A month or so ago, I revealed Kirk Franklin’s book cover and shared my initial thoughts on it.

I’ve just received word of a book tour that Kirk is launching, beginning on May 18th, the release date of his new book, The Blueprint: A Plan For Overcoming Life’s Obstacles.

May 18 - Atlanta, GA
May 19 - Washington, DC/Baltimore, MD
May 20 - New York, NY
May 21 - Cleveland, OH
May 22 - Detroit, MI
May 23 & 24 - Dallas/Fort Worth, TX
May 25 - Houston, TX
May 26 - Lexington, KY
May 28 - Los Angeles, CA

Specific locations will be released later, I do believe.  Check his website for updates– http://www.kirkfranklin.com.

*pauses* So, no Nashville date, eh?  HMPH!

I think they’ll be great– Kirk is a dynamic dude.  Who’s gonna try to go to one of the tour dates? 

I saw an ad for a new gospel songbook yesterday– you know, the sheet music for some of our favorite gospel songs… and I thought to myself “are people even buying these?”

Back when I was a young lad pursuing my undergraduate degree, I took classical piano lessons as one of my electives.  The instructor– whose name now escapes me and I dare not try to remember, lest I be called a racist– told me to buy music that I wanted to learn.

So, I said “well, shoot… lemme learn some Kirk Franklin, some Yolanda Adams, some Fred Hammond…”  And I bought songbooks of their music.

Sidebar:  It occurs to me that you guys don’t know that I’ve played piano since I was 2 or 3 years old, so you’re probably like “WHAT?!”  For the sake of brevity in this post–  I know how to play the piano, but I don’t do it much at all anymore.  Moving on…

The problem I encountered was that my playing became so technical that it stripped the feeling out of what I was doing.  Ultimately, I ended up scrapping what was written and just playing by ear, which was precisely what I was trying to avoid doing by taking lessons in the first place.  I just didn’t prefer the sheet music.

It is an incredibly unfortunate reality that many church musicians I’ve encountered cannot read music (and you can forget about music theory), so the songbooks are kinda lost on them, too.  And of the folks who can read music, I’m betting that their experiences would be similar to mine– you get so caught up reading that you forget to spend any time feeling.

So, I’m just curious– who buys gospel songbooks?  Do any of you own some?  Which ones?  Talk to me!

Is it just me, or is gospel the only genre that allows (maybe expects, and even demands) artists’ names to follow the format of “So-And-So” & “Such-And-Such”?

Think about it… Jonathan Nelson & Purpose, Myron Butler & Levi, DeWayne Woods & When Singers Meet…

But it didn’t just start happening… there was Israel & New Breed, Kirk Franklin & The Family, Fred Hammond & Radical For Christ…

And before them, Richard Smallwood & Vision, Walter Hawkins & The Hawkins Family, Andraé Crouch & The Disciples…

And let’s not forget the choirs– Hezekiah Walker & LFC, Ricky Dillard & New G, John P Kee & New Life, Milton Brunson & The Tommies, O’landa Draper & The Associates…

Understand this– my absolute ALL-TIME FAVORITE gospel artists are mentioned above, so I’m not mad at their names at all.  Love you guys and you KNOW it!

I definitely think the the name choices make sense– ours is the only genre with the artist format of frontmen backed by an ensemble or a choir.

But I’d be lying if I said it isn’t refreshing when I hear creative names like Mary Mary, Excelsior, 21:03 and Mali Music.

In short, it’s not a good or bad thing, just… a thing.  A gospel thing.

Anyone noticed???

Last week, I was fortunate enough to attend the Gospel Heritage Foundation’s Praise & Worship Conference in Jacksonville, FL, which is the vision of Gospel Today’s Dr. Teresa Hairston.

I was a featured speaker on two panels for the youth and college division along with Carla Williams (General Manager of Kirk Franklin’s Fo Yo Soul Entertainment), Monica Coates (author/speaker/industry vet), Asaph Ward (super producer), Grant Jenkins (artist manager/artist development consultant, the point5ive agency) and Myron Butler (artist/songwriter/producer).

On the first panel, we talked about the “new” music industry and how the current industry differs from what it used to be.  And we talked about what it means for people, in both the short-run and long-term.  After a quick break, the second panel featured us sharing more about our unconventional careers in this “new” music industry.  Of course, we had lots of time for Q&A, which is generally my favorite part of any panel discussion.

I can’t recap all the nuggets of wisdom that each of the panelists gave– you shoulda been there. In short, we really tried to equip and challenge people to be better, not just to do “business as usual.”  And the audience was of a perfect age to take it and run with it (cuz some of you “seasoned” saints get so set in your ways!).

I’ve been thinking about the panel discussion since then, and I wanted to share some concepts from it with the general readership of GospelPundit.com.  One thing I wanna stress is that it is not enough to look the part– you actually have to be competent.

The “do-it-yourself” theme of the industry is both a good thing and a bad thing.  It’s good because the playing field is being leveled– anyone can promote, market and further their careers from a home computer.  Trust me, I love it.  However, the unfortunate reality is that, of those who do it themselves, only a handful are actually artists or executives of substance.

Don’t be fooled by the current music industry’s resources, now replete with social networking and opportunities galore… you STILL have to do the work, lest you be found severely lacking when the spotlight is on you.  And don’t think that a bunch of views on your YouTube video automatically translates to album sales, ministry bookings, OR (most importantly) impacted lives.  Remember– your shortcut doesn’t speak for you.  You’ll still have to be a person of substance once your arrive at the destination.

That goes for everyone.  It’s not enough to just “look like one,” whatever the “one” is.  Songwriters need to dig deeper; artists, musicians and producers need to be more creative; executives need to actually be educated in what they’re doing.

This is an age of information– but anyone laboring in the gospel industry needs to be more than just informative, they must be transformative.

So, as you’re carving out your niche in this industry, do the gospel community a favor– be a person of substance and refined professionalism, not just someone who grabbed an opportunity and fooled people into buying your hype.  Do your work, beforehand and during, so that you’re actually contributing to, not just taking from, the Kingdom of God.

Cool?

I got my advance copy of Myron Butler & Levi’s newest project, Revealed: Live In Dallas, this week and I’ve been listening nonstop.

My favorite tracks so far are the title cut (which is also the single), “I Just Can’t Live” featuring Kirk Franklin, “Greatest Love,” “I Am God,” “Run To The Cross,” featuring Smokie Norful, a jazzy cover of Cyndi Lauper’s “Time After Time” and “Covered.”

The full album isn’t in stores until March 30th, so you’ve got a minute to save up.  But do save up– you’ll wanna make this purchase.

Over the past week, as BET has broadcast episodes of The Mo’Nique Show featuring various gospel artists, discussions have been swirling around the web about Mo’Nique’s incessant use of profanity and the reactions (or lack thereof) from gospel artists.

Apparently, in recent interviews with both Marvin Sapp and Kirk Franklin, Mo’Nique didn’t hold back from using casual profanity and, sometimes, crude humor.  I’m grateful that neither of them went to slingin’ oil and rebuking her, despite the fact that (to me) they appeared be a bit uncomfortable with it.  Anyway, some of you thought they should’ve been more outspoken against it.

Personally, I thought “who the heck cares,” because I won’t declare myself the arbiter of how artists should act when they get a national platform.  It ain’t easy to do and I don’t know how I’d handle a personality as strong as Mo’Nique’s in that moment, with the cameras rollin’, before a live studio audience… I just can’t say.  Plus, I tend to enjoy her show– she’s hilarious and she features great interviews with great people in the African-American community.  In any case, I definitely wasn’t gonna enter the discussion.

BUT last night, when Mo’Nique featured gospel duo BeBe & CeCe Winans, she didn’t curse.  Not once.  I was prepared to just say “oh, well whatever” until SHE said, from her own mouth, that her words were twisted because, as it relates to “God’s angels,” God told her “Mo’Nique, don’t you FOOL with BeBe & CeCe, now.”

Now, whether God spoke to her or not, there is clearly something about BeBe & CeCe that Mo’Nique respected differently as compared to Kirk Franklin and Marvin Sapp (I won’t even say “respected more”).  She perceived that she had to treat them differently.

And so I wondered– what do BeBe & CeCe have, exhibit, carry and/or represent to Mo’Nique that Kirk Franklin and Marvin Sapp might not?

I know a BUNCH of y’all are gonna talk about the anointing, but to be clear– I think Kirk Franklin and Marvin Sapp are super duper anointed for what God has called them to do.  I love them and adore their ministries.  What else might it be?

I thought maybe it’s gender… maybe it wasn’t as much about BeBe as it was an issue about CeCe.  Maybe it’s a respect for women, because I don’t recall Mo’Nique using profanity with Yolanda Adams a few months ago either.

Maybe it’s… I dunno.  I just know that it happened.  And maybe it’s not even worth discussing.  But maybe it is…

Word has it that the new project from Myron Butler & Levi might feature a track with Kirk Franklin on it. Apparently, Kirk was in the studio, recording a track with Myron earlier this week.

If they come even remotely close to recreating the magic that they had when Levi was God’s Property (and I believe they will), it’s gonna be a blaaaaaazin’ track and I’m gonna be a verrrrrry grateful dude.

Okay, I’m ready for some advance tracks now, please!!!

Kirk Franklin will be appearing on The Mo’Nique Show tonight, on BET, at 11pm ET.  I hear that he did very well, so you don’t wanna miss it!

Kirk Franklin has also been added to the performance line-up for BET’s Haiti relief concert/telethon, SOS Saving OurSelves - Help For Haiti, which will be broadcast live TOMORROW night at 8pm ET on BET, Centric, MTV and VH1.

The event, hosted by Sean “Diddy” Combs, Queen Latifah and Pharrell, will feature performances by a who’s-who list of artists, including  Wyclef, Mary J Blige, Robin Thicke, Chris Brown, Monica, Ne-Yo, Justin Bieber, and more.

Congrats to Kirk for the tremendous opportunities that the Lord is trusting you with!  Thanks for reppin’ the Kingdom of God and the gospel community.

In a couple of weeks, Dr. Teresa Hairston (Gospel Today) will be hosting her annual Gospel Heritage Praise & Worship Conference in Jacksonville, FL.  It’s gonna be a two-day event that you do NOT wanna miss, featuring worship services, musical offerings, workshops and panels that’ll inspire, encourage and equip you.

Check out the flyers below to see just a SAMPLE of some of the folks participating– from Donnie McClurkin, Hezekiah Walker and Kirk Franklin to Vanessa Bell Armstrong, Jonathan Nelson and Paul Morton… on and on and on.

During the conference, I’ll be speaking on two panels geared toward young adults (peep my lil’ photo on the second flyer, top right… LOL).  One panel discussion will focus on what the “new” music industry looks like, the other talks about careers opps in that new music industry.  My panel peers will include some of the best and brightest in the gospel game and I’m excited to be a part of it.

Anyone ever attended one of the annual conferences?  Anyone planning to attend THIS one?  Talk to me!

Got some info about Kirk Franklin’s book, entitled The Blueprint: A Plan For Living Above Life’s Storms.  First, check out the book cover…

I like it.  Kinda wanted to see him in something less formal– like a rugged “I’m a survivor” type of photo, but I guess he already did that with the cover of the Hero album, huh?  Okay, just hush and be satisfied, EJ.

In the book, Kirk reveals how he turned negative aspects from his own life—drugs, an absent father, teenage parenthood, poverty, etc.—into blessings by learning from them and moving forward.   He talks about how people often go through life without a plan for success, simply living purposelessly.  The Blueprint can fill that void and equip people with the tools necessary for success.

I’m actually quite eager to read it.  I’m always super proud of Kirk for being an incredibly gifted artist who exhibits integrity, humility and transparency.  Those traits shouldn’t be a rarity among gospel artists, but let’s be real– sometimes, they are.  So, major kudos to Kirk for being lovingly honest with supporters and always “keepin’ it 100″ (wowww… points to whoever knows what TV show I’ve been watching to pick up that phrase).

Okay folks… mark your calendars for May 18, 2010… that’s when you can grab your copy.  The book will be published by Gotham Books (a division of Penguin Group) and has set retail price of just $25.

Who’s planning to buy Kirk’s book?  Why, or why not???