Donald Andrew McClurkin Jr. (muh-KLUR-kin; born November 9, 1959) is an American gospel singer, songwriter, pastor, and radio host based on Long Island, New York. He is the founder and senior pastor of Perfecting Faith Church in Freeport.
McClurkin is best known for Stand, We Fall Down, and I Need You. He has won three Grammy Awards, has sold more than 13 million albums, and was once named the top voice in urban gospel by Variety.
This Donnie McClurkin biography covers his early life, family, career, health, and the 2026 lawsuit. It also answers the questions people search most: is he married, does he have children, and is he alive?
Donnie McClurkin at a Glance
| Personal | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Donald Andrew McClurkin Jr. |
| Born | November 9, 1959 Copiague, New York, USA |
| Age | 66 (as of September 2026) |
| Nationality | American |
| Spouse | Not married (no marriage reported) |
| Children | Matthew (son, born 2000) Michelle (adopted daughter) |
| Parents | Donald Andy McClurkin Sr. (father, died 2013) Frances McClurkin (mother, died 2013) |
| Siblings | Eight (nine children in the family) |
| Education | |
| High school | Walter G. O’Connell Copiague High School |
| Ministry | |
| Title | Senior Pastor |
| Church | Perfecting Faith Church, Freeport, New York |
| Denomination | Nondenominational Pentecostal |
| Ordained | 2001, by Marvin L. Winans |
| Radio show | The Donnie McClurkin Show (since 2006) |
| Website | donniemcclurkin.com |
| Career | |
| Genre | Gospel, urban gospel |
| Labels | Warner Alliance, Verity, Zomba, RCA |
| Albums sold | More than 13 million |
| Grammy Awards | 3 |
| Book | Eternal Victim, Eternal Victor (2001) |
| Latest single | Lord, I Thank You (September 2026) |
| Next album | FINALLY (announced for October 2026) |
Donnie McClurkin Biography: Early Life and Background
Donnie McClurkin was born in Copiague, New York, on November 9, 1959. He grew up in nearby Amityville, on Long Island. He was one of nine children.
Where Is Donnie McClurkin Originally From?
McClurkin is originally from Long Island, New York. He was born in Copiague and raised in Amityville, and his first choirs were there too.
His parents came from two different places. His father, Donald Andy McClurkin Sr., was born and raised in Chester, South Carolina. He moved to Amityville, worked in construction, and married Frances McClurkin at age 20. Donnie has described his mother’s upbringing in Harlem, so she is a New York City native.
Both parents died in 2013. Frances passed away in January, and Donald died on November 13 at age 79 after a heart attack.
[IMAGE: Amityville, Long Island, the village where Donnie McClurkin grew up]
Family and Siblings
McClurkin has eight siblings. Two of them, Olivia and Thomas, died before their father did. His sister Andrea McClurkin Mellini also sings gospel.
The family filled a busy house. Music ran through it, but so did trouble.
A Childhood Marked by Loss and Church
When Donnie was eight, his younger brother Thomas was killed in a hit-and-run. He was two years old. The family fell apart with grief.
Soon after, McClurkin says, a great uncle sexually abused him. Years later, the great uncle’s son did the same. Two of his sisters were fighting substance abuse at the time.
Church became his safe place. He joined the choir at Amityville Full Gospel Tabernacle. An aunt who sang backup for gospel legend Andraé Crouch introduced him to Crouch, and that meeting sparked his love of music.
He later told the whole story in a book and a film. Those pages come up again below.
Education and First Choirs
McClurkin attended Walter G. O’Connell Copiague High School. At 15, he joined Benny Cummings and the King’s Temple Choir. He also formed the McClurkin Singers with his older sisters and a neighbor.
Later he formed the New York Restoration Choir. The group released three albums before he went solo.
Donnie McClurkin Biography: Career and Ministry
James Cleveland, Broadway, and Marvin Winans
In 1983, McClurkin sang with the Tri-Boro Mass Choir, led by Albert Jamison. Jamison introduced him to gospel great James Cleveland, who became his mentor. McClurkin flew to Los Angeles each year to sing with Cleveland at Cornerstone Institutional Baptist Church.
From 1987 to 1989, he sang in the chorus of the Broadway show Don’t Get God Started. That was his first big stage.
Around this time he also met Marvin L. Winans of the famous Winans family. Winans liked his talent and his heart.
Moving to Detroit
In 1989, McClurkin moved to Detroit and became an associate minister at Winans’ Perfecting Church. He worked as Winans’ assistant for more than a decade.
At age 31, he says, doctors diagnosed him with leukemia. He credits prayer and faith for his recovery. He has said he had to practice what he preached.
Founding Perfecting Faith Church
Marvin Winans ordained McClurkin in 2001 and sent him back to New York to start a church. Perfecting Faith Church began as a small gathering in a Hempstead hotel. It later moved to Freeport, where it has its own building.
The church is nondenominational and Pentecostal. A PBS profile once described a congregation of more than 1,000 meeting in a former supermarket. Services are lively, with dancing and prayer in the aisles.
In 2002, McClurkin started “Church Without Walls.” The event brought members of many denominations together to worship in open community spaces.
He also built a radio and television reach. The Donnie McClurkin Show began in 2006, and his TV program Perfecting Your Faith reached The Word Network in 2009.
Today his radio show airs in more than 65 markets. He also works with Food for the Poor to build houses for families in Jamaica. So far his team has built three, and he plans two more each year.
Rise to Prominence
The 1996 Debut and an Oprah Boost
His self-titled debut album came out on October 29, 1996. A friendship with a Warner Alliance executive led to the deal. Producers included Mark Kibble of Take 6 and Andraé Crouch himself.
The album featured Stand and Speak to My Heart. Oprah Winfrey praised it in public, and the record went gold soon after.
He also wrote and sang two songs, I Am and Humanity, for the 1998 Prince of Egypt inspirational album. That work won him Stellar Awards in 2000.
Live in London and More
Live in London and More… came out on August 22, 2000. It was recorded at Fairfield Halls in Croydon, England. The album went platinum and stayed at No. 1 on the gospel chart for more than 30 weeks.
It made him a household name. At the 2002 Stellar Awards, he won Artist of the Year, CD of the Year, and Male Vocalist of the Year, among others. The album also won a 2002 Soul Train Award for Best Gospel Album.
Hopeville, Grammys, and Chart Wins
McClurkin toured with Kirk Franklin and Yolanda Adams on the Hopeville tour. Variety reviewed the tour in 2003 and singled him out. His album Again (2003) won a Grammy in 2004.
Psalms, Hymns and Spiritual Songs (2005) went platinum and won a Grammy in 2006. Its single I Call You Faithful then held the top of the Gospel Airplay chart for seven weeks starting April 2, 2005.
That same spring, he told the press he planned to step away from solo recording after his Verity deal ended in 2006. He did not. He kept recording for almost two more decades.
Donnie McClurkin Songs and Albums
Here are his main studio and live albums:
| Album | Year | Label | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Donnie McClurkin | 1996 | Warner Alliance | Gold. Featured Stand. |
| Live in London and More… | 2000 | Verity | Platinum. No. 1 gospel album. |
| Again | 2003 | Verity | Gold. Won a Grammy. |
| Psalms, Hymns and Spiritual Songs | 2005 | Zomba | Platinum. Won a Grammy. |
| We All Are One (Live in Detroit) | 2008 | Verity | No. 1 gospel album. |
| Duets | 2014 | RCA Inspiration | No. 4 on the gospel chart. |
| The Journey (Live) | 2016 | RCA | No. 1 on Top Gospel Albums. |
| A Different Song | 2019 | RCA | No. 2 on the gospel chart. |
| FINALLY | October 2026 | Distributed by Syntax Creative | Announced as his final studio album. |
Donnie McClurkin – Stand
Stand is his signature song. He wrote it in 1996 on a red-eye flight after what he called a meltdown with God. He was tired and frustrated that his prayers seemed unanswered. The song came to him in about 20 minutes.
Its message is simple. When you have done everything you can, you keep standing. He even said he thought Stand, We Fall Down, and Speak to My Heart were filler songs. He was wrong.
Donnie McClurkin – We Fall Down
Kyle Matthews wrote We Fall Down, not McClurkin. Bob Carlisle recorded it first, and it debuted at the 1998 Dove Awards. McClurkin was in the balcony that night and knew he had to record it.
He cut it at the London concert. He could not remember the verses, so he sang the chorus alone. That change made the song shorter and sparked some debate about its meaning.
It still took off. The song crossed to R&B radio after Stevie Wonder joined McClurkin at a church performance and helped push it. It won the 2001 Dove Award for Traditional Gospel Recorded Song. McClurkin says the chorus sums up the Christian life, and he points to Proverbs 24:16: a righteous person falls seven times and gets up again.
Donnie McClurkin – I Need You
I Need You is the lead single from The Journey (Live). The album came out on August 19, 2016. In March 2017, the song reached No. 1 on Billboard’s Gospel Airplay chart in its 46th week.
It was his first No. 1 on that chart in 12 years. A live video was filmed at Perfecting Faith Church.
Other Donnie McClurkin Songs to Know
- Speak to My Heart was on his debut and revived from his New York Restoration Choir days.
- I Call You Faithful topped the Gospel Airplay chart in 2005.
- Wait on the Lord, with Karen Clark Sheard, won a Grammy in 2010.
- Ooh Child, with Kirk Franklin, and The Prayer, with Yolanda Adams, were fan favorites.
- See the Goodness, with VaShawn Mitchell, climbed Billboard’s gospel charts in 2023.
- Better Afterwhile (2025) led the Gospel Airplay chart.
Donnie McClurkin on YouTube
His official YouTube channel is listed as @Donnie_McClurkin in his label’s press materials. You can watch live versions of Stand, We Fall Down, and I Need You there. Search the channel name to avoid fan uploads and fake news videos.
Books, Film, and Television
McClurkin told his life story in the 2001 memoir Eternal Victim, Eternal Victor. Three years later came a film, The Donnie McClurkin Story: From Darkness to Light. In it he talks about his rough childhood and the years he fought to heal.
On screen, he appeared in The Fighting Temptations (2003) and The Gospel (2005), the latter with Boris Kodjoe and Idris Elba. He also guest starred on the TV shows Girlfriends and The Parkers.
He judged BET’s Sunday Best from 2010 to 2015. He also co-hosted the Stellar Awards several times, starting in 2002.
Is Donnie McClurkin Married? Wife, Children, and Family Life
No, Donnie McClurkin is not married. No reliable source reports a past marriage either. That means there is no first wife.
Did Donnie McClurkin Ever Marry?
He has never had a public wedding. In 2016, he told TBN viewers that his career, faith, and money were in good shape. The one thing missing, he said, was a family of his own.
He said in a 2017 interview that he felt lonely and wanted a wife. He also said he feared failing at marriage and hated failed relationships.
Donnie McClurkin and Nicole C. Mullen
The wedding rumors began in 2016. He and Christian singer Nicole C. Mullen arrived at that year’s Stellar Awards together. On August 11, TBN’s Matt Crouch announced on air that McClurkin was getting married.
Days later, Mullen set the record straight. They were on the road to marriage, but not engaged. They had known each other about 15 years. They never married, and Mullen wed another man in 2021.
Donnie McClurkin Wedding Pictures
There are no real Donnie McClurkin wedding pictures because he has not had a wedding. Photos labeled that way online are misleading. The couple photos that exist come from 2016 events such as the Stellar Awards.
Does Donnie McClurkin Have Any Biological Children?
Yes, he has one biological child, a son named Matthew, born in 2000. McClurkin has kept the mother’s identity private. In 2013, he said he was working to repair a strained bond with Matthew, who was 12 at the time.
He also has an adopted daughter named Michelle. Reports say he adopted her when she was nine.
Beliefs and Ministry Philosophy
McClurkin leads a nondenominational Pentecostal church. He believes churches of different backgrounds should worship together. His “Church Without Walls” events put that belief into practice.
He is also blunt about church hypocrisy. He has said a pastor who fails should just admit it and come clean. That view runs straight through We Fall Down.
His current music banner is “Bringing Gospel Back to Gospel Music.” His final album mixes new songs with classics such as What a Mighty God and The Solid Rock.
Donnie McClurkin Biography: Legacy and Influence
McClurkin helped push traditional-style gospel into the mainstream. We Fall Down reached R&B radio, and Stand remains a church staple. He has sold more than 13 million albums.
He has recorded with top names in gospel. Kirk Franklin, Yolanda Adams, Tye Tribbett, Israel Houghton, Fred Hammond, and the Campbell sisters of Mary Mary all appear on his projects. Songs like Stand also show why worship music strengthens faith in hard seasons.
His reach is global. Most of his live shows include a language medley in Japanese, Russian, Spanish, and Dutch. He has traveled to Africa for ministry, including Kenya, and he leads charity work in Jamaica.
Honors followed. Michigan’s International Gospel Music Hall of Fame inducted him in 2004. The Long Island Music and Entertainment Hall of Fame added him in 2010.
His path, from a church choir to a Grammy stage, is one many young singers hope to follow. If that is you, this guide on how to start a Christian music career is a good first step.
Criticism and Controversies
Views on Homosexuality
McClurkin has said that childhood abuse and exposure to pornography led him into homosexuality. He says he was delivered through prayer and will. He first spoke this way publicly around 2002.
LGBTQ+ advocates strongly oppose his claims. Britannica notes that his views conflict with research on sexual orientation. McClurkin presents his account as a personal testimony. In 2015, he also spoke out against the Supreme Court ruling that made same-sex marriage legal nationwide.
The Obama Campaign and the March on Washington
In 2007, McClurkin was named a headliner for gospel concerts tied to Barack Obama’s presidential campaign. Critics objected. He was taken off the lineup but still performed at one of the concerts.
In August 2013, he was pulled from a concert for the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington. Reports say his “ex-gay” status was seen as a distraction. Accounts differ on whether he was removed or withdrew.
The 2026 Lawsuit
On January 2, 2026, Giuseppe Corletto filed a lawsuit against McClurkin in New York County Supreme Court. Corletto says he met McClurkin in 2003 at age 21. He worked as McClurkin’s personal assistant from 2004 to 2008.
The suit alleges sexual abuse over several years, including during prayer sessions meant to change his sexuality. It also cites a 2013 email that Corletto says supports his account.
McClurkin denies the claims. His attorney, Greg Lisi, called them categorically false and said they misstate what happened. On January 7, McClurkin posted a letter on Instagram. He asked the gospel community for patience and said he expects to be vindicated.
These are allegations, not findings. I found no reported court verdict as of September 2026.
Is Donnie McClurkin Alive? How He Is Doing Today
Yes, Donnie McClurkin is alive. He is 66 and still active in ministry and music. In September 2026, his team sent a new single, Lord, I Thank You, to gospel radio. It is the second single from FINALLY, due in October.
What Is Donnie McClurkin Doing Today?
He is still senior pastor of Perfecting Faith Church and still hosts his radio show. In 2025, he announced he was stepping away from recording, not from ministry. His single Better Afterwhile came out on October 17, 2025.
He still plays select shows. He sang at a Carnegie Hall festival in January 2026 and at a reunion concert with his choir in the spring. In March 2026, the SOAR Awards honored him in Chicago.
What’s Going On With Donnie McClurkin’s Health?
Here is what is confirmed. On December 12, 2018, he lost consciousness while driving and crashed into a concrete median. He left with stitches, a sprained wrist, and a hurt knee. In July 2024, a Cleveland gospel station reported that he was dealing with vocal cord problems.
Fake news has followed him. In September 2020, he posted a video saying he was not in a hospital with cancer. The report used a five-year-old hospital photo. Death hoaxes and “heartbreaking news” videos still spread on TikTok and YouTube, so check his official pages or major outlets first.
Awards and Recognition
- Three Grammy Awards: Best Contemporary Soul Gospel Album for Again (2004), Best Traditional Soul Gospel Album for Psalms, Hymns & Spiritual Songs (2006), and Best Gospel Performance for Wait on the Lord (2010).
- At least ten Stellar Awards, including a big sweep in 2002 for Live in London and More.
- Two BET Awards for Best Gospel Artist, in 2001 and 2005.
- Two Soul Train Music Awards, in 2002 and 2006.
- Multiple Dove Awards, including Traditional Gospel Recorded Song of the Year for We Fall Down (2001).
- NAACP Image Awards.
- Michigan’s International Gospel Music Hall of Fame (2004).
- Long Island Music and Entertainment Hall of Fame (2010).
- SOAR Awards honoree in Chicago (2026).
[IMAGE: Donnie McClurkin accepting a Grammy Award for gospel music]
Interesting Facts About Donnie McClurkin
- He wrote Stand in about 20 minutes on a plane.
- He once thought his three biggest songs were filler tracks.
- He forgot the verses of We Fall Down at the London recording and sang only the chorus.
- He sang in a Broadway show chorus before he was famous.
- He wrote and sang two songs for the 1998 Prince of Egypt inspirational album.
- He is related to Marsha McClurkin of the 1990s group Abstrac.
- He announced in 2005 that he would leave solo recording. Then he made five more albums.
- By his own account, he still flew to Kenya to preach two days after his 2018 car crash.
Donnie McClurkin Timeline
- In 1959, he was born in Copiague, New York, on November 9.
- Around 1967, his two-year-old brother Thomas was killed by a driver, and the family fell apart.
- At 15, he joined the King’s Temple Choir and later formed the McClurkin Singers.
- In 1983, he met James Cleveland and Marvin Winans.
- From 1987 to 1989, he sang in the Broadway chorus of Don’t Get God Started.
- In 1989, he moved to Detroit as an associate minister at Perfecting Church.
- In 1996, he released his self-titled debut album with Stand.
- In 2000, he released Live in London and More….
- In 2001, he was ordained, started Perfecting Faith Church, and published his memoir.
- In 2004, he won his first Grammy for Again.
- In 2006, he won a Grammy for Psalms, Hymns & Spiritual Songs.
- From 2010 to 2015, he judged BET’s Sunday Best.
- In 2013, both his parents died, and he was pulled from a March on Washington concert.
- In 2016, he released The Journey (Live) and his relationship with Nicole C. Mullen made headlines.
- In 2017, I Need You hit No. 1 on Gospel Airplay.
- In December 2018, he survived a serious car crash.
- In 2019, he released A Different Song.
- In 2025, he announced his final recording project and released Better Afterwhile.
- On January 2, 2026, a lawsuit was filed against him. He denies it.
- In September 2026, he released Lord, I Thank You. FINALLY is set for October.
Frequently Asked Questions About Donnie McClurkin
Is Donnie McClurkin alive?
Yes. Donnie McClurkin is 66 and alive. He released a new single, Lord, I Thank You, in September 2026 and is preparing his final album, FINALLY. Death rumors on social media are false, so check his official channels or major news outlets.
How is Donnie McClurkin doing today?
He is active. McClurkin still pastors Perfecting Faith Church, hosts a weekly radio show, and performs select concerts. He announced in 2025 that he is stepping away from recording, but not from ministry.
What is Donnie McClurkin doing today?
He is finishing FINALLY, his last studio album, due in October 2026. He also leads his church in Freeport, New York, and continues charity work, including building homes in Jamaica with Food for the Poor.
What’s going on with Donnie McClurkin’s health?
Confirmed events include a 2018 car crash after he lost consciousness and reported vocal cord problems in 2024. He also says he survived leukemia at age 31. No credible outlet reports a current life-threatening illness, and viral hospital videos are often clickbait.
Is Donnie McClurkin married?
No. Donnie McClurkin is not married, and no reliable source reports a past marriage. He said in 2016 that marriage was the one thing missing from his life.
Did Donnie McClurkin ever marry, and did he have a first wife?
No. He has never had a public wedding, so there is no first wife. In 2016, he and singer Nicole C. Mullen said they were on the road to marriage, but they were never engaged and never wed.
Who is Donnie McClurkin’s wife?
He does not have a wife. Nicole C. Mullen is the woman most often linked to him in wife searches, but they never married. She married someone else in 2021.
Are there Donnie McClurkin wedding pictures?
No. Because he has not married, real wedding pictures do not exist. Photos labeled that way online are misleading. Real couple photos show him with Nicole C. Mullen at the 2016 Stellar Awards.
Does Donnie McClurkin have any biological children?
Yes. He has one biological child, a son named Matthew, born in 2000. He also has an adopted daughter, Michelle. McClurkin has not made the identity of Matthew’s mother public.
Who is Donnie McClurkin’s son?
His son is Matthew McClurkin, born in 2000. In 2013, McClurkin said he was repairing a strained relationship with Matthew. Matthew keeps a mostly private life.
Where is Donnie McClurkin originally from?
He is from Long Island, New York. McClurkin was born in Copiague on November 9, 1959, and grew up in nearby Amityville. He now lives in the same region and pastors in Freeport.
Where are Donnie McClurkin’s parents from?
His father, Donald Sr., was born and raised in Chester, South Carolina, and later moved to Amityville. His mother, Frances, grew up in Harlem, New York City. Both died in 2013.
Who wrote We Fall Down?
Kyle Matthews wrote We Fall Down. Bob Carlisle recorded it first, in the late 1990s. McClurkin recorded his version at his 2000 London concert, and it became his biggest crossover hit.
Is Donnie McClurkin retiring?
He is retiring from recording, not ministry. McClurkin said in 2025 that FINALLY will be his last studio album. He plans to keep pastoring, hosting radio, and performing select concerts.
Where can I watch Donnie McClurkin on YouTube?
Search for his official channel, listed as @Donnie_McClurkin. It carries live videos of songs such as Stand, We Fall Down, and I Need You.
