Mark Masri (born 23 August 1973) is a Canadian singer, songwriter and producer. He is signed to
EMI
EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British Transnational corporation, transnational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in March 1 ...
record label and has released five albums: ''Mark Masri'', ''La Voce'', ''Christmas Is...'', ''A Christmas Time with You'', and ''Intimo'', as well as a special US release: ''See My Face US''. He sings in English and also has a multilingual repertoire of interpretations. On his album ''La Voce'' he sings a collection of classic songs in six languages.
History
Mark Masri was born to a Lebanese immigrant father, a
Pentecostal
Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestant Charismatic Christian movement minister, and a Canadian mother, a banker.
He moved with his family from Ontario to various locations including
Quebec
Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...
and
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland".
Most of the population are native Eng ...
. He started singing in his father's small church near
Antigonish
, settlement_type = Town
, image_skyline = File:St Ninian's Cathedral Antigonish Spring.jpg
, image_caption = St. Ninian's Cathedral
, image_flag = Flag of Antigonish.pn ...
, Nova Scotia, when he was nine. The family returned to
Scarborough Scarborough or Scarboro may refer to:
People
* Scarborough (surname)
* Earl of Scarbrough
Places Australia
* Scarborough, Western Australia, suburb of Perth
* Scarborough, New South Wales, suburb of Wollongong
* Scarborough, Queensland, su ...
, Ontario in the 1980s. At twelve he was singing in local churches and giving piano recitals. He led in many choirs and worked as a music producer for the
CTS network. When his job position was eliminated, he decided to devote all his time to music. In 2000 he released his first album, self-titled ''Mark Masri''.
After Masri recorded a demo with
Amy Sky
Amy Sky (born 24 September 1960) is a Canadian singer-songwriter, record producer, theatre actress, and television host. Sky started classical music lessons at the age of five, and plays piano, guitar, cello and recorder. She has a degree from t ...
, on a song she thought might suit
Jim Brickman
James Merrill Brickman (born November 20, 1961) is an American pop songwriter, pianist and radio host. Brickman has earned two Grammy nominations for his albums ''Peace'' (2003) for Best Instrumental, and ''Faith'' (2009) for Best New Age Album. ...
, he was very interested and invited Masri in 2008 to tour with him.
They also collaborated on Brickman's hit "Christmas Is..." that reached No. 18 on
Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks
The Adult Contemporary chart is published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine and lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary radio stations in the United States. The chart is compiled based on airplay data submitted to ''Billboard'' by stat ...
. Masri also appeared as a guest vocalist on Jim Brickman's 2009 CD ''Faith'', which was nominated for Best New Age Album at the
Grammy Award
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...
s.
He is married to Angela since 1998 and they have a son together.
Awards and nominations
* In 2001, nominated for a
Juno Award in the category
Best Gospel Album
The Grammy Award for Best Gospel Album is an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality albums in the Gospel music genre. Honors in s ...
for ''Mark Masri''
* In 2001, winner of the GMA Canada
Covenant Award
The Covenant Awards are awarded to the Canadian gospel music industry by GMA Canada, the Gospel Music Association of Canada. The association is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to promote the growth and ministry of Christian music in Ca ...
for
** Pop Album of the Year: ''Mark Masri''
** Contemporary Gospel Song Of The Year: "Dwell In The House"
** Pop Song Of The Year: "Take My Hand" (with Madeline Stone and Bernie Herms)
* In 2010, winner of the GMA Canada
Covenant Award
The Covenant Awards are awarded to the Canadian gospel music industry by GMA Canada, the Gospel Music Association of Canada. The association is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to promote the growth and ministry of Christian music in Ca ...
for three categories:
** Classical – Traditional Song of the Year for "Time" (Mark Masri featuring Nita Whitaker) (Mark Masri jointly with
Amy Sky
Amy Sky (born 24 September 1960) is a Canadian singer-songwriter, record producer, theatre actress, and television host. Sky started classical music lessons at the age of five, and plays piano, guitar, cello and recorder. She has a degree from t ...
))
** Classical – Traditional Album of the Year for ''La Voce''
** Inspirational Song of the Year for "Hold On" ((Mark Masri jointly with Adam Crossley and John Acosta
*
Discography
Albums
*2000: ''Mark Masri'' (independent limited edition)
*2008: ''See My Face''
(only in the United States)
*2009: ''Christmas Is...''
*2010: ''La Voce''
*2010: ''A Christmas Time with You''
*2011: ''Intimo''
*2014: ''Mark Masri Live''
(CD and DVD)
*2016: ''Beating Heart''
Featured
*2008: "Christmas Is" by Jim Brickman feat. Mark Masri – reached No. 18 on
Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks
The Adult Contemporary chart is published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine and lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary radio stations in the United States. The chart is compiled based on airplay data submitted to ''Billboard'' by stat ...
*2009: "Breathe, Dream, Pray, Love" in album ''Home'' (Jim Brickman feat. Mark Masri and Delta Goodrem)
*2010: "To Be Wanted" by
Olivia Newton-John
Dame Olivia Newton-John (26 September 1948 – 8 August 2022) was a British-Australian singer, actress and activist. She was a four-time Grammy Award winner whose music career included 15 top-ten singles, including 5 number-one singles on the ...
feat. Mark Masri appeared on Newton-John's album ''
Grace and Gratitude – Renewed edition)'' (United States release). The album reached US Billboard New Age albums chart at No. 2, Billboard Christian albums chart at No. 36 and Billboard Christian/Gospel albums chart at No. 54.
*2010: "Waiting" (Rosanna Riverso feat. Mark Masri) on her album ''Let There Be Peace''
References
External links
Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Masri, Mark
1973 births
Living people
Musicians from Toronto
Canadian people of Lebanese descent
Canadian pop singers
Canadian performers of Christian music
21st-century Canadian male singers