Karen Valencia Clark Sheard is an American gospel singer and songwriter. Clark-Sheard is the youngest member of gospel group the Clark Sisters, which was formed in 1973. She is also the mother of contemporary gospel singer and actress Kierra "Kiki" Sheard, with whom she frequently collaborates. She has released five solo albums and 17 with the Clark Sisters.
During the hiatus of the Clark Sisters, Clark-Sheard recorded her debut studio album Finally Karen, which spawned the single, "Balm in Gilead" the R&B-tinged singles "Just for Me" and "Nothing Without You". Finally Karen was among the highest-selling gospel albums of that year, and earned Clark-Sheard a Grammy Award nomination and a Soul Train Lady of Soul Award for "Best Female Vocalist".
Clark-Sheard then was hospitalized in 2001 after a blood vessel burst during a bariatric surgery, resulting in doctors giving her a 2% chance of survival. The experience inspired the title for her second album, 2nd Chance. Clark-Sheard recorded two more live albums-The Heavens Are Telling and It's Not Over -before releasing All in One, her second studio album.