Published: June 02, 2006 11:10 pm            

Ford Arena hosts Pastor Kee

Pastor John P. Kee of the New Life Fellowship Center in Charlotte, N.C., has an inspirational story to tell, and he is bringing it to Beaumont with an appearance at Ford Arena at 7:30 p.m. June 16.

This talented minister and musician will be joined by his New Life Community Choir, and the Michigan-based quartet RiZen will also be performing that evening.

Tickets are on sale now at the Ford Park box office and all Ticketmaster outlets. Or, charge by phone by calling 409-833-7747 in Southeast Texas, 337-474-4900 in Lake Charles/Lafayette, and 713-629-3700 in the Houston area. Tickets can also be purchased online at www.ticketmaster.com. All Ticketmaster outlets are subject to a service charge. Regular hours for the Ford Park Box Office are weekdays, 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. Ticket prices are $30 on the floor and $27.50 in the stands. Ticket prices increase to $33 and $30 day-of-show. Groups of 10 or more can purchase discounted tickets at $26.50 and $24.00, please call 409-951-5413 for group orders.

Born and raised in Durham, N.C., John P. Kee was an excellent student and was placed in a special school for musically gifted children. He started his musical career at the age of 14, and moved to California to study further.

According to his bio, by his late teens Kee had drifted into a street lifestyle that brought him to Charlotte and a life of corruption. In his early 20s he began to turn his life around and returned to active involvement with the Church.

In the mid-1980s Kee formed a community choir which eventually grew to become the New Life Community Choir. By the mid-1990s he was pastor at the New Life Fellowship Church in Charlotte.

Kee travels with the choir performing and ministering around the country, as well as maintaining the activities of his home base church. His most recent musical successes are a 2006 Grammy Nomination of Best Gospel Choir Album for “Live at the Fellowship” and the 2006 Stellar Award Nomination of Traditional Male Vocalist of the Year for “The Color of Music.”

This Saginaw, Michigan quartet, made up of sisters Adriann and Aundrea Lewis, plus Kanika Trigg and Ashley Jones, perform both contemporary and traditional gospel music. The group formed originally in 1996, and has been condensed from ten members down to these four focused and dedicated individuals. Most of the women had been performing since childhood, and upon joining together they have concentrated their talent over the years into an impressive career. Their latest accomplishment are the three 2006 Stellar Award Nominations for the album “RiZen 2” as Traditional Group/Duo of the Year, Group/Duo of the Year, and Traditional CD of the Year.

        

• Click to discuss this story with other readers on our forums.