b. 9 November 1959, Amityville, New York, USA. This bestselling gospel vocalist’s lifelong friendship with Andrae Crouch has informed his own exuberant style. McClurkin’s troubled childhood was redeemed by his strong faith, and his path in life was made clearer when he was introduced to Crouch at the age of 11 by his aunt Bea Carr, who sang backing vocals for the gospel legend. McClurkin initially played piano for his church’s youth choir before taking up singing and forming his own vocal groups, including the McClurkin Singers and the New York Restoration Choir. In 1989, he was hired as an associate pastor at Marvin Winans’ Perfecting Church in Detroit and, after recovering from leukaemia, established himself as a leading choir director. He was ordained at the end of the 90s and became senior pastor at the Perfecting Faith Church in Freeport, New York.
McClurkin’s recorded output includes a 1996 set for the Warner Alliance label and several albums with the New York Restoration Choir. The 2000 Live In London concert recording spent 37 weeks at the top of the US gospel charts, while the studio follow-up Donnie McClurkin... Again topped the charts for a further 10 weeks in 2003.
