::ALBUM REVIEW::

Sister Kelly Price is on a serious mission now. She laid down an impressive foundation in her R&B career by recording with big names including Diddy, Ma$e and the Notorious B.I.G. and even worked up her own share of hits in the late nineties. She has also since then lost an incredible amount of weight; almost completely redefining her image and experiencing an incredible physical transformation. But her mission now is defined on her debut gospel project - a decision recently by her to reveal to the gospel community that she is sold out for Jesus and she's not ashamed of it. Her album release, "This Is Who I Am", is all about revealing her spiritual side and exposing ears to testimonial bait mostly written or inspired by her to capture a gospel fanbase. You can hear her intentions easily in songs like the title cut (which clearly states this is who I am , this is what I do, spreading the gospel, telling the good news) and "I Can't Turn Back". Rather than treading on safe territory and delivering simple inspirational tunes, Price goes into the deep to deal with meaty gospel substance and touches on different subjects and topics while continuing to remind listeners "this is who I am". It's a cool and innovative trick to merge an introductory chapter into a good story.

Price leans on Shep Crawford (Luther Vandross, Heather Headley, Yolanda Adams) to produce the live recording session held at Zion Cathedral COGIC in Freeport, NY. And with a R&B/pop producer like Crawford, this album doesn't flow like typical gospel live recordings produced by gospel musicians. Instead, it feels like an MTV Unplugged set of Alicia Keys but with infectious instrumentation definitely complimenting her R&B roots while showcasing favor for the live gospel experience. Mostly all of the new cuts here are penned by Price; showcasing a side mostly overshadowed on her previous R&B workouts. Eric Seats rocks the drums, while Crawford along with Terrence Chaney and Darius Pimpleton handles the keys. A female-only ensemble backs up Price and even appears on the heavy gospel cuts. Typical concert sound here.

There's some good moments to look for here, such as the Al Green-sampled "Heaven's Best"; which borrows a lyric and the groovy gospel-influenced melody from "Love And Happiness" . The song possesses alot of personality with its declarations of pride for God's blessings. There's an abundant joy in Price's voice and tone on this cut, especially on the explosive vamp. She feels very comfortable here and reveals amazing strength in ad-libbing - a must for gospel singers. "Get Up And Praise" almost sounds like Fred Hammond's "We're Blessed" but with a Mary Mary vibe. The song is styled with hip-hop spunk and proves to be a winner on the disc. "Healing" is guided by a smooth R&B/contemporary jazz vibe and even gets a glossier feel - taking out most of the live sound and feeling like a studio event. Probably this is the label's first single, but this song captures the sound that Price's fanbase are used to. While the chorus' lyrics isn't as strong as it should be, the song still should win a number of listeners. The classic "Nobody But Jesus", penned by Steven Roberts, surprisingly unites the original artist and legend Vanessa Bell Armstrong with the young'in. Price opens the eight-minute cut and does a wonderful job rendering her take on the hearty masterpiece, but Armstrong graces the second verse and explodes with animated character and vocal punctuation. When the chorus goes into repetitive mode, Armstrong and Price delivers a climatic deliverance that is hardly duplicated in gospel live recordings. The smooth R&B ballads "The Warning", "Just As I Am" (which should have been extended a little longer) and "What A Friend", a Richard Smallwood contribution, are also warm moments that help the disc's enjoyment.

Where Price goes wrong may surprise a few. Joe Ligon joins with Price on a breezy rendition of Margaret Douroux's "God Is Not Dead". The instrumentation, while good in some places, feels like a rushed arrangement. Add a few bomb notes from Price and Ligon and a few jump-in clashes from both and the song packs a nasty sting. Another odd observance to look into includes Richard Smallwood's credit on "What A Friend". The linear notes mentions he's on the cut, but he doesn't sing and there's no way we can trace he played an instrument on this cut since he wasn't mentioned in the musicians' credits. When the song finally fades, Smallwood enthusiasts may be a bit disappointed. Unless they know for sure, without any doubt, he was featured on here. Also, she tries too hard lyrically on "God Is Faithful" - telling a full testimony captivated with long verses to finally reach a simple decree of God's faithfulness. Even with Donnie McClurkin's charismatic deliveries (which sounds good on this kind of song), the song feels overdone. And the title cut, while it is styled nicely and reminds us of that lovely uptempo R&B sound that dominated the nineties, has a chorus that is repeated more than it should.

Fans of Monica and Mary J. Blige will respect Kelly Price's leap into the gospel sound, while followers of Mary Mary and Lisa McClendon will both enjoy the hearty material featured on "This Is Who I Am". Even for a gospel debut, Price does ignore most conventional rules of status quo introductions. She does come off too preachy in certain places and almost feels as if she is trying to prove a point. But that's the joy of being saved and filled with God's precious spirit. Kelly Price isn't ashamed of that at all. And with groovy jams, a few memorable ballads and a respectable presentation bound to appeal to traditional and contemporary gospel audiences, she is on her way to winning the hearts of many skeptics. We are sure her leap to gospel might feel like a replica of Aretha Franklin's "Amazing Grace" or "One Lord One Faith One Baptism" project, especially with all of the throwbacks and appearances from gospel legends like Joe Ligon and Vanessa Bell Armstrong, but this is a warm surprise for gospel lovers. It is important to note that an inspirational cut penned by Shep Crawford or from a few other respected songwriters along with a few more cuts will have made this album a greater achievement. But the overall project is a pleasing contribution to this year's gospel releases and surely reveals the multiple giftings of Price; proving that her career in gospel and even R&B will continue to shape up.