Testimony | 3 to 5 BOPS

Testimony: 3 to 5 BOPS No. 18 (2023), features musical BOPS courtesy of Common, Doug Williams & Joe Ligon, Mary J. Blige, Robin Thicke, and Whitney Houston. 

Ah, you know what time it is! It’s 3 to 5 BOPS time – WOO! On 3 to 5 BOPS, it’s all about brevity and sweetness… for the most part! There’s a theme/topic, 3, 4, or 5 songs, and a blurb – two paragraphs or less.  3 to 5 BOPS, hence, is a mini playlist that shouldn’t take much time to consume.  In the 18^th edition of 3 to 5 BOPS (2023), we select songs that are associated with TESTIMONY in some form or fashion. The BOPS arrive courtesy of 🎙 Common, 🎙 Doug Williams & Joe Ligon, 🎙 Mary J. Blige, 🎙 Robin Thicke, and 🎙 Whitney Houston. Okay, let’s get into it.

1. Whitney Houston, “Testimony”

💿 I Go To The Rock: The Gospel Music of Whitney Houston • 🏷 Sony Music Entertainment • 🗓 2023

“I’ve got a testimony / My God has given me one,” the late, great 🎙 Whitney Houston asserts on the previously unreleased single, 🎵 “Testimony”. She continues in spirited fashion in the chorus, which appears at the top of the track, “I gotta tell somebody / How good God’s been to me, yes.” The message of this posthumous Nippy cut is positive through and through, reflecting the faith and love of gospel music Houston always possessed.  Supported by an exuberant music backdrop, it is clear that “Testimony” is firmly planted in gospel music.  Fittingly, “Testimony” serves as the promo single from the posthumous gospel album – more like compilation – 💿 I Go To The Rock: The Gospel Music of Whitney Houston.

“Testimony” has its positives, clearly.  BUT, this unreleased cut also doesn’t sound quite like Whitney Houston at her most lucrative or vintage. Much of what we love about Houston is intact BUT it’s… different. So, how/what exactly is different – that is the question! Listen to familiar gospel songs by Houston (💿 The Preacher’s Wife, 1996, namely) and the sound is more seasoned. That is because “Testimony” is younger Houston – 17-year old Houston to be precise! The foundation is in place, but she’d mature far more to reach the pinnacle.  All told, 🎵 “Testimony” is enjoyable, respectable, and definitely spiritual.  The message is powerful. Is this vintage Whitney Houston? Not as we know or are familiar with. Furthermore, posthumous releases are almost always at a disadvantage, regardless of who the musician is.  Still, “Testimony” keeps the spirit of Whitney Houston alive, touting her faith and love of gospel music at an early age.

2. Common, “Testify”

💿 Be • 🏷 Geffen • 📅 2005 

“Before you lock my love away, before you lock my love away / Please let me testify.” Once upon a time, when the name 🎛 Kanye West was mentioned, it was because of his innovative spirit, particularly as a producer.  West certainly helped 🏆 Grammy-winning rapper, 🎙 Common reclaim his mojo on his 2005 album, 💿 Be.  Among the best moments from Be is 🎵 “Testify”.  Here, Mr. West is at his best, sampling old-school soul (🎙 Honey Cone, 🎵 “Innocent ‘Til Proven Guilty”).  As for Common, he is also at his best dropping thoughtful rhymes with his superb flow.

“Her daddy was a hustla, so she love them / Looked at the jury how can they judge him, she screamed,” Common raps narratively in the first verse, providing some background on the wife of the accused man, who testifies in court.  He continues in the second, “Fear in her chest her face in tears / Had her man’s back he was facing years.” Given the sample and this trial-driven narrative, “Testify” ends up being truly a special gem from the Common discography.  The third and fourth verses continue this brief yet epic journey yet reveal some of the most alluring lines.  In the third verse, a bombshell is dropped: “They arrested him for murder and gun possession / As they read back her confession, she screamed…” In the fourth and final verse, her hubby is found guilty, yet there’s a damning revelation:

“A spin artist, she brought her face up laughing

That’s when the prosecutor realized what happened

All the speaking her mind, testifying and crying

When this bitch did the crime, the queen pin.”

Woo! 🎵 “Testify” is nothing short of EPIC.

Appears in 🔻:

• Common, “Testify”: Rap BNGRZ 🔥 9 (2023)

3. Mary J. Blige, “Testimony”

💿 No More Drama • 🏷 MCA • 📅 2021

“But when I raised my head up to the sky / All of the emptiness was gone,” 🎙 Mary J. Blige sings in the pre-chorus of 🎵 “Testimony”, the closing cut on her 2001 album, 💿 No More Drama.  She continues singing, in uplifting fashion, “If you believe you’ll see in time / That everything will be alright.” The 🏆 Grammy winner makes valid points, no cap.  As always, her best attribute is her soulful, anointed voice, which is potent and filled with power.  The pre-chorus prefaces the centerpiece of “Testimony,” the chorus, where MJB asserts, “It’s gonna be alright / Everything will be okay / This is a testimony, Mary’s story / Trouble don’t last always.” TRUE DAT!

Of course, encouragement doesn’t always hit without some context.  Mary J. Blige offers plenty of context early on. In the first verse, she informs of us her rollercoaster: good and bad days, having money and being broke, and loneliness.  In the second, she turns the corner, proclaiming “Through my trials and tribulations I still believe / That God had a greater plan for me.” Amen 👏! Hallelujah 🙌!  Ultimately, Blige’s testimony, penned by herself, 🎼 ✍ Michelle Bell, and producer, 🎛 Kenny “Flav” Dickerson, goes from anticipating God’s goodness by faith to receiving it. A prime example: “He wiped all my tears away.” And splendid if underrated moment from No More Drama to say the least.

Appears in 🔻:

• Mary J. Blige, “Testimony”: Music Lifts 🎶 🏋 13 (2023)

4. Robin Thicke, “Testify”

🎵 “Testify” • 🏷 Thicke Music / EMPIRE • 📅 2018

Following the biggest hit song and album of his career, 🎵 “Blurred Lines”, 🎙 Robin Thicke fell-off in the worst way possible.  He took an L in the infamous, “Blurred Lines” plagiarism lawsuit.  He experienced a divorce. He lost his father.  Furthermore, he recorded the absolute worst album of his career, 💿 Paula, an all-time flop.  While 🎵 “Testify” didn’t resurrect Thicke’s music career back in 2018, it felt like a step in the right direction. Why? Well, first and foremost, he’s honest about the tribulation and adversity he’s experienced.  In the first verse, he focuses on familial issues – “And I lost my father suddenly / Couldn’t keep it together, my family.” In the verse, he references losing his job, and a miscarriage with his girlfriend.  Because of all the storms that have bogged him down, he uses this silky-smooth, soulful guitar-fueled record as his affirmation of love and also, faith, best exemplified on the chorus:

“I testify, I pledge allegiance to you

This love inside, it makes me come back to you

I testify, I pledge allegiance to you

Live or die, I always come back to you.”

While Thicke isn’t explicit about God, he makes enough spiritual references that it seems that’s important to him as well, at least to some extent.  The bridge is a perfect example, where he references ‘angels’: “Broken free from the chains that binded me / Like an angel with brand new wings / I can be anything I wanna be / I can love myself again.” “Testify” is the perfect soundtrack to overcoming adversity.

5. Doug Williams & Joe Ligon, “Living Testimony”

💿 Heartsongs • 🏷 Blackberry • 📅 1995

“I am, a living testimony / I could have been dead and gone / But Lord, you let me live on.” Now that’s a good word, isn’t it? 🎙 Doug Williams, a solo artist and member of legendary gospel collective, 🎙 The Williams Brothers, and the late, great 🎙 Joe Ligon of the legendary gospel collective 🎙 Mighty Clouds of Joy, join forces on 🎵 “Living Testimony”. “Living Testimony” is a rousing gem from Williams’ 1995 LP, 💿 Heartsongs.  Also, worth noting, both groups have performed “Living Testimony,” as expected.

That testimony which Williams and Ligon tout, is being alive, thanks to G-O-D 🙏.  “I’ve seen miracles after miracles / Performed in my life,” they sing, adding, “When I see danger that I couldn’t see / You kept your angels all around me.” God is mercy, protection, and everything, as “Living Testimony” puts it. Making “Living Testimony” even more spiritually charged is the energetic instrumental supporting it, as well as the supporting choir.  Again, even if religion isn’t your cup of tea, the positive, uplifting vibes of this celebration of being alive can’t be denied.

Appears in 🔻:

• Doug Williams & Joe Ligon, “Living Testimony”: Sunday Refresh 🙏 23 (2021)

Testimony: 3 to 5 BOPS No. 18 (2023) [📷: Brent Faulkner/The Musical Hype; Blackberry, EMPIRE, MCA, Sony Music Entertainment, Thicke Music; EKATERINA BOLOVTSOVA via Pexels]