Sherri Shepherd– comedian, actress and co-host of the wildly popular talk show The View– has been announced as the host of the 42nd Annual Dove Awards, to be held on Wednesday, April 20th in Atlanta, GA at the Fabulous Fox Theatre.

The announcement of Shepherd as host is the most recent in what seems to be several cross-cultural initiatives of the Gospel Music Association.  The organization’s awards ceremony was moved from its Nashville home to Atlanta last year, and it has announced the upcoming involvement of several gospel artists– including Bishop Paul Morton and Lecrae– in the upcoming Dove Awards press conference, to be held on February 16, 2011.

The awards program will air on gmc on Sunday, April 24th.

Remember on Tuesday, when I told you big news was coming about the Dove Awards?  Well, it came…

Word has it that the GMA’s Dove Awards will take place in Atlanta, GA in 2011, leaving its home of Nashville for the first time in the award program’s history.  The event will take place at the Fox Theater on April 20, 2011.

In its press release, the GMA mentioned that Atlanta is home to many of the industry’s biggest names– and it included SEVERAL gospel artists, like Byron Cage, Canton Jones… even Dottie Peoples.  And Bishop Paul Morton was quoted in the press release.

I hear inclusion and diversity comin’ on the horizon.

Now, the question is– will the gospel community RECIPROCATE it?  The GMA has, historically, had extremely low membership among the “black gospel” community.  They’re clearly putting a good foot forward, I think… what will our response be?  Will we see their effort and raise ‘em a few, or will we say “y’all never include us”?  I dunno…

What do you guys think about the move???

From the headline of this blog post, you probably assumed I’d be saying that the Gospel Music Association (GMA) needs to do a better job of representing “our” gospel music industry at the Dove Awards and throughout its organization.  And, in part, that’s true– the GMA is perpetually faced with the challenge of effectively representing all facets of Gospel/Christian music.

But I do not believe that the responsibility for such a task rests solely on the GMA.  I think we also have a responsibility to ensure that we are represented by participating in the GMA.

I often hear questions about why the Dove Awards don’t do a better job of including “us.”  To that, I’d ask why “we” haven’t joined the organization to make a difference.

Since relocating from NYC to Nashville, I’ve had the opportunity to witness, first-hand, how intentional the GMA often is about inclusion– of all genres under the Gospel/Christian umbrella.  And, I’ve witnessed how disinterested we, as a community, are in return… until nominations come around each year and we scream “who’s deciding this, anyway?!”  Not you– and that’s the problem.

But there’s hope.  EMI Gospel VP/General Manager Larry Blackwell is the Chair of the GMA Membership Committee.  He’s drafted an awesome OPEN LETTER TO THE GOSPEL COMMUNITY, explaining the GMA’s efforts, why it’s important to join, and how easy it is to do so.  Click here to read it!!!

And make sure you visit the GMA’s membership page to learn more, and to join.  You do not have to be a professional recording artist to do so, and there are even student memberships.

Who’s already a member?  Who plans to join?  Who will NOT join, and why?

Talk to me!

Artistic Soul Entertainment is gearing up for its annual Beyond Potential Music Gathering, to be held April 16th and 17th in Nashville, TN, during GMA Week.

The two-day conference, the brainchild of Brandon Egerton & Antonio Neal, has quickly become a favorite among aspiring artists and execs in the gospel industry.  From panel discussions, to networking opportunities, and even a new artist showcase, the conference boasts significant benefits to anyone desiring to enter this business.  I encourage you guys to check it out… and not just cuz I’m one of the speakers this year. LOL

Watch the promo video below and visit http://gobeyondpotential.com for more info and to register!

Anyone ever attended a Beyond Potential event?  Anyone planning to attend this year?  Talk to me!

If you’ve ever attended the Stellar Awards weekend or GMA week, you’ve probably noticed (and perhaps attended) the highly popular performance event, Urban Soul Cafe.

Quickly becoming one of the largest and most successful grassroots performance opps in the industry, the event features performances from major and indie artists at reasonable prices in an intimate setting.

This year, Urban Soul Cafe presents its Stellar Awards weekend event, “Access Granted,” and it promises to be just as good as past events, with performances expected from J Moss, Melinda Watts, 21:03, Adrianne Archie and many more urban gospel artists.

There will be two events– one on Thursday, January 14th and one following the Stellars taping on Saturday, January 16th– and will be hosted by DeWayne Woods, Canton Jones, Lexi and Sheilah Belle.

Click here to view the full flyers for the event and to purchase tickets!

The Gospel Music Association’s wildly successful GMA Week has been set for April 18th through 21st in Nashville, TN.  The week will culminate, as always, with the 41st Annual Dove Awards.

Anybody planning to attend?  I’m soooooo gonna try to be there, especially if the quality of the awards show is ANYWHERE close to where it was this year… just sheer excellence.

In related news, the GMA held a mega fundraiser on Monday night here in Nashville, dubbed the “Concert Of The Decade,” in an attempt to save the non-profit organization from recent financial woes.  Tickets to attend were $1,000 apiece (yes… three zeros) and the benefit featured performances by Kirk Franklin, Natalie Grant, Amy Grant, Casting Crowns, Michael W. Smith and many more.  Did anyone watch it online… or attend in person???

The event is said to have sold 350 tix for a total of $350,000, but the venue’s capacity was about 800 seats… Hopefully, this will be a helpful start.  The GMA is an asset to the Christian music community.

Folks, check out I’mAGospelSinger.com when you get a minute.

Dubbed “a community for gospel artists to discover, share and inspire,” it’s a cool social networking site on which artists (new, established, major and indie), DJs and producers can connect and do the doggone thing!  Members can upload tracks, videos, photos, and news about events… it’s kinda great.

The site is the brainchild of Artistic Soul Entertainment, the same group that has presented buzz-worthy events like the Beyond Potential Urban Music Gathering during GMA Week and the upcoming Beyond Potential Summer Showcase.

Check it out at http://www.imagospelsinger.com/ and lemme know what you think.

Following its MUCH-raved about Beyond Potential Urban Music Gathering during GMA Week, Artistic Soul Entertainment is gearing up for its Beyond Potential Summer Showcase.

Indie artists can sign up to be featured in the showcase and perform before a variety of distribution companies and booking agents.  Major opportunities, folks.  See the flyer below…

If you can’t make this one, I hear there’s more where that came from!  Visit ArtisticSoulEntertainment.com for more details.

Anyone planning on doin’ it???

Folks, a GREAT new artist that you need to check out– Trent Cory.  I think he’s gonna do very well in the industry.  He’s got a great voice, great songs, and an apparent heart for praise and worship.  We like!

His debut album, Freedom IS, features production by Aaron Lindsey and he’s already received ringing endorsements from Israel Houghton, Martha Munizzi and other notable folks in the industry.

And FYI:  If you’re gonna be in Nashville for GMA Week, he’ll be performing at the Beyond Potential conference TONIGHT (http://www.gobeyondpotential.com) and at the Urban Soul Cafe on Wednesday night (http://www.myspace.com/urbansoulcafe).

In the meantime, listen to his single, “We Praise Your Name”:

Also, make sure you check him out at his official website (http://www.trentcory.com) and on his MySpace page (www.myspace.com/trentcory).

What do you guys think?  You feelin’ it???

The urban gospel scene is growing by leaps and bounds and, even if you ain’t necessarily feeling it, it is undeniable that the people involved in it are gifted and are having an impact on the audiences for which God intended ‘em.  So, I’m supporting.  And I’m enjoying!

Right now, I’m enjoying Terrell King…

This German-born, now Atlanta-based new artist is getting a lot of attention from consumers and industry execs.  He’s even tapped to be featured with Marvin Sapp at a GMA Week mixer in Nashville, TN in a coupla weeks. [Editor’s Note: Marvin Sapp won’t be at the mixer anymore– on board, though, are several artists, including Tonex, Rizen and Karima Kibble, and industry execs like Roger Holmes and Monica Coates.)

He’s a songwriter, vocal producer and vocalist… even more, he’s got a passion to serve God and to share the message of Jesus Christ with his generation.

His digital EP, Almost Clear, was released on December 2nd and, in just a few short months, he’s already gotten 30,000 single streams from it.  Expect a full album from him THIS summer, but expect to hear about him A LOT sooner. He’s got a good voice, a good look, a good fanbase already… I think he’ll do well.

Listen to the audio on this clip and lemme know what y’all think:

And make sure you visit his MySpace page for more streaming audio from his EP: www.myspace.com/officialterrellkingmusic

Thoughts???