UVA Division for Community Engagement and Equal Opportunity Presents: Black History Month Gospel Concert

This year’s Black History Month Gospel Concert will feature Grammy-nominated singer, songwriter, and worship leader Chandler Moore, and an opening performance by singer-songwriter Madison Ryann Ward.

A pre-show from VCU’s Black Awakening Choir will begin at 6:00pm.

About The Artists:
One of the most impactful and prolific artists in music, Chandler Moore hit the music scene with high regard from the industry and consumers alike. With his new project Chandler Moore: Live in Los Angeles, he continues his path of success poised for solo work in addition to his successful hits and collaborations.

Beyond his dynamic contributions as a member of Maverick City Music, Moore has also collaborated with Elevation Worship, Justin Bieber, Tori Kelly, and Kirk Franklin. Through a rapid trajectory, Moore has received 5 Grammy Awards, 1 Billboard Music Award, 4 GMA Dove Awards, and 1 Soul Train Music Award, yet is best known for his passionate live performances and storytelling approach to his lyrics.

Embracing the style of music he “first fell in love with” – Chandler enters a fresh chapter in his life as an artist and a man with Chandler Moore: Live in Los Angeles, a powerful collection of soul-transforming original worship songs recorded before a live audience over two nights in May 2024. “The concept for the live album was simple – to perform in a room with people who love to worship like I do,” says Chandler, who also plays keyboard on the recording with his high energy band. “It’s all about sharing inspiring, uplifting songs, capturing those special once-in-a-lifetime moments that happen. Just as the stories in the Bible take us on an amazing journey, I wanted to take those in the audience, and now listeners everywhere, on a unique adventure.”

Faith-based singer/songwriter Madison Ryann Ward writes warmhearted songs that mix mature pop and contemporary R&B with accents of gospel, blues, and folk.

Ward grew up in her native Oklahoma hearing a wide range of music. Her mother played piano in church, and she soaked up blues and soul classics while working in her teens at her father’s restaurant. A year-round athletic star in high school, Ward excelled in volleyball at Oklahoma University with plans of going pro. Her path changed after an informal cafeteria recording of her singing Aretha Franklin’s “Chain of Fools” went viral. This encouraged Ward to build an online following with regular uploads of covers, and she eventually devoted herself to developing her voice and budding songwriting talent, leading to a deal with producer Rick Rubin and his American Recordings label, for which she cut the secular Beyond Me EP (2019).

She has since established herself as an independent artist with her own Zelda House Records. She issued a slew of singles before she made her full-length debut with A New Thing (2023), a bright showcase for her commanding and understated voice. Purified Love (2024), the follow-up, ranged from acoustic and slickly produced devotionals to a joyous hip-hop soul update of the Lord’s Prayer.