Cynthia Liggins Thomas - All About Love

By Rene Williams

LuvMo Music

Cynthia Liggins Thomas, former member of the Stellar Award nominated group Blessed, recently stepped out on her own releasing her own independent debut project, All About Love. Her roles within the group included producer, songwriter and vocalist. She was the driving force behind Blessed and singer/songwriter on their incredibly popular hit Your Mercy. Her contemporary collection of songs opens with 'Cause Of You, a bouncy, catchy song giving gratitude to God. Long Journey is a slick, contemporary jazz track with an impressive trumpet leading the way to Thomas' blues-tinged vocal style. The song's theme centers around not being able to make it on this long journey called life without walking hand in hand with God.

The title tune, All About Love, is taken from 1 Corinthians 13, the Love Chapter. The layered background vocals are relaxed and flow with the premise of the tune. Let Brotherly Love Continue is one of this artist's most powerful and inspirational tracks. The lyrics urge the Body of Christ to come together to help knock down the cultural and racial walls that divide us. Thomas shares the mic with Dawn Metoyer and Danny Hebert and closes out the song in Spanish. Flanked by a gospel choir, it's a feel-good track. Will You Love Me Then? , a ballad, finds Thomas asking a searching question about unconditional love.

The music ministry of this young woman started when she received Christ at the tender age of 7 at her home church, Mt. Pisgah Baptist Church in Bloomington, Illinois. Years later after moving from Illinois, she completed her degree in vocal performance from Loyola University. After starting LuvMo Music, she formed Blessed. The group's Journey for the Heart CD placed on the Billboard Top Gospel Albums chart, the Billboard Top Christian Albums chart and received two Stellar Award nominations. Although the group tasted success, Thomas felt led to move into a solo career. Shortly after leaving the group, she recorded All About Love.

Her singing and songwriting talents were quite clear with Blessed and are evident on All About Love. Especially on such beautiful cuts as the breathy and moving What Kind Of Love and the encouraging interlude He Had You In Mind. Thomas also provides us with a remake of the popular church tune It Is Well With My Soul. Bringing the song into the new age, she updates it with an urban flair.

She takes us to church with You Are God. The song is based on Psalm 90:2 and highlights the awesomeness of God. It's a true praise song as is the following track, I've Gotta Praise You. The lyrics speak of praising God before the blessing, before the miracle. It's a simple song, but powerful in its simplicity. Flowing into worship, she presents Glory To You, a stripped-down version of pure worship with just vocals and keyboards; it is reverent and quite pretty. Thomas closes with a new version of her hit Your Mercy.

All About Love is a solid project from beginning to end. We'll be hearing much more from the anointed Cynthia Liggins Thomas.

For more information about Cynthia Liggins Thomas, go to www.cynthialigginsthomas.com

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.