Gospel star Byron Cage ready to add reality TV to his plate
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By DERON SNYDER
It was almost 9 p.m. and Byron Cage was exhausted after serving as the Men’s Day guest psalmist at First Baptist Church of Glenarden’s evening service. He had served at the three morning services, too, and was operating on very little sleep.
“I went to bed at 10 [p.m.] and woke up around one o’clock” says Cage, who needed a guest host for his local Sunday afternoon show on Praise 104.1 FM. “I was so wired about doing ministry today. I like to be sensitive and remain in the spirit, all that kind of stuff.”
Dubbed the “Prince of Praise” by Reverend Dr. Jo Ann Browning, the co-pastor at Ebenezer A.M.E. Church in Fort Washington, Md., Cage and the Men’s Day Chorus treated worshipers to a “well-balanced diet” of music ministry. That was only fitting, considering his success at producing traditional gospel, contemporary gospel, anthems and praise & worship songs.
“I think it’s because I love music and all areas of gospel music, in particular,” he says. “When (FBCG) asked me to direct and prepare the music, I strategically put it together so it wasn’t just one thing, like all quartet or all praise & worship.
“It was a soul food meal, if you will. It had chicken, ham, collard greens, mashed potatoes, dressing, candied yams and sweet tea lemonade. Anybody who wanted something to eat could pull from that plate and that’s what I was trying to do.”
Cage has been doing it since the mid-90s when he and his group, Purpose, released “Dwell Among Us” and “Transparent in Your Presence.” During that time he became minister of praise & worship for Bishop Paul S. Morton and sang lead with the Full Gospel Baptist Fellowship Mass Choir on a pair of smash hits, “Shabach” and “Yet Praise Him.”
But a not-so-funny thing happened en route to Cage winning multiple Stellar Awards and a Grammy nomination. After his contract with Atlanta International Records ended, he didn’t record anything else for the next seven years. “I really want to say I was in the desert.”
Potential deals arose but they didn’t make sense spiritually or business-wise. He served as minister of music at New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Atlanta and later moved to Washington to fill the same position at Ebenezer (where he’s in his 16th year of service). It still was a few years before he recorded “Byron Cage: Live at New Birth Cathedral,” which earned Stellars 2004’s top Male Vocalist, Producer, CD, Contemporary CD and Song (“The Presence of the Lord is Here”).
Regarding the long gap in his career, Cage says “there may have been frustrating days, but there were never doubtful days. I was faithful and just kept quoting Scriptures in my life, saying ‘I don’t know when, but He’s going to turn it around. When ‘Presence of the Lord’ came out, everybody jumped on because they knew I wasn’t a novice or some new person coming along.
“But they also had seen me serve. They saw me be faithful and support everybody else who was hot during that time. I was still going to the concerts and buying CDs. I was still inviting them to New Birth or Ebenezer and funding them to come. So I was always supportive and I think that’s why the Lord honored me.”
More honor was bestowed at the Stellar Awards in January when he was signed by the Inspired People Music label, which is distributed through Motown Gospel. He has begun work on his next album, which is being produced by FBCG’s music/band director Daniel Weatherspoon.
In addition to that project, Cage has been developing TV shows for three years and expects one to air soon. He says rumors that he was leaving gospel music altogether were false. “People thought I was resigning from being minister of music to be in reality TV, and that’s not the truth,” he says. “I create reality shows. Not all of them are faith-based. Although they all have a faith-based answer in the show, it’s not necessarily Christian TV.
“I just believe in becoming all things to all people so we can win them and be the light – even if we go into a dark place. The first show will come out in 2014 and the others won’t be until 2015.”
Meanwhile, Cage will continue to ride his Harley and play as much golf as possible – his two main forms of relaxation. And he’ll continue to make music that aims to “glorify God and point the listener to Christ.”
