The “Greater” album is anchored by Gardner’s first American radio hit, “Because of You.” The inspiring track recently debuted at No. 28 on the Billboard Gospel Airplay chart five weeks ago and has been moving up ever since. The devotional song was inspired by his mother’s decision not to abort him when doctors informed her that he would be born with birth defects because of radiation she received during her pregnancy. “Thanks to God, I was born with no problems,” says Gardner.
The concept music video for “Because of You” is now live on below:
When Gardner launched his career in 1995, Trinidadian church music was no different from American gospel. “Everything that would come from America was accepted,” he recalls. “Everything that was reggae, dancehall or soca was considered secular because the artists who sang that music were in the world so when I first made gospel music that had a Caribbean flavor in it, I was criticized because the churches were just listening to the beat instead of to the lyrics.” Gardner has been a forerunner of creating gospel music with traditional Caribbean instrumentation. He now has fifteen albums to his credit and is known for signature songs such as “I Worship You,” “God’s Design” and “You.”
