Mandisa, Grammy-winning singer and ‘American Idol’ alum, dies at 47
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Mandisa, a contemporary Christian singer who appeared on “American Idol” and won a Grammy for her 2013 album ‘Overcomer’, has died. She was 47.
A representative for the singer told The Associated Press that the singer was found dead in her home in Nashville, Tennessee, on Thursday. The representative said the cause of Mandisa’s death was not yet known.
Mandisa, whose full name was Mandisa Lynn Hundley, was born near Sacramento, California, and grew up singing in church. She gained stardom after finishing ninth on “American Idol” in 2006.
As she left, host Ryan Seacrest told the singer that she was “a great spirit on the show.”
Mandisa moved on, releasing her debut album in 2007 called “True Beauty,” which received a Grammy nomination that year for best pop and contemporary gospel album.
She went on to release five more albums, including a Christmas album.
In 2014, she won a Grammy for best contemporary Christian music album for “Overcomer,” her fifth album.
Mandisa spoke openly about her struggles with depression, releasing a memoir entitled “Out of the Dark: My Journey Through the Shadows to Find God’s Joy” in 2022 that detailed her experiences with severe depression, weight-related challenges, the coronavirus pandemic and her faith.
“My dream is that this book will be a tool used in living rooms and coffee shops all over the world to help prompt discussions about our mental health,” she told “Good Morning America.”
On Friday, the Christian radio network K-love paid tribute to the singer on social media, saying: “Mandisa struggled, and she was vulnerable enough to share that with us, which helped us talk about our own struggles.”
Mandisa Lynn Hundley was born in Sacramento, California, on Oct. 2, 1976, to John Hundley and Ruby Berryman, who worked for the state. She sang at church and studied vocal performance at American River College, a community college in Sacramento, and then continued her studies at Fisk University in Nashville.
After college, she worked as a vocalist for singers Trisha Yearwood and Shania Twain.
She is survived by her parents and a brother, John Hundley.