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Mandisa on Modesty<br />
Music reviews fresh from ec • by Kevin Sparkman<br />
fun music connection<br />
By Tifany Borgelt<br />
Nowhere is appearance<br />
more highly valued than in<br />
the entertainment industry.<br />
Whether you’re a singer, actor,<br />
model, or whatever, physical<br />
beauty and the display of it<br />
seems to be what makes or<br />
breaks a person’s career.<br />
For those of us who live in<br />
the real world—where camera<br />
crews and microphones don’t<br />
follow our every move—we<br />
fortunately don’t have to worry<br />
about our looks making or<br />
breaking us. But what happens<br />
when you are a Christian whom<br />
God has given a platform upon<br />
which millions of people look?<br />
Are the standards different<br />
then?<br />
Simon Cowell blasted<br />
Mandisa Hundley several times<br />
during the audition process<br />
during season 5 of “American<br />
Idol.” He later apologized, and<br />
Mandisa ended up as a top 10<br />
finalist that season. Her first<br />
album, “True Beauty,” released<br />
in 2007 and garnered both<br />
Grammy and Dove Award<br />
nominations. “Freedom”<br />
released in March 2009.<br />
Find Mandisa online:<br />
mandisa.sparrowrecords.com<br />
myspace.com/mandisa<br />
Read more thoughts about<br />
modesty on our blog:<br />
(ecmagazine.blogspot.com).<br />
In your world, modesty is probably<br />
a synonym for unfashionable and<br />
lame. That’s not quite the truth,<br />
though. ec recently caught up<br />
with Mandisa, singer and former<br />
“American Idol” con<strong>test</strong>ant to<br />
chat about modesty and why it<br />
matters—onstage and off.<br />
ec: Modesty. What do you think of when you<br />
hear that word?<br />
Mandisa: To me, modesty is humility. I believe<br />
humility can be seen in one’s attitude, speech,<br />
and appearance.<br />
ec: Because you have been very outspoken<br />
about your Christian faith both on “American<br />
Idol” and beyond, do you think that the world<br />
holds you to a different standard in how you<br />
present yourself, in how you look and what you<br />
say?<br />
Mandisa: On “American Idol” I learned that<br />
there is always someone watching you. That is<br />
especially true in a world where living by biblical<br />
values is not the norm. This is true for me,<br />
because of the fame I was given by being on the<br />
most popular television show in America. But<br />
this is also true for every Christian who chooses<br />
to live their lives in a way that would be pleasing<br />
to God. Some people refer to me as a “star.”<br />
Philippians 2:14-15 says that you are a star, too!<br />
ec: Given that there is a certain level of self<br />
promotion in the entertainment world, how does<br />
modesty play into how you present yourself?<br />
Mandisa: I have learned that just as<br />
Philippians 2 says, God will promote those who<br />
wa k in humility. Certainly if Jesus, being in very<br />
nature God, could humble Himself to serve<br />
humanity by His death, [then] I can present<br />
myself in humility and allow God to promote me.<br />
I am fully aware that everything good I am, have,<br />
and have done is because of the Holy Spirit’s<br />
work in me and God’s favor on me.<br />
ec: Is modesty just an attitude of the heart? In<br />
other words, if your heart is right before God,<br />
does it really matter what you wear?<br />
Mandisa: I believe that if your heart truly is the<br />
Lord’s, it will affect what you do. If my heart is<br />
right with the Lord, I won’t want to say certain<br />
things, wear certain things, or act in certain<br />
ways. I would want to live my life in a way that<br />
reflects well on Him.<br />
Joy Lippard<br />
Joy Lippard<br />
(independent artist)<br />
In a world of<br />
pop princesses,<br />
Joy Lippard<br />
shines because<br />
of her depth<br />
and originality.<br />
iPod Picks:<br />
“Dishes”<br />
& “Such a<br />
Time”<br />
iPod Picks:<br />
“Get Up” &<br />
“Elementary”<br />
iPod Picks:<br />
“Take<br />
Everything” &<br />
“Carry Me”<br />
iPod Picks:<br />
“When It Feels<br />
Right” &<br />
“One World”<br />
iPod Picks:<br />
“Hole in my pocket” may<br />
be the best female vocal<br />
performance of 2009!<br />
“I Will Write You Letters”<br />
is a feel-good song that<br />
proves Lippard’s maturity<br />
beyond her years.<br />
Weeding through the<br />
mediocre artistry of today’s<br />
reality show con<strong>test</strong>s and<br />
everyday home-grown<br />
talents, we find a shining<br />
star in singer/songwriter Joy<br />
Lippard. The self-titled debut<br />
release showcases a fully<br />
armed performer as she<br />
delivers with pen, piano, and<br />
power-pop vocals that rise<br />
above anything you would<br />
expect from a mic-wielding<br />
18-year-old. But she has been<br />
songwriting since the tender<br />
age of 11. Check out Joy<br />
online at www.joylippard.com.<br />
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Flynn Adam Such a Time (Gotee Records)<br />
Flynn adam’s sound<br />
is part party music,<br />
part thoughtful<br />
Visit ecmagazine.blogspot.com<br />
and find us on Facebook!<br />
Signature:<br />
if you like Gnarls Barkley, you’ll love Flynn Adam. Adam, a<br />
member of LA Symphony, a Christian hip hop group, has created a<br />
release that honors his hip hop background, but also establishes a<br />
more alternative sound. Adam counts the new album as an important<br />
lyrics.<br />
milestone in his journey of faith: “I have a better picture of who God is by just being honest and<br />
upright with Him through this journey.” Learn more at www.myspace.com/flynnadam.<br />
Robert Pierre Identity (thinkaboutit Records)<br />
Robert Pierre<br />
doesn’t let the world<br />
define his identity or<br />
his sound.<br />
this album is a true reflection of an ordinary 16-year-old<br />
Florida boy finding an extraordinary identity through Jesus Christ.<br />
There is, however, nothing ordinary about Robert Pierre’s talent.<br />
Pierre delivers the ballads flawlessly (“I Will Love You” and “I’ll Be<br />
There”) while turning a 180 with a slate of edgy pop/rock tunes to<br />
round out this project. Coming from the heart of a teenager, there’s no question where Robert’s<br />
“Identity” lies. For more, see Robert online: www.robertpierre.com.<br />
Seventh Day Slumber Take Everything (BEC)<br />
Bottom line: This Not only does this album feature a new spin on worship<br />
album invites us to standards known the world over, but when you consider the life<br />
deeper relationships Seventh Day Slumber frontman Joseph Rojas has been delivered<br />
with Christ, even in from as a daily cocaine addict, it will put an entirely new<br />
hard times.<br />
perspective on this worship experience. On “Carry Me,” you hear<br />
the soul of this hard rocker crying out to Jesus and offering an<br />
anthem for people suffering from hard stuff. More online: wwwseventhdayslumber.com.<br />
Various Artists Hip Hope Hits 2009 (Gotee Records)<br />
This compilation is<br />
full of the best of<br />
the best.<br />
For the fifth time, Gotee Records releases one of the most<br />
anticipated hip hop records of the year. In the vein of popular<br />
compilation formats, Gotee comes strong with its ‘09 version<br />
featuring favorites tobyMac, KJ-52, GRITS, Verbs, and Pettidee.<br />
The compilation’s cohesive sound is a <strong>test</strong>ament to the mutualr espect between artists like<br />
these in the tight-knit Christian hip hop community.<br />
62 | jul 2009 ec magazine ec magazine jul 2009 | 63