RICHMOND, Va. -- Two voices are taking the world by storm. Richmond vocal coach Joseph Clarke and his 12-year-old niece Bri’anna Harper, from Chesapeake, are both internet sensations.
Their cover of "Ain’t No Mountain High Enough" has more than 700,000 views on Instagram and more than 20 million views across all social media platforms.
Neither of them thought it would take off the way it did.
“So my Uncle Jojo was like ‘Hey Bri, we should record a song.' So we recorded it and it went viral,” says Harper.
Clarke said, “I felt like when we did it, it was just out of fun and bringing a little hope to peoples' hearts and homes.”
However, they’re no strangers to this kind of attention. The duo has been posting videos together for three years. That’s when Clarke first started vocal lessons with his niece.
“I’m so glad that I’m able to coach Bri and take her to the next level. She just has this natural talent that anyone has to respect,” said Clarke.
“When he trains me, he knows how to have fun with it,” said Bri.
When they’re not going viral together, they’re both working on equally successful solo careers.
Most recently, Clarke competed on America’s Got Talent with his Gospel trio, Resound. The group finished as a finalist on the show.
“We went straight to the quarterfinals. We had an amazing performance. “It so solid, so great,” said Clarke. “But it just wasn’t our time to move on.”
Harper has an original song coming soon featuring Grammy-Award Winning artist, Ne-Yo. She also just worked with Alicia Keys to promote the musician’s new album “Alicia.”
As a duo, Clarke and Harper’s only agenda is to spread joy.
“We just want to make people happy and make them smile,” said Harper.
Clarke also gave a little advice as some people struggle during the pandemic.
“It may look crazy or dark right now, or no light at the end of the tunnel, but just don’t give up. Let music heal.”
They say the thing that matters most to them is their relationship.
Harper shared this with her uncle after our interview, “You’re family and I love you.” Clarke replied, “I love you too.”
