Vocalist Rickie Byers Beckwith Releases “Let My Soul Surrender: Grace Notes of the Journey,” | Available Now

Vocalist Rickie Byers Beckwith Releases “Let My Soul Surrender: Grace Notes of the Journey,” | Available Now

Rickie Byars Beckwith, a gifted composer and singer
who has healed the hearts and lifted the spirit of countless
listeners, presents the release of her debut book, Let My Soul Surrender. The
book is accompanied in an exquisite package by her eighth solo CD of
the same name. Rickie BB, a native of Charlotte, North Carolina, carries
on in the soul and rhythm & blues tradition of Nina Simone, Curtis
Mayfield, Sam Cooke and the music of Motown, Liverpool and Stax Records.
Her talent has earned her a dedicated international fan base and over
100,000 records independently sold worldwide.

Never one
to rest on her laurels, Rickie has been inspired to author an
exceptional book of poetic prose, memoir and storytelling styles that
converge in a colorful mosaic of imagery and memories. Her stories are
embellished by the graphic design of Judi Paliungas and paintings by
artist extraordinaire, Dudley Declaime Perkins (of SomeOthaShipConnect).
Award-winning photographers Bonnie Schiffman, Shawn Keane, and Carl
Studna; and amazing fashion designers that include House of SITA and the
Wilbourn Sisters round out the project. Cascading with grace, rhythm
and Rickie’s trademark honesty, humor and home-spun wisdom, Let My Soul Surrender provides an intimate look at how the Spirit works through the artist in the creation of her music.

Every
song has a story, and Rickie knows how to tell it. Beckwith
acknowledges, “In this project, I accepted the voice inside of me. I let
go of the chatter in my head that measured my gifts against those of
others. MY story is what I wanted to share. I wanted photographs and
paintings that would support the stories that needed to jump off the
page. I wanted people to feel what I feel when I write a song. I wanted
people to meet a part of me they had never heard or seen. All of this
and a GREAT CD is what the hoopla is all about!” In a real sense “Let My Soul Surrender: Grace Notes of the Journey,” reveals the soul of a storyteller, and how she transforms it into her music.

For
the accompanying CD Rickie has assembled a crew of musicians and
singers the likes of Georgia Anne Muldrow, Diva Gray, James Gadson,
Ndugu Chancler, Sekou Bunche and Parliament Funkadelic’s Ricky Rouse.
Grammy Award winning producer John Barnes, who produced and co-wrote
with Michael Jackson and has platinum and gold records from Lionel
Ritchie, Pointer Sisters, Janet Jackson, and Toni Braxton projects, is
project manager.

Beckwith is currently on a world tour to promote her new book and CD.

Rickie Byars Beckwith is
Music and Arts Director of the Agape International Spiritual Center in
Culver City, California where she directs the world famous 200-voice
Agape International Choir and House Band. Rickie and her husband,
Michael Bernard Beckwith, founder of Agape, form a prodigious and
powerful partnership that has produced a dynamic catalogue of original
songs that evoke and support transformational healing through the power
of music. Rickie has recorded eight original solo albums including “I
Found a Deeper Love,” “In the Land of I Am,” “Soul Fulfilling,” “From
Within,” “Pray For Me,” “Supreme Inspiration,” “The Love Project” and
“Let My Soul Surrender.” She has appeared with Grammy-Award winning
recording artists John Legend and Will.i.am
at the Opening and Closing Ceremonies of the Democratic National
Convention, at Lincoln Center, the United Nations, the Jefferson
Memorial, Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, The Freedom Awards, the CNN Hero
Awards, Maui Arts and Cultural Center, Terminal Island Federal Prison
and to sold-out audiences at Royce Hall, the John Anson Ford
Amphitheater, and the Getty Center.