Turn lemons into lemonade, make the negative positive. Throughout her life, Cynthia Carter Hill, has always seen the good side of bad situations. When her father was given a terminal cancer diagnosis, he wanted to spend his remaining days at home rather than at a nursing home. In an effort to assure that he received the best care, Hill became an advocate for hospice care. She has spent her professional career in that role and as a motivational speaker. However, there’s always been a voice in her wanting to sing, but she ignored it in spite of the urging of Maya Angelou, Ashford & Simpson, and one-time Motown Records Chairman Clarence Avant, for her to launch a pop music career.
“I put my husband and daughter ahead of my career,” the Oakland, CA-based Hill says as she prepares to release the CD, “Alive To Thrive” (Urban Creed), September 9th. “I wondered if I did the right thing. After years of pondering that I know I did. My daughter just graduated from college. She was student body president at UCLA and I couldn’t be any more proud of her. I feel good that I made her a priority. She would have been a different person if I had pursued music back then. Besides, I didn’t feel called to do pop music. I always felt that my purpose was ministry to the Lord and to people.”
Since 2000, Hill has released two well-received CDs, but it’s the new “Alive To Thrive” CD that has DJs buzzing. A mostly-up tempo album with quiet storm ballads and R&B flavored gospel songs fits Hill’s sultry soprano to a tee. “It’s rare that I find an album that combines great music, strong vocals, good production values, and most importantly, sincere and on target ministry,” says San Francisco’s KDYA /KDIA program director, Clifford Brown. “This is just such an album. `He’s Worthy,’ the first single from the album, is already generating calls. I am truly excited and inspired by this project.”
Hill produced the project with a handful of noted producers, including Carl Wheeler, musical director for Maze featuring Frankie Beverly. “Alive To Thrive,” reflects Hill’s triumph over her pain. “I make concerted efforts to stay in front of discouragement because I know it’s an inevitable part of life,” she confesses. “My dad always taught us to store up prayer. He said if we pray about things ahead of time, when you need it its already there waiting for you. I’ve learned a lot through my ups and downs and my pains. I have them just like everybody else but I come from a perspective that we are here to thrive even though we may go through things. It’s the going through that makes us who it is God has designed us to be.”
