R&B gospel? Latin-pop fusion? Whatever you call their music, one this is sure. ANGELO AND VERONICA are making serious waves as Tony Cummings reports.



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For another thing, Veronica met Angelo. Since Veronica couldn't find another waitressing job, she auditioned for bands and met Angelo while he was playing nightclubs. He knew instantly Veronica would be his wife, he says, and she slid smoothly into the Petrucci family.

Angelo's family would be the Superglue that connected Angelo and Veronica's musical talents to a ministry within contemporary Christian music. Angelo's mother located the Benson Music Group and the duo sent the company a 4-song demo. Days later, Benson called and soon thereafter they began recording their first album. 'Higher Place' was released on Benson in August 1992.

Though the music was state-of-the-art urban R&B, the message was clear. Veronica says in Contemporary Christian Music magazine, "We do want to make our music as commercial as possible, but - at the same time - we definitely don't want to water down the lyrics."

Angelo And Veronica don't seem willing to stop at the church doors when the issue is one of saving souls. One of the songs on the album, "I Love You More", which was added in the last minute, caught the attention of A&M Records and was distributed as their first single to mainstream radio. "We just believe that God opened up that door," says Veronica. "He wants his messengers to go out."

Angelo agrees. "You listen to the radio today and the first (song) you hear is 'I Wanna Sex You Up'. That's just horrendous! And then they play 'Addictive Love' by BeBe & CeCe Winans, and it's blatantly different from the first song, because the spirit is different. Even if it doesn't say 'Jesus' in every word, we should not underestimate his truth that is being sung in that song.

"And I want to say something about music being separated - mainstream and gospel. BeBe & CeCe broke those barriers. Their music connects with what is happening in the secular scene. I sang in night clubs for 19 years and this finally gives me an opportunity not just to sing but also to witness in a nightclub."

Today three albums on, the duo have not only clocked up one Dove award and one nomination, they are almost unique in breaking down the absurd and unbiblical cultural/race barriers that are prevalent in today's Christian music. Their third album 'Give Your Life' brought them extensive features in America's conservative white magazine CCM and conservative black publication Gospel Today -almost a unique achievement. Journalists have been wrapping themselves in knots trying to describe their sound. Recently CCM wrote how Angelo and Veronica's "largely evangelical epistles are wrapped in warm R&B arrangements that ignite in Latin-feeling funk creating the urban contemporary sound" while Inside Music spoke about A&V's music being "soulful...passionate...spicy...with a splash of Latin, pop and rap rhythms." Suffice to say it's a highly engaging musical cocktail. But even if the hits stopped the duo's music would continue. "Our lives are centred around Jesus," Veronica professes. "Even if we didn't make recordings, we'd be doing this. It's our ministry. CR

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.