Out in Johnston County, Mother Lena Mae Perry has been leading her gospel group, The Branchettes, for over 50 years. The...

Out in Johnston County, Mother Lena Mae Perry has been leading her gospel group, The Branchettes, for over 50 years. The subject of 2022’s documentary STAY PRAYED UP, Perry’s music is both a general inspiration and enduring to testament to the church’s role as a safe haven for black Southerners. As she states in this clip, “music can lift a heavy burden.”