Queen Latifah, Joss Stone Go Gospel For A Day, Join Clark Sisters and more

Date: 03/28/09 | By NjaiJoszor
Filed under: Gospel, Queen Latifah

Queen Latifah, Jon Bon Jovi, Joss Stone, 3 Doors Down and several mainstream artists will take a spiritual walk on the forthcoming disc "Oh Happy Day: An All-Star Music Celebration."

The EMI Gospel/Vector Recordings collection will be released March 31 exclusively at Wal-Mart.

"It's something that we'd never really done before, and it seemed like it would be a lot of fun," 3 Doors Down lead vocalist Brad Arnold said of the band's foray into gospel music with "Presence of the Lord." "It seemed like it would also be a challenge because we'd never really recorded that style of song."

3 Doors Down is backed by the Soul Children of Chicago, a nondenominational community choir. "Oh Happy Day" also features such pairings as Heather Headley and Al Green on "People Get Ready," Patty Griffin and Mavis Staples on "Waiting for My Child to Come Home," Bon Jovi performing "Keep the Faith" with the Washington Youth Choir, and Robert Randolph and the Clark Sisters on the classic "High Ground."

"Being in the gospel world, you dream of opportunities like this," EMI Gospel vice president Larry Blackwell said of the enthusiasm the mainstream acts brought to the gospel project.

Physical sales of "Oh Happy Day" will be exclusive to Wal-Mart, but the album will be offered online through most digital outlets.

SRC: Billboard