Le'Andria Delores Johnson (born January 23, 1983) is an American gospel singer. She was the season three winner of the BET gospel singing competition show Sunday Best.[1]
Johnson's Sunday Best coronation song, "I Shall Leap into My Destiny", co-written by Johnson, entered the Billboard Gospel chart at number 1. Johnson's post-Sunday Best recording The Awakening of Le'Andria Johnson was released in August 2011,[2] Music World Entertainment Gospel and Music World Music. The album debuted at number 1 on the U.S. Billboard Gospel Albums, number 3 on the U.S. Billboard Independent Albums, and number 24 on the Billboard 200.[3] Johnsons' second major-label album The Awakening of Le'Andria Johnson, which included seven new songs, was released in February 2012.[4] Johnson is the first Sunday Best contestant to receive a Grammy Award, which she won in 2012 for Best Gospel/Contemporary Christian Music Performance.In 2015, Johnson began filming with Preachers of Atlanta, a reality show spin-off of the Oxygen hit Preachers of L.A. that chronicles the lives 5 Atlanta-based preachers live within ministry. Despite the show's focus on liberal theologies – all of the preachers have, at some point on the show, expressed disdain for the impractical and oppressive regimes of contemporary American churches – Johnson has been a standout in her non-traditional techniques of ministering and pastoring. For starters, she is a woman and pastor; women's leadership is still incredibly controversial in the church. Johnson does not believe in the traditional liturgical techniques of the black church or formal attire. She has also been known to pass out cigarettes and condoms to people in the inner city neighborhoods of Atlanta.[32] This move has been quite controversial among her fellow preacher friends on the reality show. According to Le'Andria, "although we do not condone it, some people are going to smoke or have sex anyway, in which case we want them to be safe. Many people will not have a conversation about God, the Bible, or spirituality. When we say we try to "meet them where they are," this is to simply start a conversation, share testimonies, and minister the gospel of Jesus. You find that despite their current situation, many of the people know the Bible and are ready to change their lives; they appreciate not judging them or scolding them, but simply having an open and honest conversation with them. The came to church afterward, and are still coming." Some of Johnson's peers see these actions as abetting sinful behaviors in the name of Jesus.
Le'Andria's infamous Periscope incident was a subject of debate in the last several episodes of season 1 of Preachers of Atlanta. Her colleagues on the show all felt that her conduct was inappropriate and failed to support Le'Andria in the way that she had expected they would. She frequently comments that she feels that they don't understand her.
