Contemporary Gospel

What does your soul sound like? That's the question modern gospel artists are devoted to answering, in ways that range from sweet and tender to flat-out funky. Kirk Franklin speaks straight to the heart with his message of hope, served up over smooth choral vocals and sneaky, syncopated grooves on "Imagine Me." Hezekiah Walker takes you back to church on "Faithful Is Our God," leading his Love Fellowship Choir through sunny explosions of joy that spread the Good News with that good, old Sunday morning feeling. And though Regina Belle made her name stirring up a quiet storm on the secular side, when she lays down the praise amid stompin', clappin' faithful friends on "God Is Good," you know she's focused on a whole other plane.

Get the Spirit with some gospel sisters in Next Steps.

Forget those images of uptight church ladies — these testifyin' gals can electrify the concert stage and the congregation with a surge of pure gospel power. Karen Clark Sheard's acrobatic pipes arc over organ blasts that leap achingly heavenward as she fills you in on "The Will of God." Everybody comes out a winner when buzzing synths and razor-sharp beats bring an urban slant to Yolanda Adams' celebration of the Spirit in "Victory." And Bebe & CeCe Winans show that when sisters aren't doing it for themselves, sometimes they get a boost from their brothers, but be careful not to get hooked on the bright, pumping pop-soul bounce of "Addictive Love."

Gospel gets an R&B update in Deep Cuts.

Gospel has always been the blood pumping into the heart of soul music, and today there's so much crossover between the two, they sometimes seem inseparable. Sister act Mary Mary might have a doubly biblical name, and a faith-based message in "Good to Me," but their undeniably slinky, hip-hop-tinged sound could give Beyonce a run for her money. Anthony "Tonéx" Williams' work as a pastor doesn't keep him from churning out breezy, slow-jam mission statements like "I Have Decided . . ." And if you're in the market for a sanctified answer to Gnarls Barkley, let us introduce you to the skittering beats, wailing vocals, and irrepressible energy of "God Is Good," by yet another pastor — Detroit instrument of divinity Deitrick Haddon.

In order to get the Lord's work done in an increasingly fast and complicated world, contemporary gospel focuses on a two-pronged attack. Just like the work of everyone from Mahalia Jackson to Andraé Crouch, it digs deep into what makes us tick, taking up the towering topic of faith in the Almighty. At the same time, though, it plugs into the power of hip-hop, the sensuality of soul — who says you can't get saved and sound sexy? — and the sparkling snap-and-crackle of pop. From the churchified pulpit-pounding of Fred Hammond to the girl-group get-up-and-go of Anointed and the Stevie Wonder-ful spirituality of Kirk Whalum, this is the place to get into the groove and soothe your soul at the same time, with the cream of the modern-gospel crop.