Kirk Franklin to perform in Zim

choirs, Kirk Franklin, is scheduled to perform live in Zimbabwe in July.
Organiser of the event, Pastor Clyde Bismarck, from Abundant Life Christian Centre, said Franklin would perform two concerts – one in Harare and the other Bulawayo.
“Franklin and his choir will be in Harare for a couple of days before travelling to Bulawayo for a for the performance on Sunday July 31. We are still yet to confirm the venue but we hope to attract a huge crowd,” he said.
Franklin will be travelling with his 27-member choir for the exclusive gospel showdown.
Bismarck said the show would be an ideal platform for local gospel musicians to see how professional gospel musicians perform live on stage and gain international exposure.
“This will be the best set-up for local gospel musicians to see how professionals do it on stage. Hopefully they will learn a lot from Franklin and it would be a great experience for them to share the stage with him. They will also gain international exposure from the show,” said Bismarck.
Auditions for local gospel musicians that want to perform at the show would be held sometime this month.
The man of the cloth mentioned that they had already engaged the National Arts Council of Zimbabwe and the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority in Harare to clear Franklin and his crew.
“We have already engaged the National Arts Council of Zimbabwe and Zimra to enable Franklin’s arrival in Zimbabwe. We do not want to have any last-minute hindrances,” he said.
Bismarck, however, noted that they were still in the process of securing sponsorship for the show to be an ultimate success and all interested parties were welcome to donate to the church.
“As it is, we are looking for sponsorship to make this show a blast. Any interested parties are welcome to donate to us to make this happen,” he said.
He also said since most churches held services in the morning, Franklin would only perform late in the afternoon to guarantee that every gospel fan gets a chance to see him perform live on stage.
“Most churches hold their services in the morning so Franklin will only perform for two hours from around 4pm so that everyone gets a chance to see him on stage,” he said.
He, on the other hand, revealed that they had not set a fixed entrance fee but were looking at selling tickets at US$5 to cater for everyone.
“We have not yet decided how much tickets should go for, we have had meetings and we are still yet to decide whether US$5 is reasonable for everyone. We will also have his CDs on sale at the gates,” he said.
Bismarck said they would start marketing the show in cities located close to Bulawayo and even in South Africa.
“We have a mission to market the show in cities close to Bulawayo and in South Africa. If this show is a success it will generate a lot of the revenue for the city and perhaps the country as a whole.
In 2006 Franklin appeared on the Oprah Winfrey Show during the show entitled “Famous Gospel Singer Admits His Addiction to Porn”.
Franklin admitted to struggling with porn addiction for many years and stated that he sought help through Christian counselling and finally became free of the addiction.
Franklin has won several awards for being an outstanding gospel musician and author.
His most notable album is “Kirk Franklin and the Family” produced in 1993, the album spent almost two years on the gospel charts and made waves on the R&B charts and earned him platinum sales.
Franklin had a humble upbringing after his mother abandoned him when he was just a baby, he was then raised by his aunt who collected and sold aluminum cans to raise money for Franklin to have a simple upbringing.