Erica Campbell has a very famous neighbor – our own J. Anthony Brown.
“He doesn’t have a Do No Disturb sign, he has a Do Not Disturb presence,” jokes Campbell. The two attend the same Los Angeles church as well. But maybe not anymore as Campbell and her husband, Warryn, started their own church in North Hollywood, the California Worship Center. Easter Sunday was their first service, presided over by Warryn.
“There was literally a line outside the door,” says Campbell. “The building is small, it seats about 130 people, but there were literally lines outside and around the door. We said if you’ll stay we’ll have another service and the people stayed. We were very, very blessed. It’s different from someone buying a ticket to come. They came to celebrate Jesus and the Resurrection.”
The church already has deacons, a praise team and an online service, but Erica says that the church will not be part of she and her sister’s successful reality show Mary Mary on WEtv.
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“TV has a strange way of shifting [reality.],” Campbell says. “What you see on TV, you don’t what happens after. You stop right there. They don’t know the argument was over, that you mended ways, so in their minds, it’s still some horrible, terrible thing, so I dare not do that to the church.”
Erica has also started promoting her new album Help. 2.0 and it’s controversial ‘trap gospel’ single, “I Luh God,”[See her perform it here] one of two more songs than the original version. Fantasia appears with her on the remix of “A Little More Jesus.” She says the TV show and her sister’s support of her solo career has helped her become better known as an individual artist after years of being lumped in with Tina as the duo Mary Mary. The group was named after both Mary’s in the Bible – Mary, mother of Jesus and Mary Magdalene.
“It has expanded me greatly. People who thought my name was Mary now know who I am. They understand the difference between me and Tina. They know which Mary I am. It has helped us expand our borders. All we are trying to do is inspire people and inspired them to love themselves and love Jesus.”
As for her controversial single, well, Mary Mary is used to controversy. They been criticized over Erica’s tight white dress for the original album cover, over having Kanye West and then girlfriend Amber Rose in their video for “God In Me” with Kierra Sheard. Their music in recent years has been called more worldly than some saints think is OK. Campbell brushes off the criticism.
“Everyone doesn’t speak properly Everyone doesn’t live in a well-maintained manicured neighborhood. People live in rough neighborhoods and they speak how they speak. No matter where you are you have to acknowledge that you’re blessed. Everybody don’t like it. Some people are upset about it, but they’ll be all right. God don’t live in a box. Why should I?”
As far as the Mary Mary show goes, this season has revealed sister Tina’s struggle to reconcile with her husband after his infidelities. Erica’s song “Lookin’ Like” was inspired by watching her sister’s evolution.’
“She was like ‘I’m not going to be a 60-something woman talking about what went on in 2013,’” she says. “So she did the work to get better. She kept telling herself I’m going to be better. I’m not going to be like this in a year. She’s a different person right now. It’s so beautiful to watch her and Teddy and their commitment to what was fixing what was terribly, terribly wrong.”
Click the link above to hear the entire interview!
