Xscape’s LaTocha Scott Is Working on Gospel Album Courtesy of Motown Gospel…

Hello World,

After all of the drama with LaTocha Scott of Xscape in 2022, it seems that LaTocha is doing a new thing in 2023.

Below is the official announcement!

Motown Gospel (a division of Capitol CMG/Capitol and Universal Music Group) announces the signing of award-winning artist LaTocha to an exclusive license agreement via her own label, Made Girl Music. A multi-hyphenate force in the music industry, LaTocha is best known as a member of the multi-platinum-selling R&B group Xscape, providing leads on some of the group’s biggest songs, including “Who Can I Run To” and “The Arms of the One Who Loves You.”

“It has always been a passion of mine to do inspirational music,” says LaTocha. “It has been my foundation, and that is very evident, even when I sing R&B music. I can’t escape that.”

For the powerhouse songstress, the interplay of music and faith began at Mt. Olive Church of God in Holiness, in her hometown of College Park, GA. She leaned on that foundation even as she became a household name in one of the biggest girl groups in R&B history.

“A hallmark of LaTocha’s successful career has been her love for gospel music and her strong personal connection to the Black church,” shares Monica Coates, Co-Executive Director, Motown Gospel. “I am excited for her fans—long-standing and new—to finally have a body of work that reflects those areas of her passion.”

Adds EJ Gaines, Co-Executive Director of Motown Gospel: “LaTocha has one of the most recognized voices in R&B, but she also has staying power and manages to maintain relevance in a marketplace that doesn’t always allow for that. I can’t wait for her fans to hear what she’s been working on.”

LaTocha is readying her debut inspirational project, slated for release this year. Fans can stay connected with LaTocha via her social media channels– @iAmLaTocha on Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and Facebook.

I must admit that I’m always a bit skeptical of artists in other genres “going gospel.” I’m not saying that just because you’re  known for one style of music that you cannot explore other genres of music, after all a true artist is an adventurer by nature. But I wonder sometimes if some artists are just trying to garner more of an audience because the gospel music audience is a huge one. But I will give LaTocha, who does have a voice made for gospel music, the benefit of the doubt even after all of the drama from 2022, which could have likely been manufactured for Xscape’s reality show Xscape Still Kickin’ It anyway. And furthermore, if her fellow Xscape member Kandi Burruss can release “Stay Prayed Up” with Marvin Sapp, LaTocha can go gospel as well…

What say you?

Any thoughts?

Pastor Creflo Dollar of World Changers Megachurch in Metro Atlanta Says He Was Not Correct About Tithing in Sermon ‘The Great Misunderstanding’

Hello World,

I never thought I would see the day that World Changers Church International Pastor, Creflo Dollar, would have a different philosophy about tithing…See, World Changers is located in College Park, and College Park is where I spent most of my childhood. I remember when World Changers was not there. In fact, I remember when the church campus was simply a shopping center on Old Nat L, College Park residents’ beloved nickname for Old National Highway, a main thoroughfare in the city. So to have seen a simple shopping center become an internationally known megachurch was something to behold, and I imagine all of us CPK or Collipark (two more nicknames) residents were stunned by the spectacle. And I imagine we were all curious about the black man who built the empire. All I knew was that I went to high school with one of Pastor Dollar’s cousins, and her last name was Dollar too. So if you’re wondering if he changed his last name to Dollar, unless his cousins changed their last name too, that’s highly unlikely. But it was kind of funny to witness a man whose last name was Dollar build a megachurch that must have cost millions of dollars.

I imagine that out of curiosity that almost every College Park resident has visited World Changers at least once. I have. Years ago, I dated a member of the church, and I attended with him at least once. And then some years after that, I attended a Yolanda Adams concert there. But back to the lone service I attended, I remember there was a heavy emphasis on tithing, and it made me uncomfortable. I cannot lie about that. At my church where my father was the senior pastor for many years, while he preached on tithing and believes in it, it is not emphasized in every service. Tithing is encouraged; however, tithing is just one of many biblical principles that were preached about over the course of time. And while I have tithed since I was a teenager due to my father’s encouragement, I never felt pressure to do so. But during that one service, I got the feeling that compulsory tithing was a core tenet of World Changers.

That being said, as I was never a member, I wasn’t familiar with his other teachings. I would imagine that members of Pastor Dollar’s church have learned many principles from him that have nothing to do with money. Despite whatever else he taught, however, it seemed that nearly every story I’ve heard about him and World Changers over the years had to do with money. The jet story comes to mind. People have speculated that he has amassed wealth due to his teaching about compulsory tithing which I cannot confirm or deny. All of this to say, I wonder after all of these years, what was the impetus for his change of heart around tithing. In his recent sermon “The Great Misunderstanding,” Pastor Dollar begins his sermon saying, “I want to start off by saying to you that I’m still growing, and that the teachings that I have shared in times past on the subject of tithing were not correct. And today I stand in humility to correct some things that I’ve taught over the years and believed for years but could not understand fully because I was not yet confronted with the gospel of grace which has made the difference. I won’t apologize because if it was not for me going down that route,  I would have never ended up where I am right now. But I will say that I have no shame at all at saying, throw away every book, every tape and every video I ever did on the subject of tithing unless it lines up with this.” Whoa, right?!!! That’s a beyond bold statement to make all of these years in…Me being who I am, I would have been like before I throw away everything, can I get a refund? Even if I only got back a fraction of what I spent, something is better than nothing has been said…LOL…But I digress…

There were many interesting points throughout the sermon that was preached in two parts on two different Sundays starting on June 26. Firstly, he establishes that his former approach to tithing was based on the Old Testament (in which tithing was mandated) and not the New Testament (in which tithing or giving was encouraged but not mandated) and that it was based on fear and guilt.

  • at 15:33, Pastor Dollars references 2 Corinthians 9:7 “Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” He goes on to say that Malachi 3:10 caused him to feel fear and pressure regarding tithing. He recounts in the early days of his marriage, he was 26 cents short on his tithe and could not give it. Shortly afterward, a brick was thrown through his car window, and he wondered if the incident occurred because he was short on his tithe.
  • at 23:54, he discusses the self-righteous Pharisee in Luke 18 who boasted about being a tither.
  • at 23:09, he encourages his congregation to read 2 Corinthians 9 to learn about Paul’s approach to giving…

And there were many other interesting points that he made… If you’re interested in seeing the totality of “The Great Misunderstanding,” the videos are below…

I wonder if there was a Q&A session at any point after these sermons because I have so many questions now…Three of them are below…

  1. The verses that he mentioned have been in the Bible the whole time he has been preaching, I wonder why he didn’t take them into account before now?
  2. Is there any concern that the ministries of the church will not be supported in the same way if tithing is no longer compulsory?
  3. Will there be some sort of refund in place? Before, when I referenced a refund, I was joking. However, even Uncle Sam gives refunds so why shouldn’t church members be given refunds when they have given based on incorrect teaching…I don’t know how that would be handled, but the idea is not incomprehensible…Even $25 a member would be a nice gesture going forward…

What say you?

Finally, I do applaud Pastor Dollar for being audacious in his admitting his mistake…

Any thoughts?

 

Former Pastor Mase To Reemerge at World Changers Church International’s Radical Revolution Conference

Hello World,

Y’all betta be glad I’m not God. I woulda banished some of y’all below just because you looked like you were judging me. And that’s what I’m trying to remember this morning as I type this blog post. I’m not God and just because I interpret something as being a certain way, that may not be the truth. Only God knows the condition of the hearts of men and women. So here’s the deal. Ya man Mase, or Pastor Mase as he was known in 2014, left his church that he founded as he got caught up in the rapture of rap it seems. I was so befuddled by his departure that I wrote an open letter on UrbanFaith.com. See an excerpt below:

Dear Mason Betha aka Murder Ma$e aka S.A.N.E. Minister Mason Betha aka Pastor Betha of El Elyon International Church,

I’m trying so hard not to judge you right now, but what is you doin’ man? (I’m sayin’ this Atlanta style since that is where you have lived since 1999.) I just read on TMZ that you, the pastor of El Elyon International Church, up and dipped on your congregation and returned to the “rap game full time.” Where they do that at? I knew something was up when, while flipping through television channels last week, I saw you rappin’ on some video and cheesin’ it up with your infectious smile like you did before you left Bad Boy for the ministry back in the day. And I wasn’t the only one that was confused. In a recent interview with The Breakfast Club, rapper Ja Rule—who seems to be finding his own way to faith–was asked about your return to the rap industry. According to a Madame Noire post of that interview he said, “I’m very confused by what Mase is doing. I don’t know if that’s cool or not. I wouldn’t play with the Lord like that.” Say that! Too read the full letter, to urbanfaith.com.

And then as recently as November 2017, Fader reported Mase is still beefin’ with rapper Cam’ron.

Over the Thanksgiving weekend, Cam’ron and Mase stoked the flames of an old beef, trading diss tracks back and forth. On Friday, Mase shared “The Oracle” and promptly took to Genius to annotate it. Cam’ron responded on Saturday night with “Dinner Time,” in which he alleges that Mase retired from rap to run a Ponzi scheme and calling into question his roots in Harlem. See the full article at thefader.com.

Dude released a diss track in which he was cussin’ and what not. Now, I don’t believe that if a cuss word escapes your lips, you’re headed to hell, but I just don’t think that God is pleased by this particular demonstration. But hey, I could be wrong. And furthermore, it seems downright silly to be spending time on a diss track at 40 years old. The only diss I’m worried about this age is “diss”ease. I hope this “beef” was all for show because Christian or not, we too old for that…Go cut some grass or something…That’s what men do at this age…

Me looking at Mase during the Men’s Panel…

All that to say, Grammy-nominated rapper Mason Betha and Grammy-Award winning singer/songwriter Johnta Austin among others will be featured in the the highly anticipated Men’s Panel (which will be offered for free to men) to be held during the 2018 Radical Revolution Conference at World Changers Church International in College Park, Georgia starting tomorrow, March 15 through Saturday, March 17.

Hosted by Pastor Taffi Dollar and the church’s Radical Women’s Ministry, the purpose of the three-day event is to bring clarity on gender equality in relationships, leadership, and business at a time of increasing confusion that exists in both the church and society. It will feature some of the biggest names in spiritual leadership and music including WCCI founder Creflo Dollar; businesswoman, author, and media personality, Sarah Jakes Roberts; well-known author and speaker Lisa Bevere; Grammy-Award winner Tasha Cobbs Leonard; gospel singer/songwriter and actor Micah Stampley and more.  Ticket prices vary with offerings for students, individuals, and groups.  A VIP Experience is also available and includes a Meet & Greet, a Dining and Listening Lounge, and giveaways, among other benefits.

For more information, go to eventbrite.com.

Any thoughts?