Catholic artist's new CD of hymns comes from her childhood

Published: 2005-01-05

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (CNS) -- Singer-songwriter Beth Nielsen Chapman has penned songs for singers such as Faith Hill, Willie Nelson, Bonnie Raitt and Trisha Yearwood, while also producing contemporary pop hits under her own name. But her latest CD release titled "Hymns" (BNC Records, distributed by Emergent Music Marketing) has caused the music world to sit up and take notice. "When I sing, I generally like to get out of the way of the song, to serve the song, and not my personality as a vocalist," Chapman said in an interview with The Tennessee Register, Nashville diocesan newspaper. "This was particularly important to me in performing these beautiful hymns in Latin," she added.Chapman said she is "all over the map" when it comes to genres, since she has written and sung pop, country, folk and blues. "I was raised in a military family and I was exposed to a lot of other cultures," she said, "and that's kind of blended into my musicality." Another thing that has influenced her CD "Hymns" is her Catholic upbringing. Chapman attends a number of churches in the Nashville area, often singing at St. Edward's Catholic Church when she's not traveling, and was raised Catholic.

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