Mandisa grew up in Citrus Heights, California (Sacramento County) and graduated from El Camino Fundamental High School. She then attended American River College in Sacramento where she studied Vocal Jazz. Then she was off to Fisk University in Tennessee and graduated with a bachelor's of music degree with a concentration in vocal performance. Mandisa currently resides in the suburban Nashville community of Antioch, Tennessee. When she auditioned for American Idol in Chicago, she asked the judges to call her "just Mandisa", and she has been billed as Mandisa (with no last name) on the show since the shows Hollywood round. Mandisa was a backup singer for famed Christian author and speaker Beth Moore. She has stated her musical influences run the gamut from Whitney Houston to Def Leppard.
Idol judge Simon Cowell made several comments about Mandisa's weight during her audition. When he first saw her, he quipped are we "going to have a bigger stage this year." Later, when Paula Abdul commented that Mandisa had a "Frenchie" growl to her voice, Cowell responded that a more apt comparison would be to France itself. These were among comments that drew the ire of the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance, and would be one of the reasons Mandisa would entitle her 2007 album "True Beauty".
According to the Stronger Songfacts, the 11 tracks of Mandisa's 2011 album What If We Were Real encourage shining the light on whom we really are, including both the good and the bad; the theme of the record also coincided with Mandisa's public struggles with food addiction and weight loss. "A struggle is a struggle, and Jesus is there through it all," the singer explained. "He is there in compassion and grace. I have found that what He has spoken to me through these songs has been encouraging and I think that'll be true for other people who are going through their own hard times."
Joy To The World
Mandisa Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Let earth receive her King
Let every heart prepare Him room
And heaven and nature sing
And heaven and nature sing
And heaven, and heaven, and nature sing
Joy to the world, the Savior reigns
While fields and floods, rocks, hills and plains
Repeat the sounding joy
Repeat the sounding joy
Repeat, repeat the sounding joy
Oh, come, oh, come, Emmanuel
Oh, come, oh, come, Emmanuel
He rules the world with truth and grace
And He makes the nations prove
The glories of His righteousness
And wonders of His love
And wonders of His love
And wonders, wonders of His love
Oh, come, oh, come, Emmanuel
Oh, come, oh, come, Emmanuel
Joy to the world, the Lord is come
Let earth receive her King, let us see
He gives us joy, He gives us peace
Let heaven and nature sing to the King
He gives us joy, let's all of us bring
Praise, praise, praise to the King, to the King
He gives us joy, joy, joy
Let heaven and nature sing to the King
He gives us joy, let's all of us bring
Praise to it's King 'cause He gives us joy, joy, joy
The lyrics of Mandisa's "Joy to the World" are a celebration of the arrival of Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world. The song begins with the declaration that the Lord has come and encourages the people of the earth to receive Him as their King. The lyrics suggest that every heart needs to prepare itself to receive Jesus, and that the joy of heaven and nature will then be felt. The second verse praises Jesus, the Savior, whose reign brings joy to the world. The lyrics describe how nature rejoices and echoes with the sound of this joy. The third verse declares the rule of Jesus over the world through truth and grace. It urges the nations of the earth to show the righteousness and love of Jesus Christ.
Overall, the lyrics are an expression of the joy and hope that a Christian feels because of Jesus Christ. The song encourages people to prepare their hearts to receive Him and to let the joy of Jesus overflow in their lives. The song is a reminder that Jesus is the rightful ruler of the world and His reign is filled with love, truth, and grace. It calls on all people to join in the celebration of Jesus' arrival and to acknowledge Him as the King of all.
Line by Line Meaning
Joy to the world, the Lord is come
Let us celebrate and rejoice because the Lord has arrived on Earth.
Let earth receive her King
Let the planet Earth accept and welcome the arrival of its new king.
Let every heart prepare Him room
Let's make room in our hearts to receive our new king and praise him.
And heaven and nature sing
The heavens and nature both join together to sing and celebrate our new king's arrival.
And heaven and nature sing
The heavens and nature both join together to sing and celebrate our new king's arrival.
And heaven, and heaven, and nature sing
Even without any human intervention, both heaven and nature still celebrate the coming of the new king.
Joy to the world, the Savior reigns
The Savior now reigns and brings joy to everyone on Earth.
Let men their songs employ
Let all of humanity sing songs of praise and worship to our new king.
While fields and floods, rocks, hills and plains
All parts of the planet, including the fields, floods, rocks, hills and plains, join together in celebration and praise.
Repeat the sounding joy
Let's repeat this joyful celebration and sing praises to our king.
Repeat the sounding joy
Let's repeat this joyful celebration and sing praises to our king.
Repeat, repeat the sounding joy
We will keep on singing and praising our king on repeat because he brings us so much joy.
Oh, come, oh, come, Emmanuel
Oh, please come Emmanuel and bring us joy and salvation.
Oh, come, oh, come, Emmanuel
Oh, please come Emmanuel and bring us joy and salvation.
He rules the world with truth and grace
Our new king rules the world with both truth and grace, showing us how to live a virtuous life.
And He makes the nations prove
Through his rule, he makes all nations prove the glories of his righteousness and wonders of his love.
The glories of His righteousness
Our king's righteousness is glorious and should be celebrated by all nations.
And wonders of His love
The love our king brings is so wondrous and amazing that we can't help but celebrate it.
And wonders of His love
The love our king brings is so wondrous and amazing that we can't help but celebrate it.
And wonders, wonders of His love
The love our king brings is so wondrous and incredible that it deserves more than just one mention.
Oh, come, oh, come, Emmanuel
Oh, please come Emmanuel and bring us joy and salvation.
Oh, come, oh, come, Emmanuel
Oh, please come Emmanuel and bring us joy and salvation.
Joy to the world, the Lord is come
Let us celebrate and rejoice because the Lord has arrived on Earth.
Let earth receive her King, let us see
May the planet Earth be glad to accept its new king and praise him forever.
He gives us joy, He gives us peace
Our king brings us joy and peace that we can't find anywhere else.
Let heaven and nature sing to the King
May even the heavens and nature themselves sing and praise the King who has brought us so much joy and peace.
He gives us joy, let's all of us bring
We should all bring praise and adoration to the King who has given us so much joy.
Praise, praise, praise to the King, to the King
Let's keep praising our King because he deserves all of our adoration and worship.
He gives us joy, joy, joy
Our King gives us so much joy that it should overflow in our hearts and minds.
Let heaven and nature sing to the King
May even the heavens and nature themselves sing and praise the King who has brought us so much joy and peace.
He gives us joy, let's all of us bring
We should all bring praise and adoration to the King who has given us so much joy.
Praise to it's King 'cause He gives us joy, joy, joy
We should praise our King because he brings us so much joy and happiness.
Contributed by Violet S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.