Kim Burrell

Kimberly “Kim” Burrell
(born August 26, 1972) is an American jazz and gospel vocalist from Houston, Texas. She has recorded several albums and numerous songs, mostly on religious themes.

Judge and Mentor on Kirk Franklin’s Sunday Best gospel singing competition.

Recently known for her work with Pharrell Janelle Monae Frank Ocean

Was in the hit musical Fighting Tempations with

Cuba Gooding Jr. and
Beyonce

Burrell was featured in a half-hour MTV special From The Church To The Charts in conjunction with the gospel themed motion picture Fighting Temptations. In 2004, Burrell was a guest performer along with Kelly Price on R. Kelly’s “3-Way Phone Call” playing the part of Price’s “prayer partner” in the soap-opera-like song.

Chaka Khan deemed Kim Burrell “one of the most interesting voices I’ve heard in a long while.” In an interview on XM Satellite Radio, Harry Connick, Jr. said of Burrell, “if she’s not the greatest musical mind I’ve ever been around, she’s certainly up at the top of the list.”[this quote needs a citation] Burrell appears on Connick, Jr.’s 2008 album, What a Night! A Christmas Album. Burrell also made an appearance on funk pioneer George Clinton’s original song called “Mathematics of Love” from Clinton’s 2008 album of covers entitled George Clinton and Some Gangsters of Love.

Burrell released her first studio album in 11 years, entitled No Ways Tired, on April 7, 2009 through Shanachie Records. The album features covers of classic gospel songs like “My Faith Looks Up To Thee,” “What A Friend We Have In Jesus,” “O Lamb Of God” and “I Surrender All,” as well as the classic James Cleveland song after which the album is named.

On May 17, 2011, she released The Love Album on Shanachie Records. In its first week after being released, it was #5 on the Billboard Gospel Albums chart, #166 on the Billboard 200 chart, and was the #2 most downloaded Gospel album on iTunes.

The Love Album was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Gospel Album

ALso two Stellar Awards for Contemporary Female of the Year and Albertina Walker Female Vocalist of the Year, the latter of which she won. The lead single “Sweeter” also won the 2012 Dove Award for Urban Recorded Song of the Year