Richard Smallwood, Grammy-Nominated Gospel Singer and Songwriter, Dies at 77

Richard Smallwood, the Grammy-nominated gospel singer and songwriter whose music was covered by the likes of Whitney Houston and Destiny’s Child, has died. He was 77.

Smallwood died of complications of kidney failure at a nursing home in Sandy Spring, Md. on Tuesday, Dec. 30, according to his representative.

“We are saddened to announce the passing of world-renowned artist, songwriter, and musician, Richard Smallwood,” read a statement shared to his Facebook page. “The family asks that you respect our privacy during this difficult time, while helping to celebrate the legacy he leaves behind and the gifts he unselfishly shared with the world.”

Over a 50-year career, Smallwood made his name as a composer, gospel singer and songwriter; in 1996, Houston covered his song “I Love the Lord” with the Georgia Mass Choir for the soundtrack of the movie The Preacher’s Wife, and Boyz II Men sang a snippet of the song on their 1997 album Evolution.

Destiny’s Child, meanwhile, covered his song “Total Praise” as part of a gospel medley in 2007.

Smallwood was born on Nov. 30, 1948 in Atlanta and was raised in Washington, D.C., with his stepfather serving as pastor of Union Temple Baptist Church. He was playing piano by ear by age 5, and formed his own gospel group by age 11.

Roberta Flack was one of his high school teachers before her career took off, and he graduated cum laude from Howard University. Smallwood was a member of the school’s first gospel group, the Celestials, and taught music at the University of Maryland before founding the Richard Smallwood Singers in 1977.

The group — including Dottie Jones, Jackie Ruffin and Darlene Simmons — were Grammy-nominated, and topped Billboard’s Spiritual albums chart with Psalms in 1984.

“I’ve been with every major gospel label that there is,” he once said, according to a press release sharing news of his death. “I’ve been able to compare different labels and the way that things are done – the support or lack of… The label just did not give me the support, and that’s a frustrating feeling because you have a lot of ideas and concepts that you’d like to see… I’ve been there.”

Smallwood disbanded the Smallwood Singers in the 1990s, and formed a large backing choir called Vision, with whom he released “Total Praise,” which went on to become his biggest hit.

He released his final album, Anthology, in 2015, and a memoir followed in 2019. He was nominated for eight Grammys over his long career, and won three Dove Awards and multiple Stellar Gospel Music Awards.

Smallwood was diagnosed with “mild dementia and a variety of other health issues” in recent years, which kept him from recording music, according to a release. He is survived by his brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews and godchildren.