5 minutes with Bebe Winans

After a 10-year hiatus, the multi-award winning gospel and RnB singer Bebe Winans returns to the spotlight with a memoir Born For This (whose musical stage adaptation is set to go to Broadway) and a brand new album Need You.

He commemorates this with the Born For This tour and is heading to SA for what will be his last tour.               

He spoke to us about what makes him tick, giving us a glimpse into the man behind the music.

My best part of the day is the morning. Early morning at 4am, 5am. When everybody else is asleep, I'm up. I'm exercising, I'm reading. I'm praying. I'm doing all those things to show myself how much I love myself.

My favourite book right now is Born For This: The Bebe Winans story.

If I wasn't a singer, I would be what I love to be and what I always loved more than singing and that is a writer.

My current state of mind is that God is in control of everything even with the world being in a crazy place with fear, rumours of war and disease break outs. Even with all of that, my state of mind is peace.

The last gift I'd give someone would be my understanding about this industry to a group of four Korean guys who are now about to enter the music world. So it would be advice.

My best quality is laughter. It really is. I have learnt how there is medication in laughter. In any space, whether up or down, I have learnt the value of laughter and how it can bring joy to a sad situation. It's one of my best traits which I get from my mom and dad.

My worst quality is sleep. I love to sleep and I go to sleep early, so I become very boring to my family and friends.

My valued possession when travelling is just my understanding of how to travel.

My favourite dish is chicken - any kind of way.

Words that I overuse are "I'm not playing".

I sing because I'm happy!

-Bebe Winans will be performing at Johannesburg's Ticketpro Dome on March 20 and Durban's ICC on March 21.