Jonathan Andrew Nelson (born November 10, 1974) is an American

gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message (" the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words a ...

singer and songwriter from Baltimore, Maryland.

Career

Nelson was born in

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

, Maryland to James Nelson, a pastor at the Greater Bethlehem Temple Church, and his wife Bessie Nelson. He studied at the

Baltimore School for the Arts The Baltimore School for the Arts (BSA) is a public performing arts high school located in Mount Vernon, Baltimore, Maryland, United States and is part of the Baltimore City Public Schools system. Established in 1979, The Baltimore School for the ...

and

Morgan State University Morgan State University (Morgan State or MSU) is a public historically black research university in Baltimore, Maryland. It is the largest of Maryland's historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs). In 1867, the university, then known a ...

. During a performance of Karen Clark-Sheard at his church, Nelson and his friends served as backup singers. After that, they continued to practice and sing together under the stage name 'Purpose'. After some time, Purpose released an independent album which included the song "Healed", written by Nelson. In 2000, Nelson met Donald Lawrence, a Grammy-nominated choir leader, at a workshop on Washington, D.C. Lawrence heard the song "Healed" and asked Nelson for permission to record the song. The song became a gospel hit in 2005, and Nelson won the

Stellar Award A Stellar Award is an award presented by SAGMA to recognize achievements in the gospel music industry.Sagma
The Stell ...

as Songwriter of the Year in 2006. Nelson also met producer Troy Sneed, who had heard another Purpose song called "The Right Place". Sneed produced the song for Pastor Rudolph McKissick and it became another commercial hit. Some time later, Nelson wrote "The Struggle Is Over" for Sneed, which became another hit. In December 2006, Nelson released a self-financed live album. After that, he signed with

Integrity Music Integrity Music is part of the David C Cook nonprofit group. Founded as a direct-to-consumer music club in 1987 as ''Integrity Music'', Integrity was at the forefront of contemporary worship music's widespread popularity of praise and worship mu ...

and started working on his first full-length studio album. In February 2008, Nelson released ''Right Now Praise''. The next year, he was nominated for a Dove Award for New Artist of the Year. That same year, he accepted the position of minister of music at The Faith Center with Bishop Henry Fernandez Sunrise, Florida and Empowerment Temple Church with Dr. Jamal Bryant

, Maryland. In 2010, he released his second album titled ''Better Days''. In 2016, Nelson released ''Fearless'', with

Light Records Light Records is a gospel record label founded in 1966 by Ralph Carmichael, as a joint venture with the Waco, Texas-based Word Records. It is a subsidiary of the MNRK Music Group. History Light Records' first roster included Ralph Carmicha ...

/ Entertainment One Music (eOne Music).

Personal life

Born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland to James D. Nelson and Bessie Nelson. He has three older siblings Anthony, Janice and James Jr, as well as his twin

Jason Jason ( ; ) was an ancient Greek mythological hero and leader of the Argonauts, whose quest for the Golden Fleece featured in Greek literature. He was the son of Aeson, the rightful king of Iolcos. He was married to the sorceress Medea. He ...

. He got his education in Baltimore City public school system and later went to the Baltimore School of The Arts and Morgan State University. Nelson and his wife Christina Marie have two children together: J. Andrew Nelson II and Julianna Marie Nelson.

Discography

* ''Live in Baltimore: Everything You Are'' * ''Right Now Praise'', No. 7 on the

Top Gospel Albums The ''Billboard'' charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs and albums in the United States and elsewhere. The results are published in ''Billboard'' magazine. ''Billboard'' biz, the online extension of the ''Billboard'' charts, pr ...

* ''Better Days'', No. 105 ''Billboard'' 200, and No. 4 on the Top Gospel Albums * ''My Name is Victory'' * ''Finish Strong'' (2013), No. 47 ''Billboard'' 200, and No. 1 on the Top Gospel Albums * ''Fearless'' (2016), No. 117 ''Billboard'' 200

Awards and nominations

Jonathan Nelson was nominated for a Dove Award for New Artist of the Year at the

40th GMA Dove Awards The 40th Annual GMA Dove Awards presentation was held on April 23, 2009 recognizing accomplishments of musicians for the year 2008. The show was held at the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville, Tennessee, and was hosted by Rebecca St. James, Matthew ...

References

External links

*
Interview with Gospel artist Jonathan Nelson
on gmc
Baltimore's Jonathan Nelson Welcomes New Life in Florida
on Afro.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Nelson, Jonathan 1974 births American male singer-songwriters Living people 21st-century American singer-songwriters