Yolanda Adams is still in the blessing business with ‘Sunny Daze’

“I think I was born with that happiness gene that people talk about,” the gospel music superstar said. “I want people to move forward feeling better about themselves… I had days when I was up, I had days when I was down. But at the end of the day, one lesson I learned from all of those scenarios is that this, too, shall pass.”

This theme pervades his new album, “Sunny Days.” It’s his first studio project in nearly 13 years.

“The way you look at everything has a huge impact on how you deal with everything,” the four-time Grammy winner said in a booming voice.

The 15-track project was created over a period of six years, delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic and his role in the TV drama, “Kingdom Business.”

“Sunny Days” features on an album written and produced by gospel legend Donald Lawrence and Rock and Roll Hall of Famers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, whose work with Babyface also contributed to the delay. The album is led by “Church Doors,” which debuts at No. 9 on Billboard’s Hot Gospel Songs after just one week.

As he has done throughout his career, Adams uses his musical gift of encouragement in songs such as the title track, “Blessings” and “Powerful”, which features the spoken-word introduction, “The power is within you / Take the time to decide / If you’ll shine brightly / Or let someone else dim your light.”

“I try to be the best cheerleader I can be for anyone who comes into my life,” the former elementary school teacher said. “You know how the Lion King says, ‘Simba remember who you are.’ That’s the whole meaning of it: You are powerful.”

“When We Pray” – produced by Jam and Lewis, who gained fame from their work with stars such as Janet Jackson, Babyface, Usher and Mary J. Blige – is about turning faith into action. Adams says she has a “lifelong bond” with the pair.

“We write together. We laugh, we cry,” said Adams, 63. “We talk about world issues together and think about how we can bring great music together that can make people aware of not only the blessings in their lives, but the place they currently find themselves in.”

Named Billboard’s top gospel artist of the 2000s, Adams has created iconic hits such as “The Battle Is the Lord’s,” “I’m Gonna Be Ready,” “In the Midst of It All” and “Be Blessed,” as well as the Jam & Lewis-produced hits “Never Give Up” and “Open My Heart,” taken from his 1999 Grammy-winning album, “Mountain High…Valley Low.”

“Open My Heart” was personally commissioned by the late Luther Vandross when his record label needed a different single, and it reached unprecedented heights, crossing over to R&B radio and peaking at number 57 on the Billboard Hot 100.

“I was preparing to make a business decision that didn’t just affect my family. It affected everybody that walked down the street with me,” Adams said when reflecting on the song’s inspiration. “I’m sitting here today because I made the right decision.”

The Texas Southern alumna stars in the BET drama, “Kingdom Business,” now in its second season, playing Denita, a gospel superstar and music executive determined to protect her family’s secrets. While Adams enjoys playing a character so different from herself, she says it has been challenging for some fans.

“I’ve lost some fans who say, ‘You didn’t have to cuss at that,'” she said, adding that though she has no input into the script, her character is relatable because churchgoers aren’t perfect. “When people deal with life, it can make you say some things you wouldn’t normally say. And I really hope people take that idea from ‘Kingdom Business’: If you were the person you’re trying to judge … how would you feel?”

Currently, Adams is on the 33-date Kirk Franklin Reunion Tour, joining him along with gospel legends Fred Hammond, Marvin Sapp and The Clark Sisters. Although gospel has always been his passion, he is open to doing a secular R&B song and has talked with Stevie Wonder about a duet and has asked him to help with his own potential gospel project.

But for now, while her focus is on highlighting the message of “Sunny Days,” she will measure its success not by units sold, but by hearts touched.

“When I hear your testimony and hear how music has been a part of your life, it makes me more responsible: ‘Yeah, I have to keep doing this music! I have to keep doing good music! OK God, give me some good stuff so I can bless people.'”

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Follow Associated Press entertainment reporter Gary Gerard Hamilton on all his social media platforms at @GaryGHamilton.

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