This is from a few months ago, but it still blessed me “on today.”  LOL

Check out J Moss singing “Rebuild” from his latest project, Just James.  And don’t laugh at how Clifton Davis says “PA-JAM” in the beginning, either. *giggling*

Whatcha think?

I’m already poppin’ my popcorn and gettin’ in front of the TV.

The one and only Donald Lawrence will appear on TBN’s Praise The Lord tonight at 10pm ET in a special MLK episode.  He will be interviewed and will perform his newest single, “There Is A King In You” (a personal fave).

As if that wasn’t enough, Ted Winn will also be on hand, performing THREE songs from his debut album, Balance.  THREE, I tell ya!

Ok, don’t say you weren’t given notice.  Tune in tonight!

Heads-up, good folks… Anthony Evans’ recently recorded a Christmas special for TBN and it will air tomorrow, December 16th, at 10:30am Pacific time.  I think he’ll be singing songs from his Christmas project, What Christmas Means.

I have a feeling that this isn’t the initial airing, but I haven’t caught it yet.  It should be good, though, cuz Anthony Evans has one of those voices that sounds like it would fit well with Christmas tunes.  I may even stoke up the ol’ fireplace…

And don’t forget, later tomorrow night, the Clark Sisters’ Christmas special also airs on TBN at 9pm Pacific time.  No fireplace for that one… I’ll be stoking up the Leslie for the ol’ Hammond B3 organ.

A few weeks ago, I told you guys that the Clark Sisters were in town, taping their very own Christmas special for TBN.

Well, the airdate has been set for this coming Wednesday, December 16th, at 9pm PT.  The sisters will be performing songs from their latest Christmas project in a special 30-minute program.

Soooo…. 9pm PT is about 11pm, so I may have to DVR it and watch it the mornin’… but watch it, I shall!

Dunno how many of you saw Kim Burrell on TBN last week, but she made QUITE an appearance and impact.  Not only was it her first national TV appearance showing off her staggering weight loss (she looks GREAT), she sang and ministered like only she can.

She also mentioned, in her interview with Wintley Phipps, that she suffered two or three heart attacks and didn’t know it until she went to the doctor.  She testified about God’s faithfulness through that and even gave a teaser about a new album to come in 2010.

I’m posting two videos– first is her interview, followed by a performance of “Yes To Your Will,” from her latest album, No Ways Tired.

I just loooooooove her ministry. What do you guys think?

I interviewed Karen Clark-Sheard on Friday.  I’m telling you guys, but I’m partly reminding myself, because it was just a little incredible.

She had just shared advance music from her upcoming album (click here for that recap), so life was already feeling a little surreal.  But to realize that we now sat across from each other in a conference room, me with a BUNCH of questions and her with a willing heart to answer ‘em… FOR REAL?

I’ll admit that I kinda broke protocol and became the UBER-FAN for a minute before launching into the interview, telling her how I used to watch her when I was a kid and blah blah blah… whatever!  I have no regrets EXCEPT for the fact that I totally forgot to grab a photo with her.

So, what did we chat about?  LOTS.

The Clark Sisters were in Nashville on Thursday night for the taping of a TBN Christmas special.  It was actually historic for them because it was the first time that The Clark Sisters have ever had their own TBN program (she shared that they’ve always been invited by other hosts, but never had their own special).  The 30-minute musical program will PROBABLY air sometime next week– I’ll let you know details when I get ‘em.

We chatted briefly about her new album and its direction.  Karen went the studio route for her upcoming album, All In One, instead of doing a live album because, as she explained, “it was just time” to do it this way.  She’s been writing more and the studio afforded her the opportunity to really take her time and put her heart into her writing, a gift that she’s not always felt comfortable with.

Compared to Twinkie Clark, and more recently to Dorinda Clark-Cole, Karen shared that she often ”felt inadequate” as a songwriter.  She was encouraged, though, when God allowed her to win a GRAMMY for Gospel Song Of The Year in 2008 for her hit “Blessed And Highly Favored.”  “It was God’s way of saying ‘don’t question the gift’ that was placed inside of me,” she recounted.

In addition to her GRAMMY win, Karen has recently started her own label, Karew Records.  She’s incredibly proud of it because it’s truly a family affair– even her kids, J Drew II and Kierra, have positions in the company.  The first project on the label was the Clark Family Christmas album, which will be followed by her own project.  After that?  Expect to see a new album from The Clark Sisters.

Take note– despite all of the hard work and success, Karen really doesn’t see herself as a celebrity.  As hard as I tried to explain that she’s considered one of the greatest female vocalists alive, she kinda doesn’t get it.  LOL

Instead, she tries to remain as accessible as possible, especially because of her role as a pastor’s wife.  “The people of our church need to be able to reach me and have access to me,” she shares.  That attitude hasn’t been without its problems, though, as she has also had to change her mobile number in the past.  “People would call and just be breathing on the other end, or they’d call and play one of my songs and hang up,” she shared.

I asked Karen why she doesn’t have a Twitter account yet and she said she wasn’t sure about using technology much because she’s seen how negative it can be.  “I saw how some people had hurtful things to say about Kierra for doing the track ["God In Me"] with Mary Mary.”  Apparently, Karen even reached out to encourage Mary Mary after fans came down on them for not featuring Kierra on the BET Awards.  “We weren’t even thinking about that stuff.  Kierra was just so happy to have been included in the song, she didn’t care about all of that.  She’s just happy for them.”  Karen shared that it’s sad to see how nasty things can get on the internet.

Still, I tried to convince her that the web has some merits and, no promises, but we may see a Karen Clark-Sheard Twitter account soon… y’all can thank me later.

Before we wrapped up her chat, we talked a bit about the new track that she recorded with Aretha Franklin.  It was actually completed a while ago, but the opportunity was unreal to Karen because Aretha is her favorite singer.  I got the impression that the song, which will be on Aretha’s upcoming project, turned out very well.

Aaaaand that’s about it.  To say that I enjoyed interviewing Karen Clark-Sheard would be an understatement.  At its core, though, it was just a really great conversation.

Hopefully, you guys got some cool info out of it, too.  Whatd’ya think?

If you missed the hit show Praise The Lord on TBN last night, I’m begging you to watch it online today.

This is not to be sensational, nor am I merely writing something so that I can have blog content.  My wife and I just watched the episode on DVR, overcome with emotion and tears THROUGHOUT the one-on-one chat between Pastor Donnie McClurkin and Steve Harvey.  My heart rejoices over Steve Harvey’s life– ALL of it– and I am left speechless by what we witnessed on our television set.  I have never seen anything like it.

I had intended to recap and summarize what Steve said, but I fear that doing so will minimize the value and impact of his words.

I just need you to watch it.  PLEASE watch it.

Click here to view in low video quality, click here for medium video quality, and click here for high quality.

Or, you can visit the TBN archives page at http://tbn.org/watch-us/archives.

Heads up, folks!  Vanessa Bell Armstrong will be performing her hit single, “Good News,” on TBN’s popular program, Praise The Lord TONIGHT at 10pm ET.

I’ma have to set my DVR for it because I’m going to Memphis for the How Sweet The Sound concert.  Whoo hoo!

I’m posting my full review of Vanessa’s album later this afternoon, so keep it locked right here.  Cool?

For real?  It was close, but I didn’t really think it was gonna be…

Which TV network shows your favorite gospel programming?

BET - 50 votes (30%)

Gospel Music Channel - 48 votes (29%)

The Word Network - 45 votes (27%)

TBN - 17 votes (10%)

Other - 6 votes (4%)

I’m assuming that the votes for BET were cast on the strength of Bobby Jones Gospel and Sunday Best because you all have been rather vocal about your disinterest in some of their other shows.

I voted for Gospel Music Channel because I like the abundance of original programming that they feature (or used to, at least).  What are your thoughts???

For those of you who voted “Other,” which networks do you have in mind???

Thanks, as always, for voting.  Make sure you head over to the sidebar to vote in the newest poll, which asks…

Which MARY MARY album is your favorite???

A quick heads-up, folks:  Ted Winn will appear on TBN’s Praise The Lord program tonight at 10pm ET, performing songs from his upcoming debut album, Balance (due September 29th on Shanachie).  The episode will be hosted by Dr. Zachary Tims.

Who’s tuning in???