Sony Urban/Columbia Records Set to Release New Anointed Album, Now Is The Time

After five albums and a decade in gospel and Christian music, the highly-acclaimed, award-winning brother/sister gospel duo Anointed -- Da'dra Crawford Greathouse and Steve Crawford -- is back in the spotlight with an eagerly-awaited new album, Now Is The Time, the pair's first recording for Sony Urban/Columbia Records. Now Is The Time is slated for release on April 5, 2005.

While Anointed prepares for a promotional tour (Atlanta, Chicago, Washington, D.C., Baltimore, New York, Philadelphia, Dallas and other key markets), the first single from the new album, "Gonna Lift Your Name," has blasted onto airwaves across the country. The release is impacting radio nationwide with heavy rotation on syndicates such as Gospel Traxx (80+ markets), The Light (44 markets), and Sirius Satellite Radio. The single is also gaining new adds every day via outlets such as ABC Radio Networks "Rejoice" (50 markets), Inspirations Across America (125 markets), the BeBe Winans Show (86 markets), Radio One (13 markets) and others.

Drawing seamlessly from pop, gospel and R&B influences, Anointed's wide appeal is reflected in the numerous awards and nominations -- including three Grammy nominations, two Stellar Awards and seven Dove Awards -- that the group has earned over the years.

Now Is The Time showcases the work of two seasoned artists and the stylings of veteran producers Warryn Campbell (Mary Mary, Ruben Studdard), Mark Heimermann (Michael W. Smith, Amy Grant) and Roger Ryan (Shirley Caesar duet with Faith Evans).

Now Is The Time marks Da'dra's and Steve's first production credits (on "Jesus Is Lord" and "You Are") and co-producing credits (with Roger Ryan on both "Gonna Lift Your Name" and "Eternal Life"). Gospel legend Andrae Crouch joins Anointed in a special appearance on "Jesus Is Lord," the song he originally penned and made famous more than two decades ago. Da'dra and Steve also wrote, or co-wrote, all but one of the album's tracks.

Where "Eternal Life" makes heady use of a big orchestral sound, "Now That I'm Free," another intimate ballad from Steve and songwriter Dave Clark, is a soulful, melodic story put to music. While gospel artists are not typically associated with remixing, Anointed, working with producer Warryn Campbell, transformed "Gonna Lift Your Name" into a heavenly gospel remix, with urban backbeats and rock guitar catapulting the already jubilant gospel track into the stratosphere.

Producer Mark Heimermann worked with Da'dra and Steve to create the soaring, airy sounds heard on "Trust In You" and "Now Is The Time," a fusion of bouncy, youthful rock over a gritty, funky groove.

The album's title track "speaks to faith being the key to fulfilling your purpose in life," Da'dra explains. "The time to believe is when no one else except you and God can see. Your actions will follow your belief system and move you toward the place you need to be. It speaks so much to where we are as artists."

The album is rounded out with two more Campbell-produced tracks, "Mighty Long Way" and "Gotta Move," as well as another from Heimermann, "The Great I Am."

Anointed has been performing around the country, introducing the new album to their fans with the high caliber and electrifying live performances that helped built the group's reputation. Transcendent performances at the recent Church of God in Christ (COGIC) convention in Memphis and the annual KLTY "Celebrate Freedom Festival" in Dallas, Texas, had industry insiders and popular audiences raving about the group.

Now Is The Time for Anointed fans to rejoice!

SOURCE: Sony Urban/Columbia Records

CONTACT: Edwin Banacia of Sony Urban Music, New York, +1-212-833-5072,
Edwin.Banacia@sonybmg.com; or Gwendolyn Quinn of GQ Media & Public Relations,
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