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CECE WINANS
If you ask CeCe Winans what drives her, the answer will be far removed from her endless list of accolades, best-selling albums, widespread industry recognition, and vast amounts of press coverage.

She'll make no mention of the multiple GRAMMY®, Stellar, and Dove awards she's garnered over the years, let alone the several gold-and platinum-certified albums she's scored—not even those she nabbed with brother BeBe as part of the hit-making duo BeBe & CeCe Winans.

She won't tell you she's graced the covers of high-profile publications such as Essence, Jet, CCM, and Today's Christian Woman, among countless others, or that she's made her rounds in the talk-show circuit, making appearances on The Today Show, Good Morning America, Oprah, Live with Regis & Kathie Lee, and more. And radio hits? Forget about it.

When all is said and done, CeCe's heart lies someplace else. Thy Kingdom Come (PureSprings Gospel), her eighth solo album, is a reflection of where her heart resides: in the very inner court of the heavenly realms, where Christ Himself is enthroned.

"When you're in the throne room, your focus is just God," CeCe says. "Nothing's more powerful than that. When you do other music—positive music, gospel, inspirational, whatever you want to name it—you're teaching lessons to other people, which is still very important. But nothing is more powerful than when you're face to face with God."

Purified, CeCe's chart-topping 2005 release, saw the singer entertaining her pop sensibilities, proving once again that she excels at interpreting buoyant, life-affirming songs that a wider audience could embrace. But Thy Kingdom Come is different: it finds the gospel veteran going back to what she does best, namely, lavishing honor and glory upon the King of Kings, while rallying His people to live like royal priesthood.

Not one to pick favorites, she says she loves both ends of the spectrum. But something about singing for God and His church strikes a cord in her that not even the most uplifting, stirring pop tune can.

"Singing for God and his people, It's more home for me," she says. "I'm most comfortable because I don't even have to think hard. It's something I love and I've been doing it for a long time. It comes from the heart. It touches the heart. I get lost in His will. I guess I have more fun shouting from the mountaintop."

And shout she does. For all intents and purposes, Thy Kingdom Come is one of the most empowering, moving collections of songs CeCe has recorded thus far. To make sure she reached the summit, she wrote or co-wrote 8 of the 14 songs on the project and she enlisted a who's-who of producers to help her get there, including Tommy Sims, Luther "Mano" Hanes, Percy Bady, new comer Christopher Capehart and his production partner Brannon Tunie, Cedric & Victor Caldwell, and even her own son, Alvin Love III.