100 copies…[laughs]….my dad said, “Well, now, we all have tons of your CDs, you’re going to have to find a place to sing.” He gave me a list of all his preacher friends. I would go to their churches and they would have a conference. And it just snowballed from there.

It’s just been incredible what God has done. I say at some of my conferences that I was created, born and breathed to worship. It’s my favorite thing to do. I travel so much. I could come home and be home for one or two days and then I’m ready to go again. I’m ready to lead other people into worship. When I’m at my concerts, it’s more like Worship 101.

The miracle people are looking for is on the other side of that worship. So many times we say, “When I get into your presence, I’ll worship you.” For many of us, that’s after He’s come through for us. That’s after He’s paid the light bill….Some think, “I’ll praise you after you’ve saved my son.” If they only knew what was on the other side of their worship. God is sitting on the edge of His seat waiting for them to worship Him. And when they do worship, He rises on His feet.

It’s got to be a lifestyle. I just don’t go to these churches and start worshipping. I have a time every day that I meet with the Lord at home. My husband knows that when my door is shut and I have my headphones on, that unless the house is on fire, don’t bother me because I have an appointment with the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. In the place that I am now, I just want to love on Him more. I want people to realize that it’s more than just coming in and sitting down on pew on Sunday morning wearing their fancy outfits. He’s waiting for their praise.

I’ve purposed in my heart is that I want to be a consistent worshipper. That’s one thing that I try to convey. I want people to know that no matter what they’re going through, no matter what the circumstance, that we should be consistent worshippers. Even if you’ve been fired from your job on a Friday, on a Sunday morning, your hands should be lifted.

One day I was at a church in Florida. When I got there, the praise was so high and the worship so intimate, but I was so exhausted. So every once in a while, I lifted my hands. It was at that point that the Lord began to speak to me. He said, “I know you’re tired and I know you’re weary. But I have to ask you a question. When you sit before me on that day, standing among the millions of people, would you like me point you out and say that I remembered your worship? Do you want me to say, “I know you were tired that day in that church in Florida, but you pressed in and gave me your praise anyway. Don’t want me to remember your worship tonight?”

The vision continued and He started pointing people out. I started raising my hands [hoping He would point me out] and He said, “No, no, not you Vicki. Look at who’s behind you. It’s Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. I remember their worship. They were in a fiery furnace but they gave me the worship.” I kept raising my hands and God kept overlooking me. Then, He pointed someone else out. He said, “You, I remember your worship. You were diagnosed with cancer on Wednesday morning, but you went to Bible study that night and gave me the praise.” So every time I come into His presence I want to forget about my worries.

GC: Have you seen differences in how Black audiences receive you and how white audiences receive you?

VY: When I go to a black gospel church – and I don’t say this in a bragging sort of way because God knows my heart – they’re absolutely blown away that a white singer can sing with that much soul. When I go to a white church, I probably don’t ad lib as much. They’re not as open to my style of music as much as a black church. Although I sing really soulful, I can’t dance.

I tell this story at a lot of black churches because it helps break the ice…I’m a white girl. I grew up around African-Americans all my life. I don’t have a prejudiced bone in my body, but sometimes as a white person going into a black church, I have to let people know that I’m not prejudiced. Now I can’t dance so about 2 years ago, I went out and got me a weave. I thought that maybe [my ability to dance] was in the weave….[laughs]. Believe it or not, I kept that thing in for 8 months. I said, “Honey, this weave ain’t working ‘cause I haven’t danced yet!”…[laughs]. But it’s a true story; I did it. I can jump, but I just can’t dance. I really want to work on that. But I feel comfortable in black churches. Since the church has invited me, I feel right at home. I didn’t know anything about racism until I got older. Growing up, my father had a large African-American congregation. I really don’t see color. I don’t think, “Well, now, I’m going to a black church.” To me, I’m just going to visit a church.

GC: Do you think your ministry is helping to close the gap between white and black Christians?

VY: Yeah, I really do. I think so; I hope it is. I want to be a part of that. I really want to be.

GC: I believe you and Martha [Munizzi] are part of bridging that gap.

VY: Martha and I are very good friends; we’ve been friends for years. We’re going to be doing some concerts together, probably a lot in 2005. I think, for me, I love more ballads, more worship songs. I love Martha’s worship, too. But I really love her praise. I like praise, but I love worship. I think that’s going to be a really good combination together.

Feedback - Rene Williams is a freelance writer for Gospelcity.com, GTM Magazine and Charisma Magazine. She also is the author of the Gospel News Update, a bi-weekly e-zine about what's happening in the Christian music industry, and the D.C. Gospel News Update, a weekly newsletter about gospel events in the Washington, D.C. area.