Tamela Mann Talks Stellar Awards, New Deluxe Edition Of Album, And Starring In ‘The Color Purple’

Establishing a successful faith-based career in the entertainment industry, which is mainly secular, is no small feat. However, armed with her belief and integrity, Gospel Music Stellar® award winner Tamela Mann has managed to topple Hollywood's seemingly fortified stone walls like Jericho.

In the story of Joshua, he led the people of Israel to defeat the unconquerable city of Jericho so they could enter the Promised Land as ordained by God. The nation of Israel had to follow strict instructions that included marching around the city six times. On the seventh day, Israel's army and priests used their trumpets of praise and the power of their voices to destroy the settlement. In the same vein, Mann's artistry is indicative of this Biblical story, as she also uses instruments of worship and her anointed voice to inspire her listeners to vanquish the opposition in their lives. She set a new record for most No. 1 singles on Billboard's gospel airplay chart by any artist.

As an actress and gospel singer, Mann decided to release a deluxe edition of her album Overcomer. The deluxe album is deemed Mann's best work, keeping to the original version's themes of resilience, strength, purpose, and the beauty of faith while offering additional tracks and intimate live renditions of popular songs from Overcomer. Overcomer: Deluxe Edition is available on all major streaming platforms.

"On the original, I enjoyed the studio work. But it's something about actual live performances for me, to have some people in the room, and us glorifying and giving God praise, it just takes me to a whole new place," reflects Mann during our Zoom call. "I always look at it as [if] it may be my last time, and when I say overcomer, I'm overcoming things that I'm dealing with, [like] obstacles in my life, and it's just not for me, it's to help somebody else."

For this album, she returned to the studio and redid her songs' live and musical collaborations, which was new for her.

"But it was from a different place this time because I've been standing on my own. To be able to do it with somebody else was such a joy," she says ecstatically, divulging she that had never sung with another person before and was a bit nervous but excited.

When asked why it was challenging for her to sing with another person, she candidly answered, "It was challenging for me because of who it was; it was with the G.O.A.T, the legendary Yolanda Adams. I've been on stage with her, but in the background, but not like singing side by side like this, so it was a different experience."

The first song on the deluxe edition was her duet with Adams at the encouragement of gospel singer and producer Kirk Franklin.

"Kirk was like, 'I want you to do this song together,' and he put it together so wonderfully," she recalls, adding that Franklin had arranged the song that allowed the voices of both vocalists to work together harmoniously.

"At first because I was like, 'man, this song is so deep' and but it's such an encouraging song [that] talks about a lot of things that's going on in our world now, the injustices that happening with our people, and then we're looking for our government to help save us from Covid and this heat thing. We're crying out to the people, but our cry should be to the superhero himself, which is Jesus," she affirms.

She goes on to explain that her faith in God will bless the new album, and it will serve as an encouragement for others to complete the work they have begun. "A lot of things we start, we don't complete, and I'm just like, Lord, help me to change in different areas to make me better by not being a procrastinator and finish things that I've started," she pleads.

Not only is it difficult to complete our assignments with topsy-turvy schedules, but it is also doubly fatiguing to sustain faith when confronted with the official recession, unemployment, job loss, growing inflation, increased gas prices, another variant of Covid, monkeypox, the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, and numerous natural disasters.

Mann understands, yet she acknowledges that people will have "trying days."

"Scripture tells us that those that live Godly will suffer persecution, that there will be days, but then that's when we rely on him. When we're weak, that's when we're strong because we rely on his strength and not our strength, and that's where faith comes in and hope because they work together. Still, there will be a brighter day, there will be a cooler day that things get better," she reassures and implores people to take note of the blessing they have now as they go through the struggle.

She continues: "A lot of times, the Lord allows things to happen to us to see if we're going to trust him. But He wants to see, first of all, if we're going to believe and if we're going to trust that He can and He will. So that's my encouragement, and that's how I stand. That's how I live; my hope is in Him and nothing less than Jesus' blood and His righteousness. I'm standing on His promises that He said that He'll never leave me, that he wouldn't forsake me, and that's how I'm hoping to encourage somebody else."

Mann says the songs on the recording speak to her submitting to God's will and that her goal is for people to reach out to Him. She shares that one of the tracks titled Finished had her weeping but not with sorrow, "Let it begin in me that I can be an encouragement to show people that we can finish."

The 56-year-old commitment to honor God in all her ways had undoubtedly helped her garner nominations for the Stellar Awards. She is up for Best Artist, Best Female Artist, Song of the Year, Album of Year, the Albertina Walker Female Artist of the Year, and Music Video.

Billboard assembled a list of the winners; the ceremony was taped on Saturday, July 16, at Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre in Atlanta.

She won Best Contemporary Female Artists of the Year, the Albertina Walker Female Artist of the Year, and her son, who directed the Help Me video, also took home an award. Mann said being recognized by her peers was hugely significant to her.

"For my son to win was like the ultimate high for a mother because he said after we did the song and he was like, 'Mom, I have an idea. I know our hope is in Jesus, and we can go to the church and our pastor. [But] Mom, we got to express to people that it's okay to see a therapist and there's nothing wrong with it. I want people to get that message through this video," Mann recalls agreeing to the idea and his visual direction.

The two scouted for a location and decided to film in an old church that was schedule to be demolished. The "Take Me To The King" singer relished the notion that even though the church would be destroyed, it would live on forever in the video, conveying hope. At one time, there was a stigma in the Black community around mental health and seeing a therapist; however, in the last few years, attitudes towards mental health awareness are changing. Mann said that when their names were called for the category, she was nervous but grateful for the opportunity to share the message and help others.

Mann's ability to touch the lives of her audience did not go unnoticed by talk show host and media mogul Oprah Winfrey. She sought her out to play a role in the upcoming musical adaptation of The Color Purple.

"She did call me, but Tyler Perry called me first and said, 'Oprah is over there fighting for you to be in this movie,'" she says between giggles. "These people don't know who Tamela Mann is; she felt like they should know who you are."

To convince the producers and directors that she could be a part of the film, she sent over clips of her acting, set up a call with director Blitz the Ambassador, and brought her on board.

"When I went to film, she hadn't been out of her house since 2020. She said, 'I came to see you film this part; that's how much I believe in you. You know, that hit below the belt," she says, which motivated her to memorize her lines and practice her choreography.

"I came back over prepared. I remembered my dance moves; ya'll going to be so surprised everybody because I'm dancing and I'm singing," she laughs. "Probably some of y'all have seen me do a holy dance, but this, it took some work, but I was excited to do it, I was excited to be a part of it; it's going to be beautiful." The film is set for a December 2023 release.

In addition to managing a thriving career, Mann has a production company she shares with her husband, David Mann, Tillymann Entertainment, focusing on television and film development, touring, and music. The couple also launched their YouTube channel MannTV with a new program called Mama's Mann's Kitchen.

She also ventured into creating a new shapewear line for plus sizes and athleisure line because, "I wanted something made with good fabrics. I'm about the quality, so sometimes it costs a little bit more because I want it to last you," she says, describing the line. "It's for your everyday woman running errands and working out. I even made some pieces for some ladies who don't wear pants. If they do want to work out in a skirt set, they still could be able to do that but still be in athleisure wear that gives a little bit of stretch." The Tamela Mann shapewear it's available under the Tamela Mann Collection on her website.

"I'm always wearing something the ladies [say] what kind of shapewear are you wearing. I created this where it's comfortable, but it holds you, but [it doesn't] make you uncomfortable," she explains.

Her shapewear line caters to sizes from large to 3X, and the athleisure has sizes from 12 to 32.

"I'm pushing it just as well as this music because we got to look good, and we're going to overcome this thing with this weight. I'm not going to be bound with this for the rest of my life. I got to get [myself together]," she says with a joyous giggle.

Check out the Stellar Awards ceremony, co-hosted by Jekalyn Carr and Kierra Sheard, tonight on Sunday, Aug. 7, at 8 p.m. ET/PT on BET, BET Her, and BET International. The program will be syndicated across the U.S. between Aug. 13 and Sept. 11; check local listings.