Marvia Providence ‘Anointed’ for ministry - Offers ‘Bible pull up and come again’ entertainment to gospel audiences
Published:Sunday | May 3, 2020 | 12:00 AMYasmine Peru - Senior Gleaner Writer
Just the mention of the name Marvia Providence sends a tingle to the toes and, immediately, feet start tapping and bodies begin swaying. Before you know it, all the ‘warriors’ – prayer and otherwise – are in full flight. That’s the effect of the gospel vocalist and full-time minister, who is unafraid of using whatever genre necessary to get her ‘God is the answer’ message across. Seven years after the release of her last album, Be Encouraged, Providence is ready to drop a new gospel set and, if the lead single is any indication of the project, then, obviously, she is again ready to “tun it all the way up”.
“OK everyone. Tthe long-awaited new single coming soon. Can’t wait. You ready to take back you sinting dem, Warriors?” is how she talks up the I’m Anointed single on social media. And her “unda di blood” warriors are already eagerly stomping their “anointed feet” and quoting the lyrics. A video clip shows her giving a high-energy performance, evoking the spirit of the dancehall-dipped Hear My Cry, Oh God, the song which deejay Elephant Man flipped into his massive 2009 Bun Bad Mind opus. Providence throws down a set that is worthy of an authentic, dancehall-style money pull-up, or rather, as one of her ‘warriors’ neatly puts it, “Bible pull up and come again”.
“It’s been a while since my last project and I know that the time is right for this, so I am doing it in faith,” she told The Gleaner from her home in Canada. “ I’m Anointed, the lead track, which is also the album title, is a song I wrote years ago but is still relevant. It should be released this week. This time around, I am ensuring everything is in place, because, in the past, I have been robbed blind,” Providence shared.
She revealed that the album, which is flavoured with ska, soca and reggae, is an in-concert set, recorded live last November. And how many tracks? “Too many,” was her quick response. “I might have to do a double CD. There are about five medleys. I love medleys, and there is also a collab with Junior Smith, titled Father we need a Blessing. However, on the night of the performance, several others joined in. We handed the mic to some of our own, like Londa Larmond, Caleen Howard, Kim Adegboruwa and Jennifer Lewin, to ad lib. It was wonderful. I am definitely going to do more collabs,” the I’m A Warrior singer stated.
Providence, who pursued a bachelor’s degree course at the Emmanuel Bible College in Kitchener, Ontario, has been involved in full-time ministry for more than 20 years. An ordained pastor, she does crusades, conventions, ladies’ retreats and revivals, but she is not pastoring her own church. “We need more ministers, not more churches,” she said. “A lot of times the Church is there, but it is not impacting the community.”
And, for her, making an impact is key to ministry. “In my travels, sometimes I am not treated well. There are times when I am in the hotel room crying and asking God ‘Why?’. But, as a gospel artiste, I have to show up on that stage and perform, because the people don’t know what’s happening backstage with me and the promoters. And the fulfilment comes when lives are changed, and you run into persons who tell you how much of an impact a particular event had on their lives,” she explained,
Although she is fully settled in her role, Providence, in her early days, was somewhat of a biblical Jonah, who is known as the reluctant prophet. “When I was growing up, I was told that God was calling me, but I wasn’t interested,” she admitted, because, in her mind, there was a lot of justification for her shunning the call. “A call like that in Jamaica meant trials and tribulations. So I said, ‘God, I have enough problems in my life already’,” she recalled, laughing at the shallowness of her former self.
Providence, in February, received the ByBlacks People’s Choice Award for Best Gospel Artiste 2019, at a function in Scarborough, Ontario. The organisation recognises Black Canadian excellence, and winners are chosen in 78 categories through two rounds of online voting.