Allen's third release for Motéma Music is a solo sequel to her critically acclaimed solo debut, 2010's Flying Toward the Sound. Where that release paid tribute to three of her creative inspirations - Herbie Hancock, McCoy Tyner, and Cecil Taylor - A Child Is Born honors equally meaningful but perhaps even more deeply entrenched influences: family and spirituality. She refers to the album as "a joyous Christmas celebration and remembrance of a childhood where love was always unconditional."