Bio
- Byron Cage

With over 20 years
experience as a praise and worship leader, and numerous awards and
accolades for his professional recordings, Byron Cage is one of
Gospel music's most dynamic and popular artists. For the past two
years, Byron Cage has won a Stellar Award for "Song of the Year," a
testament to the magnetic appeal of his breakout hits such as "The
Presence of the Lord;" "I Will Bless The Lord," and "Broken But I'm
Healed." Cage's delivery is punctuated by a deep sincerity that
enraptures audiences and has made the GRAMMY Award nominee and
multiple Stellar Award winner a staple in Gospel's musical
landscape.
Recorded live in New York City at the famous Apollo Theatre in
Harlem on April 26, 2007, The Proclamation, Cage's newest release,
is a dream come true for the recording artist. "I'm so thankful that
when I talked to management and my label about doing the next
recording at the Apollo, they thought it was a great idea," says
Cage. "But the moment for me came when I saw 'Byron Cage' on the
marquee. I thought 'Wow, this is so legendary.'" A packed crowd of
fans and Gospel music luminaries welcomed Cage with open arms and
unbridled enthusiasm during the incredible night of praise and
adoration to God.
The CD's title - The Proclamation - came to Byron while he was
attending a Gospel music convention. While there, he heard a fellow
artist mention they were planning to move in a more "inspirational"
direction and would be omitting the name Jesus in their songs. "I
remember sitting there and starting to cry," Cage recounts. "I
thought, 'Lord what has happened to us that we feel like your name
isn't good enough for us? Why do we feel that in order to reach the
masses we have to leave your name out?'" That was the beginning of
the concept for his new CD.
Penned by Cage, the title track valiantly proclaims the name of
Jesus with rousing orchestral and percussive elements. The
combination of impeccable vocals and a cranking band makes this an
album standout from note one. "Although we have large ministries and
speak about 'going to the next dimension', the name Jesus isn't
spoken as much as it used to be. My passion is to bring the name of
Jesus back to the forefront; there is no name higher than the name
of Jesus."
A musical wonder, "With All Of My Might" is a celebratory, festive
number that urges listeners to praise God with their all and all. "I
wrote 'With All Of My Might' because I love the story of David,"
says Cage. “I love when he talks about coming back to Jerusalem with
the Ark of the Covenant. There was such a celebration that he danced
so much – with all of his might – right out of his clothes. But his
wife, Micah, was jealous of him. In spite of those who don’t want us
to praise Him, I am determined that I’ll not only sing with all my
might, but I will praise Him with all my might”, says Cage.
Reminiscent of the Clark Sisters' signature sound, "I've Got A
Reason" is a traditional-flavored, yet spunky track. The feel-good
song reminds each Christian that there's always a reason to be
thankful. "Royalty", a slow, reflective track, acknowledges the
Savior and His matchless qualities. Soft strumming from an acoustic
guitar sets the stage for an intimate time of worship for the lover
of God. Cage lets loose towards the end of the track and the Spirit
of the Lord takes over. "Anyhow" was written by Cage "at a very
difficult time" in his life. Joining him on the mellow cut is
velvet-voiced crooner Dave Hollister. The song encourages and
reminds Christians to praise God throughout the toughest of
circumstances. Throwing in a chorus of "Hallelujah Anyhow" from his
mentor Thomas Whitfield, merging the old with the new, the
collaboration is a clever one.
Hailing from Grand Rapids and growing up in Detroit, Michigan, Cage
was surrounded by the greats of Gospel music and, in addition to
Whitfield, was influenced largely by Bishop James Abney. After
attending Morehouse College in Atlanta, he joined New Birth
Cathedral - at that time with only 700 members - pastored by Bishop
Eddie Long. He remains praise & worship leader at New Birth, and
also at Ebenezer A.M.E. in Fort Washington, Maryland.
Cage released two moderately successful albums in the late 90s, but
rose to fame with the 2003 release of his self-titled GospoCentric
debut that spawned his mega-hit "The Presence of the Lord." The
project netted five Stellar Awards for Cage, including "Best Male
Vocalist" and "CD of the Year;" as well as a Soul Train Music Award
for Best Gospel Album. "An Invitation to Worship" was released in
2005, peaking at 2 on the Billboard Top Gospel Albums chart and
earning Cage his first GRAMMY Award nomination. Building on theses
successes, Live At The Apollo: The Proclamation is certain to take
Byron Cage to even higher heights.
"I'm so thrilled that the night of the recording came off as well as
it did. I had the best singers, the best set, the best everything. I
wanted people who came out that night to feel such an overwhelming
presence of the Lord even though we weren't in a church environment.
But ultimately, during the night of recording, I wanted people to
cross their legs and say, 'Now that's how you do Gospel music."
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