Ruth Fortson & Color of Praise are on:

Ruth Coleman was born in 1960. She was 19 when she started the group. She liked writing and singing gospel music.  She had a very beautiful and melodic voice. She played the piano, organ, and drums. In the church she was attending, she was told that she could not play the drums because she was female.  She was very discouraged and discontent.  She became very rebellious and stubborn.

She quit playing all of the instruments that she could play. She also began hanging around the wrong kind of people.  She had even begun to sing with an R&B group. She had even moved into her own apartment. She would skip church to attend gigs.  Her parents were very worried about her. They continued to pray for her.

Ruth says her turning point came in 1977.  She had been dating this guy named "Watts." He had begun to do drugs. He had offered Ruth drugs on several occasions.  Even though Ruth had turned her back on God, she had never smoked, drank, or done drugs. She always thought it would ruin her voice. This one particular time, Ruth was tired and needed something to pick her up.  Her boyfriend offered her some heroin. She was so tired; she decided that she would take it this one time.  It wouldn't hurt anything.  She was about to shoot the heroin into her arm. She heard a voice say, "If you do this, you will never sing again."  She was still about to shoot up.  Again, she heard the voice say, "If you do this, you will never sing again."  She looked around. There were only two people in the room, her, and her boyfriend. She put the needle down. Watts offered to help her shoot up, but she said no.

Later on that same week, a friend of hers who was a young preacher was on her mind.  His name was Evg. Dontay Fortson. She went by to visit him.  He was at his father's church cleaning up.  When Ruth walked in, Evg. Fortson, ran over to her, and hugged her. He said, "The Lord told me that you would be coming by to see me." She smiled at him and began to cry.  He talked to her. She talked to him.  They also prayed together.  Evg. Fortson offered her the plan of salvation, but she said, "No."  She walked out of the church. As she was walking out of the church, she heard a voice say, "If you go back to that lifestyle, you'll never sing again." Ruth ignored the voice and went on her way.

A couple of nights later, she was about to sing at a club. When opened her mouth to sing, nothing came out.  She opened her mouth to talk, nothing came out. She ran off the stage crying.  She tried talking, but nothing came out of her mouth.  She had to write what she wanted to say on a piece of paper. The next day, she went to the doctor.  They couldn't find anything wrong with her. She went home. Everyone came by to see her, her former, church family, her parents, and Evg. Fortson. Evg. Fortson spent a lot of time with Ruth.  He constantly prayed with her and ministered to her.  While everyone else that came by preaching and fussing at her, Evg. Fortson ministered to her. She began to fall in love with Evg. Fortson.

Ruth was unable to speak for 30 days.  During this time, she had a dream.  In the dream, she was singing before a large crowd.  The people in the crowd were dancing. She thought she was singing R&B, but in the middle of the dancing, someone shouted, "Hallelujah!"  She looked around and realized that she was in a church. She heard the voice of the Lord say, "Will you sing for me?" She responded with a no. She had the same dream another time with the same outcome. Evg. Fortson was visiting her one day and the Lord told him to tell Ruth to tell the Lord yes.  This was the only time he preached to Ruth.  He told her what the Lord had told him to tell her. She turned her back to him.  Before he left, he told her, "Ruth, I love you and I want to marry you, but I cannot marry an unsaved woman. You know God; you know His word and his wonders. It is up to you.   You have to choose, will you serve God or serve the devil."  With that phrase, Ruth did not see Evg. Fortson again for 2 ½ years. Ruth had the same dream yet a third time.  This time, she said yes with her mouth, but not with her heart. She could not speak until eight days later.  On the 30th day, she got down on her knees and prayed.  She told the Lord everything that was in her heart. At the end of the prayer, she gave her life to Christ.  She was a new creation. Everyone was happy that she had regained her voice.  Her family was expecting her to come back to the church that she had grown up in, but instead she went to a church in Kontza, a few miles from her home city of Colson.

In 1980, Ruth formed a singing group called Ruth Coleman and the Coleman singers.  They sung at revivals and musicals. They were becoming very popular. Ruth was again singing for the Lord. There was something special about the Coleman Singers; they were a multicultural singing group.  There were singing from all nationalities and walks of life.

On night at a revival, Evg. Fortson walked into the church while Ruth was singing. She didn't even see him. Evg. Fortson knew that Ruth was now saved and living for God.  He had heard that she was singing at the revival and he wanted to come see her.  After the service, he walked up to Ruth, greeted her, and talked for a few minutes. Ruth was glad to see Evg. Fortson, but the feelings that she had had before were not there. While she talked to him, all she could talk about was the Lord.

On October 14, 1982, Ruth and Evg. Fortson were married.

Ruth currently serves as the Vice-President of the Maddocha Gospel Music Coalition which she helped found with Norman Hall and Dee Clark.

She is the first lady of Praise in the Tabernacle Pentecostal Church where her husband, Eld. Dontay Fortson is the pastor.

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