A Great Gospel Debut

“I need You now.” Those are the simple yet powerful words to the chorus of Gospel artist Smokie Norful’s debut single from his 2003 album, respectfully titled “I Need You Now”. The first time I had the opportunity to hear this song was at the 2003 Stellar Awards, held at the Civic Center in Atlanta, Georgia. It was an enjoyable night for me because I traveled with my family and other friends as part of a trip that was organized by my good friend Sistah Peaches, a Gospel artist currently based out of California. There were workshops that took place during the first two days of the 3-day conference, and I even had the opportunity to perform at the host hotel for an event that featured artists from the Washington-Metropolitan area.

The Stellar Awards took place on the last day of the conference and began with Norful’s selection. All he needed was a piano and his voice to bring feelings of joy out of everyone in the audience. He sung very well and I really liked the concept of the lyrics, because I feel that while it is good to be patient with God and wait on His blessings, sometimes you just have to come to Him with complete honesty and let Him know how you feel, when you are going through a tough situation in your life. Sometimes we cannot help but to call on Him and ask to make a way and bless us now. Norful did an outstanding job at the awards show, ending the song with his hands in the air praising God, which triggered everyone else to do the same.

I was thankful to have heard “I Need You Now” that night. I was even more thankful of the fact that the full CD was available for free!