(August 3, 2020) The gospel classic “Jesus Saves” is Cedric K-Ci Hailey’s redemption song. Long before he became a star of the chart topping 1990s R&B band Jodeci along with his brother Joel (JoJo) and brothers Donald and Dalvin DeGrate, K-Ci was singing “Jesus Saves.”
K-Ci experienced all the highs and lows that came with stardom in the music industry. Big hits and gold and platinum records with Jodeci, as well as with K-Ci and JoJo, the duo that he formed with his brother post-Jodeci, and collaborations with some of the biggest acts in R&B and hip-hop. His life has been tabloid fodder due to his often-tumultuous relationships, as well as his well-documented struggles with substance abuse.
(August 3, 2020) The gospel classic “Jesus Saves” is Cedric K-Ci Hailey’s redemption song. Long before he became a star of the chart topping 1990s R&B band Jodeci along with his brother Joel (JoJo) and brothers Donald and Dalvin DeGrate, K-Ci was singing “Jesus Saves.”
K-Ci experienced all the highs and lows that came with stardom in the music industry. Big hits and gold and platinum records with Jodeci, as well as with K-Ci and JoJo, the duo that he formed with his brother post-Jodeci, and collaborations with some of the biggest acts in R&B and hip-hop. His life has been tabloid fodder due to his often-tumultuous relationships, as well as his well-documented struggles with substance abuse.
He’s had comebacks, such 2006 solo album My Book and 2013’s My Brother’s Keeper that united him vocally with JoJo. And he’s had setbacks, like the 2018 stroke that could have taken his life and robbed him of his voice for a while. K-Ci, who had started living healthier before he was stricken, has recovered fully and now he returns to the old landmark with a stirring version of “Jesus Saves,” a song that he often performed as a little boy performing in the family gospel group Little Cedric and the Hailey Singers.
Cedric acknowledges that the tune has not changed since he belted out those lyrics as a boy growing up in North Carolina. The words probably carry a depth and meaning that Little Cedric could not grasp, and to hear Cedric Hailey growl and wail through this classic with his muscular baritone is audible confirmation that Jesus does indeed save.
By Howard Dukes
K-Ci Hailey – “Jesus Saves”