Anointed was formed as a foursome in 1988, when Da'dra and Steve were still in high school, and released the first of their now-six albums in1993 when the small production company and independent label to which they had been signed was acquired by a major music conglomerate. After the release of the group's fourth album in 1999, and a grueling, extended tour that followed, two of Anointed's original members had departed at different times for other pursuits, leaving an exhausted Da'dra and Steve feeling both physically spent and uncertain about what their next move would be. Complicating matters all the more, Da'dra had discovered that she had a large tumor that could possibly have kept her from ever having children. It was a season of serious seeking, self-evaluation and prayer for the siblings.

Both took a two-year ministerial program through their church in 2000-2001, for personal spiritual growth and greater biblical knowledge, as well as the intention to make a well-grounded, spoken-word ministry a part of whatever was to follow in their lives. In 2001, Steve and Da'dra--by that time healed of her tumor, and both feeling physically and spiritually reinvigorated--knew that the Lord had clearly given them the answer they sought, and that their lives in music and ministry were indeed anything but concluded. In fact, Now Is The Time makes it abundantly clear that rather hitting a dead end, the twosome had in fact turned a significant corner into a new and even more exciting phase of their walk with the Lord.

* In partnership with Agency for the Performing Arts