How a Gospel Foundation Shaped a Soulful Voice
When Mica Paris sits down to talk about her playlist, she doesn’t just list songs; she unpacks a musical journey that began in a household where gospel was the daily soundtrack. Raised by grandparents with a strong gospel influence, Paris says she grew up listening to the Hawkins family, with Walter Hawkins’ “God Will Open Doors” serving as a beacon early on. For her, the track wasn’t just music—it was a doorway into a world of faith, community, and resilience. The Hawkins family taught her about vocal control, emotion, and the art of storytelling through song. Those lessons would later inform the elegance and honesty that define her own performances.
Whitney Houston: A Complicated, Yet Crucial Connection
Paris is candid about the emotional complexity of listening to Whitney Houston. “It hurts listening to Whitney Houston— I knew her so well,” she Jokes, acknowledging both the admiration and the ache of a shared era with a singer who also walked the same tightrope between pop polish and gospel-soul authenticity. The Whitney moments in her career were never easy to watch from the front row, but she recognizes how Houston’s vocal discipline, precision, and fearlessness pushed her own limits. The honesty of that relationship—celebratory, critical, intimate—has quietly flavored Paris’s approach to her own music and selections on this playlist.
From Record Bins to Global Stages
The playlist’s backbone is a life spent balancing church choruses with club-ready R&B and pop. Paris recalls going to import stores with her aunt, where she discovered American gospel, R&B, and beyond. Those records expanded her sense of possibility: you could sermonize with tenderness one moment and light up a dance floor the next. The personal mix includes gospel anthems, soulful ballads, and songs that remind her of journeying through life with family, mentors, and audiences who kept her motivated through late-night gigs and long tours. Her evolution is a testament to how artists can honor their roots while stepping confidently into new spaces.
Tracks That Tell a Story
What makes this playlist so revealing is not just the hits but the narrative behind each choice. The early gospel selections ground her voice in a tradition that prizes clarity, diction, and emotional legibility. The transition to secular soul and pop reveals a storyteller who learned to bend and blend genres without losing the emotional center. Each track is a chapter: a memory of a grandmother’s kitchen, a rehearsal studio, or a smoky club where the crowd learned to lean in when Paris delivered a note with intent. The playlist becomes a map of her influences and the moments that tested and shaped her artistry.
Why This Honest Playlist Matters
In an industry that often reduces artists to a string of sounds, Paris invites listeners to see the person behind the voice. This playlist is honest not just about favorites but about origins, mentors, and the pressures of living up to a musical lineage. It’s an invitation to reflect on how gospel roots can coexist with pop stardom and how listening to a beloved but sometimes painful muse like Whitney Houston can push an artist toward greater vulnerability and authenticity. Paris’s selections are a guide for anyone who loves music that carries memory as much as melody.
Conclusion: A Playlist as Personal Growth
More than a list of songs, Mica Paris’s honest playlist is a confession and a celebration—a portrait of a voice that learned to sing through faith, family, and fearless listening. It’s a reminder that the songs we hold closest often chart the path of who we become as artists and humans.
