Mary Mary and Fred Hammond have been named among a who’s-who list of artists slated to perform in the 2012 Essence Music Festival.
The annual music festival takes place each Summer in New Orleans. Other artists announced to perform include Aretha Franklin, Fantasia, Ledisi and Mary J Blige.
This year’s festival runs from July 6-8, 2012 in New Orleans, LA. For more info, and for tickets, visit www.essencemusicfestival.com.
Announcements were made this week that Fantasia Barrino will star as Mahalia Jackson in a motion picture about the gospel star’s life.
The movie will be based on the book Got To Tell It: Mahalia Jackson, Queen of Gospel, and will focus on Mahalia’s life as a gospel singer and civil rights activist.
Shooting begins in April of this year, in Pittsburgh and Chicago, with a film release expected in December of 2011.
I will admit that I was skeptical– if you remember last year’s Celebration Of Gospel, there were just a bunch of moments that left us wondering… “WHY?!”
But this year, for its 10th anniversary, BET seems to have taken time and done things well and with purpose. I honestly thought it was a GREAT show.
My quick comments about each song, in order:
Fred Hammond featuring Kelly Price and Shirley Caesar – “Awesome God”
I loved the album version of this song (and wondered if it should’ve been the single) for months now. For me, the addition of Kelly Price to the performance made this song a great opener.
Yolanda Adams – “Victory”
It’s a great song, and Yolanda always gives an incredible live performance, but I didn’t necessarily NEED it. Just seemed a bit random.
Anthony & Tarsha’ Hamilton – “Better Is One Day”
One of the best performances of the night for me. It was an awesome arrangement of a CCM favorite, it was heartfelt and simple. And Tarsha’ can SING! Geeeeeeez.
Bobby Jones & The Nashville Super Choir featuring Y’Anna Crawley – “The Lord Will Make A Way Somehow”
Dunno what was up with Dr. Jones’ costume in the beginning (it was creative, but the bubble wrap thing threw me for a loop), but by the time the singing started, I was all in. Y’Anna sounded & looked great, the Nashville Super Choir went hard, and it was a solid performance.
Kelly Price & Ledisi – “How Great Thou Art”
From what I hear, BET edited some of the best parts of this performance from the TV broadcast. No matter… even as an edited shadow of itself, the performance was one of the night’s best. These are two of the most gifted female vocalists in the music biz right now. Loved it.
BeBe & CeCe Winans – “Close To You”/”Grace”
I sent a tweet last night that, though I love them, BeBe & CeCe could’ve done a throwback tune for me and I would’ve been thrilled. From a business standpoint, I get it (and they still did a great job)… I’m just even more eager for that reunion tour!
City Of Refuge P.S.A.L.M.S. Choir – “Shout”
I’m not a huge fan of the choir, but they did a great cover of this classic Milton Brunson tune. Lots of energy and a clean look make them stand out. Nice job.
Shirley Caesar – “Celebration”
The First Lady of Gospel always delivers a solid performance. Performing her newest single, she remained consistent and demonstrated that traditional vocals will NEVER go out of style.
James Fortune & FIYA – “I Trust You”
A bit underwhelmed by the use of background vocal tracks instead of live bgv’s until the vamp, but the song is powerful and so was the performance. This group is solidifying itself as a mainstay in the gospel landscape.
Fred Hammond – “They That Wait”
Actually, I wasn’t as interested in this song without John P. Kee being there. Makes me wonder if, in the end, it wasn’t the collabo that made the song so popular. I didn’t necessarily need to see this performance, especially given that he did the opener…
Fantasia & Diane Barrino – “He’s Done Enough”
From the moment she hit the stage, Fantasia’s shoes were off and she was jumpin’. It’s how she does gospel and I LOVE it. I also loved seeing her mama lookin’ like an artist herself… they performed together at the 2009 Chicago GospelFest and on Bobby Jones last season– I could get used to this!
Rance Allen Group – “Something About The Name Jesus”
Watching Rance Allen perform is always an adventure– you never know where the riffs & squalls are gonna come from, but you know they’re coming! It was great to hear him sing this classic tune, but I’m beginning to see less of a need for the “Group.”
Tye Tribbett & G.A. – “So Amazing”
It’s been said that this is the last we’ll see of G.A., as Tye is reportedly disbanding the group (per in-the-know journalist Jawn Murray, who attended a “farewell concert” on New Year’s Eve). If so, this was a nice performance to end their run. The song is good, the energy was what we’ve come to expect… cool deal.
Donnie McClurkin – “We Fall Down”
Donnie continues to demonstrate why there is no substitute for a good song and a solid vocal performance. No frills or gimmicks– just a 10-year-old tune and a vocalist who never really misses. Excellent.
Marvin Sapp – “The Best In Me”
This song was a hit from the moment he sang the first note at his live recording. And you all have been listening to it here for a while now, and lovin’ it. Another dynamic performance from an incredibly gifted singer. Chalk up another one for Marvin Sapp.
Donald Lawrence – “Back II Eden”/”The Best Is Yet To Come”
An awesome finale performance, with the incredible Floyd Wilkinson on the vamp, from the man with the Midas touch. The only thing missing for me was Donald’s group of singers, but I’m just spoiled.
All in all, this show was really great. The tribute to Steve Harvey was heartfelt and touching. And I’ll say this– if some of the greatest ministers of music in our industry come together annually, and interact with non-believers, we’re SUPPOSED to see a change in people. What that says for other annual televised gospel programs, I’m not sure… but it’s encouraging to see what God’s been doing in Steve’s life through Celebration Of Gospel.
Now… WHAT DID YOU THINK OF THE SHOW?!
Folks, don’t forget to watch BET’s Celebration Of Gospel this coming Sunday. It’ll feature your favorite artists– gospel and secular– in what should be a really good hour or two of performances.
Click here if you wanna review the performance roster again. Celebration Of Gospel airs on BET this Sunday at 8pm ET/7pm CST.
I’m probably most excited to see Yolanda Adams, Fantasia and Diane Barrino, Donald Lawrence, Kelly Price, Ledisi…
Which performances are you most eager to see?
I love great music. Even more, I love a great live performance. You’ve GOT TO be able to sing to pull it off and, if you can’t, it shows.
This year, a lot of great live performances were captured and broadcast across the nation. Then, folks uploaded ‘em to YouTube. 
Here are my 5 FAVORITE televised performances of 2009, in order:
5. Donnie McClurkin & Karen Clark Sheard – “Wait On The Lord” at the 2009 Stellar Awards
The first single from Donnie McClurkin’s anticipated project did not disappoint. Aside from being a soaring ballad with an encouraging message, it featured one of the greatest voices the gospel industry has ever heard– that of Karen Clark Sheard. The duo gave one of the most thrilling performances of this year’s Stellar Awards telecast, with Karen soaring into the rafters in a way that any music lover could appreciate (and die-hard KCS fans were simply drooling over).
4. Kirk Franklin, Myrna Summers, Milton Biggham – Tribute To Rev. Timothy Wright at the 2009 Stellar Awards
At the time, the late Rev. Timothy Wright’s health was on a roller coaster– good days followed by bad ones. Kirk Franklin produced a moving segment, blending some of his hits with classic songs from the incomparable “Godfather Of Gospel Music.” With featured appearances by Myrna Summers and Rev. Milton Biggham, Kirk’s set was an incredible tribute to an incredible man.
3. Fantasia & Diane Barrino - “He’s Done Enough” on Bobby Jones Gospel
Everyone knows that Fantasia was ACTUALLY s’posed to have signed a gospel contract win she won American Idol. But 2009 finally brought a bunch of gospel performance opps for her and gospel consumers cannot get enough of her. In every case, her signature singin’ and squallin’ brought audiences to their feet and prompted one recurring question from gospel consumers – “when is FANTASIA gonna do a gospel album?!”
It kinda all began in the beginning of the year, when she was featured on BET’s Bobby Jones Gospel, with her mother, Diane Barrino. She ministered like a seasoned pro and gave a performance like only she can. Even more, she took the topic of her salvation off the table (though, it shouldn’t have been there to begin with) and demonstrated a real relationship with Jesus Christ.
2. Jessica Reedy – “Brighter Day” on BET’s Sunday Best
In my opinion, it was the most incredible performance of the entire season of BET’s Sunday Best. Jessica stepped from possible underdog to frontrunner with one sweet, flawless, jazzy arrangement of Kirk Franklin’s “Brighter Day.” Channeling the style and finesse of Anita Baker, Jessica utterly floored the judges, Kirk Franklin and the viewing nation.
Though she’s not signed to a record deal yet, she promised ME she’d do her best to re-record THIS cut for her debut album.
1. Kim Burrell – “Bless Me (Prayer Of Jabez)” at the 2009 BMI Trailblazers Of Gospel Awards
Each year, one of the greatest events during Stellar Awards weekend is the BMI Trailblazers of Gospel Awards, at which gospel greats are honored with an award and tribute performances that are second to none. The most gifted vocalists and musicians in the industry participate and, often, attendees can only describe how good the show was by shaking their head in disbelief.
Enter Gospel Music Channel, which secured the rights to nationally broadcast the event for the first time. And what a year to do so– Kim Burrell performed “Bless Me (Prayer Of Jabez)” in tribute to honoree Donald Lawrence. The rest can only be stated by watching the video. LOL
Of course, I couldn’t pinpoint all of the great performances… there were too many. From Celebration Of Gospel, to the Stellar Awards, BMI Trailblazers Of Gospel Awards and Sunday Best, we saw some dynamic performances from some of the world’s most gifted musicians.
Which TV performances made your list of faves?
BET has announced its roster for its annual gospel performance program, Celebration Of Gospel. The show, which will be hosted by Steve Harvey, will take place in Los Angeles on December 12th and will air on Sunday, January 10, 2010.
If you’ll be in the L.A. area and wanna ATTEND the show, email BET at BETRSVP@bet.net or call ‘em at (202) 608-2617 for tickets.
As usual, the list is intended to represent a diverse group of singers– some tried-and-true gospel artists with some mainstream artists with a lil’ church on ‘em. Did they succeed? You be the judge…
Donnie McClurkin
Fred Hammond
BeBe & CeCe Winans
Shirley Caesar
Marvin Sapp
James Fortune & FIYA
Tye Tribbett & G.A.
The Rance Allen Group
Y’Anna Crawley
Dr. Bobby Jones & The Nashville Super Choir
P.S.A.L.M. Choir (from City of Refuge Church)
Deborah Cox, Kelly Price & Tamia (group members of the upcoming R&B album “The Queen Project”)
Fantasia Barrino and her mother, Diane Barrino Barber
Anthony Hamilton and his wife, Tarsha Hamilton
So, that’s that. Now, who’s missing from the list for my taste? Donald Lawrence, Israel Houghton, and J Moss.
Coko is a perfect example of an artist that should be on the roster– great gospel album(s) with mainstream appeal. That’s just a no-brainer.
Also, Myron Butler & Levi have a new album coming out in 2010 and, though someone might say “they’re not as known among the BET audience,” I would disagree. They are, in essence, the reincarnation of God’s Property, who put out one of the most successful gospel albums in history. And that didn’t happen because of gospel consumers– it was the mainstream folks. So, if BET’s audience doesn’t know who Myron Butler & Levi are, it’s because BET has failed to tell them. But I bet they have the God’s Property album and I bet they’d care.
And what’s the deal with Kierra Sheard? She can’t GET a booking in this industry. BET snoozes on her repeatedly and it’s ridiculous.
I think, all in all, it’s gonna be one of those shows where I’ll be eager to watch one segment, then feel just fine missing the next segment to do something more exciting, like pour orange juice or balance my checkbook. 
What do you good people think about the list?
I wasn’t expecting this to be such a blow-out, but y’all have spoken and the answer is clear…
Which mainstream artist dabbles in gospel so much that they need to just come on over full-time?
Fantasia – 147 votes (75%)
Faith Evans - 21 votes (11%)
Jennifer Hudson - 21 votes (11%)
Anthony Hamilton – 7 votes (4%)
John Legend – 1 vote (1%)
I can’t say that I disagree– Fantasia’s got a churchy voice ALL DAY. I kinda expected Jennifer Hudson to have more votes, but like I said… not surprised.
What do y’all think??? And do you wanna add anyone else’s names to the mix?
And head over to the sidebar NOW to weigh-in on the new poll:
Who do you predict will WIN Sunday Best?
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Soooo glad someone posted this on YouTube! 
If you recall, Fantasia was featured on Bobby Jones Gospel a few months ago, and again on a re-run a coupla weeks ago. She sang “He’s Done Enough” with her singin’ mama, as well as “Total Praise.” Both performances were dynamite, but I chose to share the former with you precious people.
ENJOY!
It was a re-run.
But it was still as good as the first time I saw it! It featured performances from Fantasia, Melonie Daniels and Isaiah D. Thomas.
I already posted a clip a coupla months ago of Melonie’s awesome performance, and Isaiah D. Thomas did his thing well. But I wanna chat about Fantasia. MAN, OH MAN.
She AND her mama sang “He’s Done Enough” like it was going out of style. I mean, they brought it FOR REAL. Then, she came back at the end of the show to sing “Total Praise”– phenomenal.
After the credits rolled, she continued in the same vein of worship, talking to the audience about her recent vocal surgery and how she has a voice to sing despite the doctors’ predictions. She cried and sang some more, thanking God for who He is. Great stuff!
I think Fantasia’s a bit of an anomaly in the music industry. After Patti LaBelle, Aretha Franklin, and maybe Whitney Houston, she’s probably the biggest-named artist who puts out “secular” albums, but can also be found doing tons of gospel stuff on the regular. Not only is she accepted in both markets, she’s believable in both genres.
I’m aware that I could be startin’ something, but I wanna know what y’all think about her. Holla!
