NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE. – How many great projects, the idea nominated for the Grammy The Urban Hymnal album was first sketched on a paper restaurant napkin.
Gospel songwriter and producer Lord of the Baptizers came to Nashville in October 2021 to hear Tennessee State University Aristocrat of the bands perform during Homecoming at the invitation of Band Assistant Director Larry Jenkins.
Baptist “fell in love with the band”. historically Black University. Later that evening, over Tacos and Pollo Enquesado, the children of the two preachers got together to discuss working together.
“I fought for the gospel and he fought for the marching band. Right?” Baptist recalled in an interview. “And what all HBCUs have in common is that connection to their roots, the gospel, right?
“We said OK. You know what? This is an essential part of our culture. Let’s do this.'”
The album’s nomination for Best Roots Gospel Album marks the first time a college marching band has been nominated in that category. It’s especially significant that the honor falls to an HBCU — a historically black college or university — where marching bands are often an integral part of schools’ identity and culture.
Tammy Kernodle, a distinguished music professor at Miami University who specializes in African American music, knows first-hand how important marching bands are at HBCUs.
At Virginia State University, an HBCU where she earned her bachelor’s degree, the marching band was “the epicenter of student life, especially during football season,” she said. “You didn’t go to the game so much to see the football team as to see the band,” and the halftime show was “the moment it all stopped.”
Even when no games were taking place, the drumline or horn sections practicing in the evenings formed the soundscape of university life, Kernodle said.
In the culture at large, HBCU bands are often viewed primarily for “the pageantry, the high-stepping style, the dance style,” Kernodle said. But this album “reminds us that a big part of that aesthetic, and what helps define the essence and the uniqueness of that aesthetic, is what these bands play — the musicianship, the range of repertoire they mine, and how they bring it to the full extent of black music history right down to these performances.”
While the instrumental musicians on the album are from TSU, the vocals include an all-star ensemble of chart-topping artists such as Donald Lawrence and Fred Hammond. Together they play a range of songs and styles – from a simple instrumental version of “Jesus Loves Me” to the R&B-tinged “Blessings on Blessings” to the inspirational pop ballad “Going Going” with soaring vocals from Kierra Sheard and accompanying melodic Rap by TSU alum Dubba-AA.
Some songs are new arrangements of classic anthems. Others were written specifically for the album, like “Dance Revival,” which features a foot-stomping, hand-clapping backbeat behind the electrifying voice of Jekalyn Carr. But even this new song ends with a transition into the old spiritual “Wade in the Water”.
So varied is the offering that Baptist, himself a Grammy voting member, worried the album would not be included in the Roots Gospel category. When asked how they chose the songs, Baptist and Jenkins said they wanted the album to tell a story about black history.
“These hymnals got us out of slavery and into the White House,” Baptist said, noting that many black leaders were also ministers, such as Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.
“Even from a band perspective,” Jenkins added, “in all of our HBCU bands, I promise you can go to any game, every HBCU band has a version of ‘I’m So Glad'” — a Christian hymn featuring the text: “I am so glad that Jesus picked me up.”
“At TSU we go one step further. ‘I’m So Glad’ is literally the fight song,” Jenkins said (lyrics changed to “I’m so glad I go to TSU”). “So many of these things have flowed into the culture.”
Appropriately, it’s the song that kicks off the album.
The duo also wanted The Urban Hymnal to speak to the young students, some of whom are not Christians or were not raised in the gospel tradition.
“I think it’s amazing that we’ve been able to bring rapping to its gospel roots,” Baptist said. “Because to make it more urban, we had to connect it to the students. And if we couldn’t relate it to the students, I don’t think the story would have fitted so perfectly.”
One such student is 21-year-old senior Logyn Rylander, who said she almost cried when she first heard the album. She loves the way old meets new while staying true to the spirit and culture of TSU, where she serves as a music business major and saxophonist in the Aristocrat of Bands.
“Staying original, staying true to yourself: if I’m completely honest, that’s what being an aristocrat is all about,” Rylander said. “We never change what we do because we see another school doing it. We always stay true to ourselves. And that’s something that the album has allowed us to represent on a global scale.”
Rylander hopes for a Grammy win when prices are announced on February 5th but said she was “thrilled” just to be nominated along with her fellow musicians.
“Even if we don’t win that Grammy, we know people saw what we could do,” she said. “I look forward to seeing what opportunities come knocking on our door. … Grammy or not, we’re still going to be the aristocrats at the end of the day.”
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