Micah Keith Stampley is an American

gospel Gospel originally meant the Christianity, Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the second century Anno domino, AD the term (, from which the English word originated as a calque) came to be used also for the books in which the message w ...

singer-songwriter.

Early life

As a youth, Stampley listened to

Andrae Crouch Andrae, Andræ (Danish) or Andrä is a surname and given name, which is a variant of Andreae, itself a patronymic (via the Latin genitive case) from the personal name Andreas. Notable persons with this name include: Surname * Ahmed-Tobias Andr ...

Michael W. Smith Michael Whitaker Smith (born October 7, 1957) is an American musician who has charted in both contemporary Christian music, contemporary Christian and mainstream charts. His biggest success in mainstream music was in 1991 when "Place in This Worl ...

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Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Michael Jackson, one of the most culturally significan ...

Billy Ocean Leslie Sebastian Charles (born 21 January 1950), known professionally as Billy Ocean, is a Trinidadian-born British singer and songwriter. Between 1976 and 1988, he had a series of hit songs in the UK and internationally. After releasing sev ...

and

Cyndi Lauper Cynthia Ann Stephanie Lauper ( ; born June 22, 1953) is an American singer, songwriter and actress. Known for her distinctive image, featuring a variety of hair colors and eccentric clothing, and for her powerful four-octave vocal range;Jerome, ...

Career

Stampley sang, between 1994 and 1997, in Rev. Earl Johnson's church in

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. Then he went back to Louisiana, at his father's church music department. In 1998 he married Heidi Jones, a fellow gospel singer and nursing student. Heidi has been instrumental in her husband's career, writing several songs for his debut album. In 1999 the couple relocated to New Orleans when Stampley accepted a position as co-choir director and musician for Bishop Paul Morton's Greater St. Stephen's Church. In 2003 Stampley became assistant minister of music at St. Agnes Baptist Church in

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

. Organist Marcus Dawson, an associate of Bishop

T. D. Jakes Thomas Dexter Jakes Sr. (born June 9, 1957) is an American non-denominational Christian evangelical pastor and motivational speaker. He was the senior pastor of The Potter's House, a non-denominational American megachurch in Dallas, Texas, fro ...

, noticed Stampley's voice. The following January Stampley won the 2004 Stellar Award Gospel Star Search competition. Stampley signed a record contract with Jakes and Dawson, refusing some other labels. In 2005,

Billboard magazine ''Billboard'' (stylized in lowercase since 2013) is an American music and entertainment magazine published weekly by Penske Media Corporation. The magazine provides music charts, news, video, opinion, reviews, events and styles related to th ...

placed Stampley on its Top 10 Gospel Music Artists list and AOL Black Voices included him on its roster of Top 11 Gospel Geniuses. In March 2005, he became the second male gospel artist to have a high debut on the Billboard's chat when his first album, The Songbook of Micah, debuted at number three of Billboard's chart In 2014 he shared the same stage with Donnie McClurkin and other prominent gospel ministers at the Experience, an annual event held in Nigeria. Over 600,000 people attended. On May 20, 2016, he released his next album: "To the King: Vertical Worship". This album featured hit songs from previous albums as well as fresh sounds like the hit single "Be Lifted" which was named as one of the top hot new songs in 2016 by BlackGospel.com. The album debuted at number 2 on Billboard's Top Gospel Album Chart

Personal life

Micah and Heidi Stampley are the co-founders of Interface Entertainment and Operation I Believe, Inc., a

501(c)(3) A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, Trust (business), trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of ...

non-profit organization, launched in 2006 with platforms that include humanitarian and outreach initiatives. Micah is a third-generation licensed preacher. Micah and Heidi Stampley are also co-owners of Orleans Foods Ltd. Co. Currently, he serves as the Visionary Leader and Chief Worshipper of Shift Global, Inc.

Discography

* ''To the King: Vertical Worship'' (2016) * '' Love Never Fails'' (2013) * '' One Voice'' (2011) * '' Release Me'' (2010) * '' Ransomed'' (2008) * ''A Fresh Wind ... the Second Sound'' (2006) * ''The Songbook of Micah'' (2005)

Filmography

* ''Anchorman Part II'' * Appearing on TV in Tyler Perry's ''House of Pain'' * ''Necessary Roughness''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stampley, Micah Living people 20th-century African-American male singers 20th-century American male singers 20th-century American singers 21st-century African-American male actors 21st-century American male actors 21st-century African-American musicians Year of birth missing (living people)