As famous motivational speaker Les Brown once said: “The greatest revenge is massive success.” Recently, FMHipHop spoke with Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter, and producer Dante Bowe about his gospel career and Grammy nominations.
Initially from Rockingham, NC, now based in Dallas, TX, Dante Bowe has been making waves in the contemporary Christian music scene for the past several years. He has released numerous singles and albums and has featured several songs in movies and television shows.
Honors For Dante Bowe
Dante peaked at No. 1 on Billboard’s Gospel Chart last year and topped Billboard’s Top 10 Gospel Artists of 2021. In addition to a Grammy Award, the chart-topping artist has been nominated for seven awards (as a soloist and as a group) across both the Gospel and Christian genres.
At this year’s award ceremony, Bowe was nominated for Best Contemporary Christian Music Performance/Song for his song “God Really Loves Us,” which Maverick City Music produced. During the 64th Grammy Awards last year, he won Best Contemporary Christian Music Album and earned five nominations. Additionally, he founded and runs TRUE Music Records, an independent music management company. Besides his contributions to the music industry, he continues to be a beacon of hope for those in need by serving on the boards of charitable organizations that focus on children, the homeless, and at-risk youth.
Gospel Music Is In His Blood
There has always been a strong connection between Dante and gospel music. In his upbringing, music of all genres was appreciated. However, his grandmothers on both sides of his family taught him about gospel music. Not only that, Dante decided to try gospel music following his encounter with God at 16.
“Over time, I became known locally for singing gospel,” he said. “Nationally, when I went on tour with Eddie James and after I signed my first record deal with Bethel Music, one of the biggest Christian record labels, that’s when it all exploded. It was all an accident. I was just led by God.”
First Single
A new sound has been introduced in his first single, “Hide Me.” This song represents the beginning of his foray into the mainstream R&B market while simultaneously remaining true to his gospel roots. With his forthcoming EP Press Play, Dante hopes to achieve new heights and broaden his fan base.
According to Dante, the premise behind the single is his belief that “hiding” is the soundtrack of his life.
“Definitely the soundtrack of the last season. I felt as though God hid me to prepare me for what was to come,” he said. “A lot of times, we look at being “hidden” as a bad thing because we want exposure — we want to be seen, we want to be heard. But in my own season of solitude, I heard God’s voice more clearly. He gave me strategy and helped me rebuild my infrastructure completely with a brand new team. So now, hiding is just a soundtrack of my life.”
In celebration of Dante Bowe’s debut into mainstream R&B with his forthcoming EP Press Play, TRUE Music recently hosted a lavish party aboard the Fanta Sea yacht in Marina Del Rey. It featured a cocktail reception, a live performance by Bowe, and a scenic cruise around the marina, attended by notables such as Sabrina Harrison, Lauren Jauregui, Jemel McWilliams, YaSi, and others.
What Is The EP About?
The EP Press Play is a labor of love. According to the “King of My Heart” singer, one day, his producer came over to his house because he wasn’t answering any phone calls. After the both of them chatted for a while, the producer suggested they go upstairs to create an album and write some music. That moment was the birth of “Press Play.”
“He had no idea what would come of it — he was just following God’s voice. And so we ended up, in a matter of three months, creating 10-12 songs birthed from our conversation that day,” Bowe said. “My manager asked me, “Why don’t you call it ‘Press Play’ since you’ve been on pause for a little while?” That’s how we came up with the name of the album, and that’s how we started creating it.”
Did Maverick City Music Cut Ties With Dante?
Furthermore, the “It is Well” singer’s only strategy he’s ever known to have is hard work. “So I just worked really, really hard. I took my job seriously; I took my calling and my purpose very seriously,” said the gospel singer. There is no presumption that God’s grace or blessings will come to Dante’s aid. Instead, he believes that he must devote himself to working hard and dedicating himself to the achievement of his dreams to succeed. He is confident that God will assist him, but he does not believe God will perform all the work.
According to some reports, Dante was expelled from Maverick City Music for dancing to the music of Bad Bunny. The “truth,” however, isn’t accurate.
“I wasn’t kicked out of a group for dancing to Bad Bunny. The people at Maverick City Music are still my friends. We still love each other. In the future, there may or may not be a collaboration again. Who knows?” Dante said. “But I love Maverick City — and the way I chose to respond to them “pausing me” was by believing that it was part of God’s plan. So I just kept working hard and kept praying.”
So Many Grammy Nominations In A Short Time
The expectation of winning a Grammy Award is not common among artists. However, Dante has always dreamed of winning a Grammy Award. “I’ve always imagined my music going to the nations. Any time I write a song, I feel as though I can hear the world singing it,” he said. “I try to imagine people actually singing it back to me. So I’m very grateful they do now — but I never imagined it would happen so quickly.”
Several of the gospel singer’s songs have been nominated for Grammy awards making them more popular than his others. However, Bowe didn’t expect his songs to become popular this soon. But he believes “if you do things with excellence, and I really love writing music, and I try to be as excellent as possible and as honest and vulnerable as possible in the process,” in time, people will begin to gravitate toward these songs and they will gain popularity.
“It’s just a blessing that people feel the need to pass my songs around to their loved ones in times of trouble or even in times of joy, like my song ‘joyful.’ I just feel like I write songs for God’s people. We’re all God’s people.”
Collaborations Of Hope
Not too long ago, Dante finished doing his first show back at Rock the Universe at Universal Studios. He had Creative Director Jemel Williams, Music Director Brandon Bailey, and everyone who contributed to it there. “It was incredible. I mean, it was like a rebirth of Dante Bowe, if I can say so myself.”
The opportunity to perform before crowds of people is a blessing. However, performing with your favorite artist(s) is an even greater delight. For Dante, collaborating with famous musicians would be a great pleasure. “I would say Lauryn Hill is one of the first artists I started talking about collaborating with, but I’m totally open to so many other people. John Legend, Adele, CeCe Winans. Everybody. Everyone,” he said. “Let’s just hope that this all happens, but yeah, everyone.”
A Powerful Piece Of Advice
Ralph Waldo Emerson once wrote: “Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm.” The transition from nothing to something has been a defining experience for Dante Bowe. His advice to those facing hardships and trying to achieve success is to never give up on themselves. “Always trust in God. Put Him first, and He will lead you to the water. Even if you feel like you don’t know what to do or don’t know where to go. I don’t know whose hands to shake. I wanna be successful, but I don’t know how to do it.” Bowe said.
For more information on Dante Bowe, click the links below.
Website | Twitter | Apple Music | Spotify | Instagram
Follow and like FMHipHop on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Spotify, and YouTube!
Written by Nikiya Biggs
