Queen Esther Marrow

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Queen Esther Marrow, First Lady of Gospel
At the close of a busy and eventful summer, Queen Esther Marrow has been awarded a very special honor in her native town Newport News, Virginia: she was the first person to be presented with the Ella Fitzgerald and Pearl Bailey Lifetime Achievement Award, in honor of the other two outstanding singers who were born in this town on the Atlantic coast. The award, initiated by the town’s mayor and the Carver Memorial Presbyterian Church, acknowledges Queen Esther Marrow’s impressive artistic endeavors as well as her life-long dedication top humanitarian aid. The artist rewarded dignitaries and inhabitants of Newport News with a unique live performance: with her band and background singers she presented a series of highlights from her outstanding repertoire. In the summer of 2005, Queen Esther Marrow gathered The Harlem Gospel Singers, the world-renowned group which she co-founded, in the studio to record their first Christmas album. Together, they then went on to their next European tour. Also in 2005, Queen Esther Marrow was greatly honored to perform for Senator Hillary Clinton. She also worked on a new theatre production. 2004 she created the role of “Mother Shaw” in Crowns, the award winning new musical at the Cleveland Playhouse and appeared in the world premier of In Mahalia’s Light, an autobiographical theatre piece that Queen Esther co-wrote and starred in the Passage Theatre in Trenton, New Jersey and several American concerts including Houston, Cincinnati, Philadelphia, Kansas City and New Orleans. Queen Esther’s energy is boundless. When you look at Queen Esther Marrow’s life you understand how gospel superstars are made. Her mother named her with pride and dignity and Queen Esther has shown that she is worthy of her majestic title. This celebrated “First Lady of Gospel Music” began her career at the young age of 22 when her incredible talent and vocal gift were discovered by the great Duke Ellington. He signed Queen for his Sacred Concert world tour, in which she was featured. Queen Esther and Duke Ellington formed a lifelong friendship during the next four years while touring together. Queen Esther’s career is surrounded by famous musical and political leaders who have shaped her mind and spirit. Following her first professional engagements with Ellington, she was invited to tour throughout America with Harry Belafonte. Queen Esther has since performed with such musical greats as Lena Horne, Ella Fitzgerald, B.B. King, Ray Charles, Theloneous Monk, Chick Corea and Bob Dylan. In 1965, Queen Esther actively joined the American civil rights movement when she performed in Dr. Martin Luther King’s “World Crusade”. There she met her lifetime idol Mahalia Jackson with whom she would later share the stage. Other political activists on the crusade were Jesse Jackson, Sidney Poitier and Dr. Ralf Abernathy. After the turbulent yet successful 60s, Queen Esther turned her talents to musical theater, jazz, television and film. She performed on Broadway in The Wiz, Comin Uptown and It’s So Nice To Be Civilized, and she starred n the national tour of Sing Mahalia Sing, directed by George Faison. Queen Esther also appeared in the film The Last Dragon produced by Barry Gordy of Motown fame. Her television appearances have ranged from the serious to the comic. They include “Duke Ellington: The Music Lives On” and as Oscar the Grouch’s mother in “Sesame Street” on PBS. In 1990, a dream of Queen’s came true when Truly Blessed, a musical about Mahalia Jackson which she wrote, produced and starred in became a reality in San Francisco, Washington, D.C. and on Broadway in New York City. The musical was awarded three Helen Hayes nominations. Queen Esther has performed for former Presidents Reagan, Bush, Clinton and the British Royal Family. Recently her most prestigious honor was performing for Pope John Paul II, who asked for Queen Esther and The Harlem Gospel Singers to perform for him three times over the last two years. The last time Queen performed for the Pope, witnesses say they saw him tapping his foot to the music in delight. With her incomparable style, Queen Esther Marrow is shaping modern gospel music into a singular new sound, together with The Harlem Gospel Singers. Cofounded by her in 1990, the group boasts some of America’s finest voices. Year on year since then she has worked on or even two newly staged shows, both as musical supervisor and alongside Roseanne Kirk and Michael Brenner in casting. Her previous CD “God Cares”, was released in 2002 by EMI Gospel in the US and is available from EMI Classics in Germany.