Micah Keith Stampley (born September 7, 1971) 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-songwriter and actor.
Early life
Micah Stampley was born on September 7, 1971
to Richard and Delmarie Stampley. The fifth of eight children, he exhibited his musical talent from the tender age of four. By age seven, he was directing the church choir and teaching vocal arrangements and harmonies. Micah grew up in
Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Stampley spent his youth soaking up the sounds of
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 and mainstream charts. His biggest success in mainstream music was in 1991 when " Place in This World" hit No. 6 on the '' ...
and
Shirley Caesar as well as
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 one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...
,
Billy Ocean
Leslie Sebastian Charles, (born 21 January 1950), better known by his stage name Billy Ocean, is a British recording artist who had a string of R&B international pop hits in the 1970s and 1980s. He was the most popular British R&B singer-son ...
and
Cyndi Lauper
Cynthia Ann Stephanie Lauper Thornton (born June 22, 1953) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and activist. Her career has spanned over 40 years. Her album ''She's So Unusual'' (1983) was the first debut album by a female artist to achi ...
.
Stampley graduated from
Natchitoches Central High School
Natchitoches Central High School is a public high school in Natchitoches, Louisiana, United States. It is a part of the Natchitoches Parish School Board.
The development of Natchitoches Central High School, like so many schools in the 1960s and ...
where he earned several music awards. By age 13 he was serving as the minister of music together with his brother (who was his best friend) in their father's church.
Career
Stampley sang, between 1994 and 1997, in Rev. Earl Johnson's church in
Pasadena, California. 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 most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 i ...
. Organist Marcus Dawson, an associate of Bishop
T. D. Jakes
Thomas Dexter Jakes (born June 9, 1957), known as T. D. Jakes, is an American bishop, author and filmmaker. He is the bishop of The Potter's House, a non-denominational American megachurch. Jakes's church services and Evangelistic sermons are ...
, 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 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
Artistry
Voice
Micah Stampley has a multi-octave vocal range spanning from bass-to-first soprano and is well known for that. His voice has literally staggering power and sensitivity.
[ He has never had any formal vocal training. He says about his own voice: “It’s just a sound that God has given me, I think He just kind of fine tuned my vocal chords and gave me this high register. I can sing bass and/or soprano naturally. It’s pretty amazing and to be honest, I can’t explain it. It’s just something that happens whenever I feel the presence of God come over me. I sing at heights that I never thought any man would sing.”
His voice has often been compared with Grammy award winner ]Donnie McClurkin
Donald Andrew "Donnie" McClurkin, Jr. (born November 9, 1959) is an American gospel singer and minister. He has won three Grammy Awards, ten Stellar Awards, two BET Awards, two Soul Train Awards, one Dove Award and one NAACP Image Awards. ...
who is also known in the gospel community for his high notes. Both stars disagree to this but Donnie has expressed his profound admiration of Micah Stampley's outstanding vocal dexterity.
Micah has the stamina to hold notes for lengths of time without wavering in pitch or tone, seemingly effortlessly.
In 2005, Billboard magazine
''Billboard'' (stylized as ''billboard'') is an American music and entertainment magazine published weekly by Penske Media Corporation. The magazine provides music charts, news, video, opinion, reviews, events, and style related to the musi ...
placed him on its Top 10 Gospel Music Artists list and AOL Black Voices included him on its roster of Top 11 Gospel Geniuses.
Awards and nominations
Personal life
Micah and Heidi Stampley are the co-founders of Interface Entertainment and Operation I Believe, Inc., a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, launched in 2006 with platforms that include humanitarian and outreach initiatives. Micah is a third-generation licensed preacher.[
]
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
1971 births
Living people
Male actors from Los Angeles
Singers from Los Angeles
African-American male actors
20th-century African-American male singers
21st-century American male actors
21st-century African-American people