Tankard's father was a minister and his mother a missionary. Tankard discovered a third-grade school teacher named
Yolanda Adams and signed her to his indy Tribute label. He produced her albums
Through the Storm,
Save the World,
More Than A Melody, and
Yolanda... Live in Washington. They collaborated on over 40 compositions. He credits her voice for helping to bring his production style and keyboard playing to a large audience. He won
Stellar Awards' Best Instrumental Album in 2010 for
Mercy, Mercy, Mercy. In 2012,
Ben Tankard/ Full Tank was nominated by the
Soul Train Music Awards for Best Contemporary Jazz Artist.
Thicker Than Water is an American
reality television series that premiered on November 10, 2013, on
Bravo. The series chronicles the family dynamic of former professional basketball player and an American gospel-jazz instrumentalist
Ben Tankard, his wife Jewel and their children. Bravo previously aired a pilot titled
Thicker Than Water: The Marinos in August 2011 that had the same premise but centered on a different family. In April 2014, Bravo renewed
Thicker Than Water for a second season, which premiered on January 4, 2015. In February 2016, Bravo renewed
Thicker Than Water for a third season that premiered on March 27, 2016. ==Discography==