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As their combined album sales and notoriety continue to increase from their
self-titled, major-label debut album, RiZen-Adriann and Aundrea Lewis, Kanika
Trigg, and Ashley Jones-built proudly and boldly on a foundation of great
traditional and contemporary Gospel music, rolled off an impressive memorable
string of hits including "View Of The City", "Lift Up The Name Of Jesus" and "It
Will Come To Pass."
With RiZen 2, the energetic ladies from Saginaw, Michigan deliver 12 songs with
flavorful ingredients that make for an undeniable recipe of R&B, gospel and
soulful inspirational driven melodies. From the sensational, superb production
of Clap Your Hands featuring the infamous percussionist Sheila E., and the R&B
groove of Praise Him Just A Little While to the powerful four words of Jesus
Youre My Light to straight up churchin with Over There their signature
foot-stomping, hand clapping and harmony bring it all together for one big dish
of joyful music.
According to Adriann, RiZen 2 is more of RiZen and has a lot to do with the
girls' personal experiences. They also had a lot of input and it felt more like
an original piece from all of them because each lady leads a song on this
project. Sometimes called the LEWIS KIDS, co-founders Aundrea and Adriann along
with their brother Ayron all wrote "Over There reminiscent of "View Of The
City" off the debut project, while the entire group collaborated on "Hold On."
Its a given that hit songs breed popularity, and the ladies are dealing with
their newfound status with stride. "We can't go to the grocery store now without
being noticed," said Adriann. "What is so amazing is that we are not just
identified by African-Americans fans of various ethnicities come up to us due
to our visibility on TBN."
It was the TBN performances that developed a bond with Prophetess Juanita Bynum
who endorsed their debut album on her live worldwide TV show. Juanita Bynum has
become like an aunt to us and she constantly ministers to the group, said
Adriann.
Renowned music producer Sanchez Harley, the group's principle producer stated,
"there are a lot of diverse influences you can hear in what they do. Rock, R&B,
pop ballads are all part of the mix, with a very high energy level throughout,
and it uniquely positions them to reach audiences that are both older and
younger, traditional and contemporary.
"Our parents let us listen to R&B because they knew we loved the music," said
Adriann, "and that was a great thing, because I know those influences
contributed to our diversity as singers as we were growing up. But there's no
doubt about it, that classic gospel is in our blood, and what we love to sing
the most."
Aundrea and Adriann Lewis are the daughters of Elder Luciose Lewis Jr., who is a
pastor in the Full Gospel Baptist Church in Saginaw, MI., and Kanika and Adriann
have been close friends and singing partners since the early '90s, when Kanika
joined Pastor Lewis' church. Ashley joined the group in 2000 when the girls were
auditioning singers to fill the soprano slot in their group.
The two Lewis sisters, both with a God-given talent to sing, carefully and
lovingly nurtured and developed by their mother, Kayron Lewis, grew up in a home
filled with the sounds of gospel greats like Shirley Caesar, Albertina, Walker,
Dorothy Norwood, and James Cleveland among others with a healthy smattering of
R&B as well.
Adriann sang her first solo at age three in her father's church, standing on a
wooden box in the pulpit so she could be seen by all. Aundrea spent most of her
young life as a member, and later director of the church choir, coming into her
own as a soloist in the '90s with the formation of RiZen.
Adriann, who with her sister is a founding member of RiZen, felt called to a
career in music and ministry also at a young age. "I was 12, and singing in a
community choir in Saginaw that made an independent record on which I sang a
solo," she recalls. "I was lying under the piano, sleepy because it was getting
pretty late, and when I first heard my voice on the playback over the speakers I
thought, `Wow, that's sounds pretty good!' I knew right then that singing was
going to be my life."
But the road to recognition would prove to be much longer and more arduous than
Adriann could have imagined. "RiZen first formed in 1996 with eight girls," she
remembers, "and we had all the right people in terms of singers but things were
not going the way some of the members thought they should be going, or as fast
as they had expected, and we never really had peace in the group. One-by-one,
girls started dropping out until finally we were down to just myself, Aundrea
and Kanika. There were times when I really began to doubt if this was really
what God was calling me to do, but we were still determined to go on. And we're
seeing the blessings He's brought to us now.
In such a short time, they have already been on tour with Byron Cage, The 2005
Sisters In The Spirit and had a fabulous time performing on THE TOM JOYNER
MORNING SHOW HOLIDAY CRUISE, T.D. JAKES' MEGAFEST, STEVIE WONDER'S TOYS FOR TOTS
and were co-hosts for the pre-tape DOVE AWARD'S telecast.
Like they say, the Lord may not be there with what you think you need, when you
think you need it, but He's always right on time."
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