Hazel Kandaya reports on the frontman of ISRAEL & NEW BREED, Israel Houghton

Israel Houghton

Born in difficult circumstances, multi-talented Israel Houghton is more, much more than the best selling, award winning gospel artist, producer and songwriter who has won a roomful of Grammies, Doves and Stellars. He is a man who has dedicated his life to God, crossing denominational and cultural boundaries to share his God-given talent to a diverse audience. "I'm often asked by sceptics why I'm as passionate about worshipping God as I am," he says. "The answer is simple for me. In this age of disposable relationships, I could easily have become a statistic and, at best, a distant memory of a youthful mistake. Instead, a sovereign God rescued my mother and gave us hope, a future and a testimony of the providence of God. The very least I can do is enter his gates with thanksgiving, his courts with praise and eventually bow before his throne in intimate worship."

Israel attributes this success to his culturally diverse background. Speaking to blackgospel.com he says, "I would attribute that success to staying in the right place, at the right time, for the right reasons. What I mean by that is this. I was raised in a very culturally diverse family. I was the only black child in a white family in a Hispanic neighbourhood. I had all these cultures surrounding me. When I started to make my journey through the music business, I would hear folks say, 'You should only do this type of music.' Or 'You're not black enough for this style.' I decided to stay the course and hold my ground. We tried to exemplify that diversity when it wasn't accepted and when it wasn't considered the smart thing to do. We look back today and see that God had his hand upon our every move."

Israel was born to a white teenager impregnated by her black boyfriend. Pressured by her parents to abort, she left home in Waterloo, Iowa and moved to San Diego where she found salvation after being witnessed to by a woman on the street. During her study of the Bible she came across the name Israel numerous times and decided to name her son Israel when he was born in 1971.

Israel started out as a solo artist in the church in 1989, before founding New Breed ministries with his wife Meleasa in 1995. He released his first album 'Whisper It Loud' in 1997, which was not very successful. However, his later releases, 'New Season' (2001), 'Real' (2002) and 'Live From Another Level' (2004) made his mark in the music industry. Israel also released 'Alive In South Africa', recorded in Cape Town in 2005; a Christmas album, 'A Timeless Christmas' (2006) and 'A Deeper Level' (2007). Israel has also produced albums for numerous other artists including the best selling Martha Munizzi. Gospel pioneer Fred Hammond has been a big influence on Israel. Says Israel, "Fred Hammond has been a mentor to me. He was a long-distance mentor to me before I knew him. My wife and I studied everything he did with Commissioned and later on his worship albums with RFC (Radical For Christ) like 'The Inner Court' and 'Spirit Of David'. It revolutionised gospel music. It certainly brought worship music to the urban church in America. I was intrigued by that. I finally got the opportunity to work with him. He produced a song that my wife and I wrote for Marvin Sapp called 'Nothing Else Matters'. That opened up a door to establish a relationship with Fred. From there, I got a chance to tour with him and work with him in the studio and on his live video recording. I got the opportunity to see a living legend like Fred stay relevant and consistent in worship and the experience was just incredible. I also had the opportunity to work with Andrae Crouch. He was the first concert I had the chance to attend in my life, when I was just five years old. So, to have the opportunity to work with him, years later, was also so incredible."

Israel And New Breed

Like any artist, Israel's work has faced criticism from the media. When asked how he feels about the criticism of his album 'A Deeper Level' he responds, "The thing that hurt me most was that one writer said I was pandering to a right-wing, conservative audience. If anything, I'm trying to challenge the Church to [broaden itself]. White, black. . . it doesn't matter. Conservative, democrat, republican, independent. . . I'm not trying to make a political statement. The thing I've found is that if you call yourself a worshiper, if you're that close to the heart of God, then you realise God is offering a message of love and hope to the Church and to the world. It's not to offend anybody out there or make others feel uncomfortable, but to make people feel welcome."

He continues, "At some point I can't bother with [the criticism]. People need to understand that what we said on this record is part of a compilation of three nights of a [ministry] conference. We addressed things where people were really hurting and getting free. We were addressing that and capturing that moment. At some point I have to say to the critics, 'Listen, I didn't mean to offend anybody. If I did, I have to hand you over to God and you have to deal with that with him.' My heart was right when I said what I said."

On fans comments that his sound has become "less gospel", Israel responds, "I wouldn't agree with that at all. There's a tendency to categorise things and define [what is and is not] 'it'. I was never [purely] a gospel artist or 'black gospel' artist. But I think in terms of praise and worship - which is what I'm a lot more comfortable being associated with. I pushed past the notion of 'this is how we do worship and this is the only way to do worship.' I've definitely climbed out of that box."

Israel works closely with his family in his ministry. "We're working as a family on how we can be more a part of the giving than the receiving. So we're doing some charitable things and coming together to help others. I think that's more rewarding than any present you can open for yourself." Israel will continue to pioneer in the music industry even after his great success. "The next thing you'll see from me is a Spanish language record. I really believe in putting my time and my money where my mouth is."