IMPRINT: Live in Memphis, features guest performances from some of Cortez’s favorite singers, including Kim Burrell, Tim Rogers, and Lisa Knowles-Smith. All those sonic threads mesh to weave a mesmerizing collection of modern songs that reflects the passion of traditional Black church music.

 

“Zacardi’s voice is his imprint,” says Black Smoke Music Worldwide founder Kerry Douglas, who first discovered Cortez when he was just a teenager singing in churches around Houston. “His voice is leaving a mark on the music industry. When people hear it, they know instantly know who it is because no one sounds exactly like him. His God-given talent has left an undeniable stamp on Gospel music.”

 

Cortez’s riveting vocal stylings and compelling message of faith have connected profoundly with fans around the globe.

 

In addition to the Stellar Award-winning "You've Been Good to Me," that fascinating combination infuses each of Cortez’s seven No. 1 Billboard Gospel radio hits, including the retro anthem “Oh How I Love You,” the `80s throwback groove “YDIA,“ and "You Don’t Know," a bluesy plea for divine intervention that ends with an infectious praise team call and response, “God Held Me (Together),” an emotional ballad which praises the “glue” that God often represents in our lives when all things seem to be going awry, and “One More Time,” featuring Pastor John P. Kee, as well as the acoustic calm of “1 on 1,” which stayed at No. 1 for five weeks.

 

Cortez, who has released three Top 10 albums—The Introduction (2012), Reloaded (2014), and IMPRINT: Live in Memphis (2022)—has appeared on many on major platforms, including The Stellar Awards, Black Music Honors, P. Diddy’s Bad Boy Reunion Tour and BET’s “Sunday Best."

 

IMPRINT: Live in Memphis is the first time I’ve been able to write or be this involved in a project,” says Cortez, who wrote, co-wrote, or arranged everything on the album, alongside ASCAP Award-winning composer Marcus Calyen (Zacardi Cortez) and producers Morgan Turner (Tamela Mann), AyRon Lewis (James Fortune, RiZen, Bryan Popin), Nicholas Humes (Zacardi Cortez), and Lucius Hoskins (Marvin Sapp, Shirley Caesar).

 

As a testament to his next-level popularity in the industry, Cortez has also been showing up as a guest soloist on the recordings of other artists, such as Grammy® winners Kirk Franklin and PJ Morton, and Grammy® nominee John P. Kee.

 

"This record is all of who I am, in all the different styles and ways I love to worship and sing,” says Cortez. “It's 100% my imprint.”

 

For more information about Zacardi Cortez and IMPRINT: Live in Memphis, follow Zacardi Cortez on Facebook and Instagram. To purchase or stream the project on Spotify, Apple Music, iTunes, deezer, TIDAL, YouTube, SoundCloud, Amazon, Pandora, and Qobuz, click here. For more information about Black Smoke Music Worldwide, click here.