Ben Tankard
American musician (born 1964)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ben Tankard (born January 10, 1964) is an American gospel/smooth jazz musician, producer, and arranger, former professional basketball player and reality tv Dad.
Ben Tankard | |
|---|---|
Tankard in 2009 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | January 10, 1964 Daytona Beach, Florida, United States |
| Genres | Contemporary gospel, smooth jazz |
| Occupation | Musician |
| Instrument | Keyboards |
| Years active | 1990s–present |
| Labels | Tribute, Sony Music, Verity |
| Website | bentankard |
Biography
Tankard's father was a minister and his mother a missionary.[1] In church, he played drums at an early age.[1] He played tuba in school and received a basketball scholarship.[1] Although he was invited to an NBA camp, he hurt his knee before the season started.[1] During a period of homelessness, he went to church and was inspired by a revival service to turn his life around.[1] He began playing keyboards, recorded Keynote Speaker (1990) for Tribute, and started to learn about arranging and record production.[1] He has worked with Gerald Albright, Twinkie Clark, Fred Hammond, John P. Kee, Shirley Murdock, Kelly Price, and Take 6.[1]
Tankard discovered a third-grade school teacher named Yolanda Adams and signed her to his indy Tribute label. He produced her albums Through the Storm, Save the World, More Than A Melody, and Yolanda... Live in Washington. They collaborated on over 40 compositions. He credits her voice for helping to bring his production style and keyboard playing to a large audience.[2][3]
He won Stellar Awards' Best Instrumental Album in 2010 for Mercy, Mercy, Mercy.[4]
In 2012, Ben Tankard/ Full Tank was nominated by the Soul Train Music Awards for Best Contemporary Jazz Artist.[5]
Thicker Than Water is an American reality television series that premiered on November 10, 2013,[6] on Bravo.[7][8][9] The series chronicles the family dynamic of former professional basketball player and an American gospel-jazz instrumentalist Ben Tankard, his wife Jewel and their children.[10][11][12][13] Bravo previously aired a pilot titled Thicker Than Water: The Marinos in August 2011 that had the same premise but centered on a different family.[14][15]
In April 2014, Bravo renewed Thicker Than Water for a second season,[16] which premiered on January 4, 2015.[17]
In February 2016, Bravo renewed Thicker Than Water for a third season that premiered on March 27, 2016.[18]
Discography
- All Keyed Up (1989)[19]
- Keynote Speaker (1990)[20]
- Keys to Life (1991)[21][22]
- An Instrumental Christmas (1991)[23][24]
- Sunday Drivin (1993)[25]
- Play Me in Your Key (1994)[26]
- Instrumentally Yours (1996)[27][28]
- Git Yo Prayze On w/Tribe of Benjamin (1997)[29]
- Raize Da Praise by Tribe of Benjamin (1999)[30]
- The Minstrel (1999)[31]
- Christmas Love (2000)[32]
- Song of Solomon (2001)[33]
- Play a Lil' Song for Me (2003)[34]
- Piano Prophet (2004)[35][36]
- Let's Get Quiet: The Smooth Jazz Experience (2007)[37]
- Mercy, Mercy, Mercy (2009)[38]
- Full Tank (2012)[39]
- Thicker Than Water-The Church Picnic (2013)
- Full Tank 2 (2015)[40]
- Full Tank 3: CanTANKerous (2017)[41][42]
- Rise! (2018) [43]
- Shine! (2021)