Gospel Music Executive Ken Cook Dies of Cancer at 37
A well-known gospel music executive died Monday at the age of 37.
Ken Cook, manager of national promotions for EMI Gospel, died at Vanderbilt Medical Center in Nashville, Tenn., after a long battle with colon cancer, according to an announcement Tuesday.
During his lifetime, Cook worked with artists including Mary Mary, Tye Tribbett, Kierra "Ki Ki" Sheard, the West Angeles COGIC Mass Choir, and Jason Champion, among others.
"The name 'Ken Cook' to me means, 'Light of the Industry," gospel music artist Tribbett commented after receiving news of Cook's death. "When we first got signed and came on the scene ... it was a shock to me that 'this' industry in a lot of ways was like any other industry. However, Ken was my beacon of hope. Sort of like the believers voice in the secular business."
The Campbell sisters of Mary Mary, meanwhile, said the best word to describe Cook was "incomparable."
"He was just that good," the award-winning gospel music duo expressed. "We were praying that this would take a turn in a different direction but God knows best. And now God has THE BEST right up there with him. We'll miss Ken but we'll never forget him."
Funeral arrangements have been scheduled for Friday at 10 a.m. at New Life Church of God in Christ in Montgomery, Ala. In lieu of flowers, the family is requesting that donations be made in Cook's honor to the Ken T. Cook Cancer Support Fund.
Donations can be sent to 4429 Benchmark Drive, Antioch, TN 37013 in c/o Dolli Cook.
