kennedy b. jones

Shortly after graduation life took Kennedy to his current home in Cleveland, Ohio, where the real ministry began.  His most recent ministry assignment was Lead Elder and Minister of Music at the City of God Baptist Fellowship where Rev. Earl Bumgarner is Pastor. After moving to Cleveland, God showed Kennedy that this was the place from which his ministry was to blossom.  The favor of God on his ministry has allowed Kennedy to minister in great places among great people, both Christian and secular.  Such places as Stockholm, Sweden, where he sang for the Prince and Princess of Sweden, and recorded the title song for the live CD recorded at the Stockholm Gospel Festival entitled “Be of Good Courage”.  He has ministered in Norway at the Arjang Jazz Festival, in Lithuania at the Sing Jazz Festival; He has performed in Italy on an internationally televised show with Ana Oxo, who is billed as the “Whitney Houston of Italy.” He has traveled across Switzerland as a member and featured soloist with Leonard Burks and the Christmas Gospel Voices. And most recently in May 2015 he traveled to Tokyo, Japan for “The Journey” Gospel Music Workshop.

     

But God’s favor has also been evident right here in the U.S., allowing Kennedy to either open for, or minister with Gospel legends right here at home, including Yolanda Adams, Pastor Shirley Caesar, Bishop Rance Allen and others.  Kennedy was the grand prize winner at the Grammy’s Symposium Song Competition, held in Washington, D.C., where the judges were such greats as Richard Smallwood, Byron Cage and Maurette Brown-Clark.  The very next year he participated in Seminar in the Rockies, held in the Denver, Co. area by the Gospel Music Association (GMA).  Kennedy not only won first place in the singing and first place in the song writing competitions, but he also won Grand Prize for both categories, leaving only the instrumental category that he did not win.  The only other person to do that in the 30 plus year history of GMA is the incomparable Babbie Mason, with whom he has since become personal friends.  This competition featured singers/song writers from over thirty (30) states and four (4) countries.  He was then interviewed on Korean radio because of this colossal achievement.

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Kennedy has performed for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and in Cleveland’s famed Severance Hall and also sang the National Anthem for the Cleveland Cavilers game during their 2016 Championship season. He will be singing the National Anthem for the Cleveland Browns on November 6, 2016.  He is also a member of the Full Gospel Baptist Church Fellowship Super Mass Choir.  He has  conducted workshops around the country and directed choirs as large as 250 voices.  Besides being a featured soloist on numerous projects, including the Gospel Music Workshop of America (GMWA) and the National Convention of Gospel Choirs and Choruses, God has also blessed in that He has allowed Kennedy to record two Cds of his own; “Call to Worship” and “Christmas with Kennedy”.  He is currently in the studio working on his third project, taking his ministry to another level.

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Kennedy is also a husband and father, and currently makes a living as a police officer for the city of Cleveland for the last 24 years.  He was recently featured in an exhibit at the Cleveland Police Officer’s Museum called “Cops Rock”, featuring members of the Cleveland Police Department who also perform various genres of music.