I came from a long line of strong female vocalists. My Grandmother, a former Sunday school teacher put me in the mind of Bessie Smith. My mother and aunts put me in the mind of such artists as Aretha Franklin, Patti Labelle and gospel singers Mahalia Jackson and Shirley Cesar. My Grandpa, Walter (Preach) Sullivan put me in the mind of Muddy Waters. I began singing gospel as early as I can remember.

I remember as a little girl in the 60's (when they still had old hardwood floors in the churches) listening to the old folks keeping rhythm by patting their feet on the old hardwood floors sometimes accompanied by a piano and sometimes just those glorious acappella voices ringing those old gospel songs. At the age of 10 along with my sisters and cousins, I joined the children's choir. They used to say we sang like little women.

I remember my Aunt Mattie telling me "Linda, don't stand up there trying to look pretty, get into it, tell the story, sometimes you gotta get ugly with it." From that day to this, I love