I love this. It’s the entire Winans family on the Arsenio Hall show.

I love the vocals, the medley arrangement, the EVERYTHING. I LOVE this doggone family!

It makes me miss Ron Winans and Pop Winans a lot. But check it out, just because–

Whatd’ya think???

Bishop Walter Hawkins, one of the greatest contributors to gospel music to ever live, has passed into his next life in Heaven.

At the age of 61, Bishop Hawkins passed yesterday at his home in Ripon, CA, after a battle with pancreatic cancer. Hawkins, the pastor of Love Center Church, leaves two children to celebrate him– Walter Hawkins, Jr. (aka Jamie Hawkins) and Trystan Hawkins.  His older brother, Edwin Hawkins, shared: “I lost my brother, my pastor, and my best friend. Bishop Hawkins suffered bravely but now he will suffer no more, and he will be greatly missed.”

With an impeccable songwriting ability and a gift to arrange vocals like few others can, the Grammy and Stellar-award winning Hawkins still stands strong as a giant in gospel music. Known for such classic songs as “Changed,” “Be Grateful,” “Goin’ Up Yonder,” “I’m Not the Same,” “Holy One,” and “Jesus Christ Is the Way,” he left an indelible mark on the sound and style of contemporary gospel music.  And introducing us to voices like that of his sister, Lynette Hawkins-Stephens, and his former wife, the incomparable Tramaine Hawkins, Walter Hawkins’ contribution to gospel music is multi-faceted.

He informed us, decades ago, of what an ensemble should sound like. And we now hear it today in the vocal arrangements and styles of gospel greats Donald Lawrence and Richard Smallwood.

He showed us, decades ago, how a man’s voice can soar limitlessly into the stratosphere, and we hear it today in the range, approach and ability of Donnie McClurkin.

Hawkins demonstrated for us, decades ago, how a church choir can record music for the Kingdom, and still be as relevant more than 30 years later. And we see it in the representation of the albums Love Alive I, Love Alive II, Love Alive III, Love Alive IV and Love Alive V. And we would have seen it in Love Alive VI, which was to be recorded live later this year.

I didn’t say anything about it yesterday, not here on the blog, nor on Twitter or Facebook, where comments and questions ran rampant. I guess I couldn’t quite bring myself to confirm it. I wanted so badly for all of us, even those who were with him at the time of his passing, to just be wrong. I wanted the message I got about it to have been a typo, or that the person who told me was simply misinformed, or perhaps joking.

But I knew that it was true. I knew it.

I grew up on the gospel music of two families in my household– the Winans family and the Hawkins family. No one has informed my understanding of gospel music more than Walter Hawkins. No one can be credited with sparking my passion for the gospel industry more than Walter Hawkins. No one’s music is as classic, as memorable, as timeless in my own life as the music of Walter Hawkins.

How can a man that I’ve spoken with only once have been used by God to contribute so greatly to the course and direction of my life? I know where he is, and that it’s better than being around here. I, admit, though, that I selfishly want him here. I want more– more music from him, and more community with him.

And then, I have to remind myself that the music will be even better later. Fellowship and community with him will be infinitely greater, later. And so, I’ll wait.

In the meantime, I’ll miss him here. I’ll miss impomptu performances by him at various musical events across the country. I’ll miss knowing he’s just over in Oakland whenever someone sings a Hawkins tune (because forever, they will be sung). I’ll miss looking forward to his next album.

All week, I’ll be posting videos of Walter Hawkins, perhaps some random thoughts and facts about him and/or the songs that he wrote. I don’t know how I’ll decide what to post– so much of what he did meant so much to me. But stick around here, if you want, and celebrate his incredible life and legacy with me.

Just wanna give you guys a quick heads-up…

New episodes of gmc’s series Best of the Stellar begin this Sunday, March 21st at 10pm ET.  It will be a “Best of The Winans” episode, featuring performances by BeBe & CeCe Winans and various performances by members of the Winans Family.

Then, the following Sunday, March 28th (at the same time), they’ll feature a ”Best of Shirley Ceasar” episode, with performances including “He’ll Do It Again,” “I Say Yes” and more.

It’s great to watch some of the throwback performances that have been done over the years– it’s a really fun show.

Tunin’ in???

In 2005, publicist and journalist Bill Carpenter compiled his gospel music research into one cohesive work– Uncloudy Days: The Gospel Music Encyclopedia. It “chronicles the careers of over 650 gospel artists and personalities from 1900 to the present day.” So, yeah… it’s kinda like a collector’s item.

The book’s got stuff about everyone from Thomas A. Dorsey to Mahalia Jackson, the Hawkins family to the Winans family, and everything in between– folks you never even knew EXISTED.

If you’re grabbin’ something for a gospel music lover, they’ll probably appreciate the stories, interviews, photos and more that abound in this book. Check it out!

Men Of Standard has gotta be one of the greatest contemporary gospel groups, but they definitely don’t get their due, in my opinion.  They’re my modern-day Winans!

Anyway, their most recent offering, Surrounded, was an awesome album that I think some of you may have Slept On.  The project featured production from Warryn Campbell, Nisan Stewart and Gerald Haddon.  It also had some great guest spots– Kirk Franklin (“Latter Rain”) and Tye Tribbett (“Yours”).

Stand-out tracks also included “Power,” “Cover Me,” “I Need You,”… actually, the WHOLE PROJECT is a stand-out!

Here’s the title track, “Surrounded” for your listenin’ pleasure:

Did anyone else love the album like I did?  Anyone wanna come clean and admit that they were snoozin’ a little bit?  Holla at me!

Oh, and shout-out to DCov for suggesting that I cover this album. ‘Preciate ya!

Ever notice how, when it comes time to feature gospel artists at a major television event, you can kinda bet your money that you’ll see Kirk Franklin, Mary Mary, Yolanda Adams, Donnie McClurkin or CeCe Winans among the performers?

Don’t get me wrong: I love the music ministries of these artists– they have labored HARD for the Lord and their gifts have made room for them, so that they can glorify God in other arenas.

But where does that leave the other artists?  I think of folks like Fred Hammond, Richard Smallwood, Donald Lawrence, the Hawkins family and the rest of the Winans family.  On one hand, I say that God uses each of his vessels the way HE sees fit.  Everyone ain’t the head, some are the arm or leg, and that’s gotta be cool with us.  On the other hand, I think some folks are straight blockin’.

So, questions:  Is there an “upper eschelon” in gospel music?  Are there just 4 or 5 major artists who get all the play, while everyone else is struggling to get recognition?  Is it just an issue of God’s calling, or are some people really getting the short end of the stick because of business decisions?

Lemme know what you think.  AND, name some artists that you think should be getting some more opportunities.

Over 2,000 people gathered at Perfecting Church last night to celebrate the life of David “Pop” Winans in a musical memorial service.  His homegoing service is today, after which he will be laid to rest.

I was traveling when I heard the news, but like so many others, I was devastated and saddened by our collective loss of such a great man of God.  He leaves a great legacy and will be sorely missed on this side of Heaven.

Let’s continue to pray for the Winans family, folks.

Earlier this week, Byron Cage took a minute to chat with me to discuss his upcoming LIVE recording in Detroit on March 13th!

We had a great convo about what folks can expect from this new album, how he’s developed as an artist, and I even got a couple of tidbits of random trivia about him.  He’s a personable and friendly guy… I rather enjoyed him.  I hope you enjoy the interview…. Here’s Byron Cage.

*     *     *

EJ:  How are you?

BC:  I’m good,  how about you?

EJ:  I’m great.  Thanks for taking the time to talk to me.  I really appreciate it.

BC:  Oh yeah, thank you.

EJ:  I wanna jump right in and talk about this upcoming recording that’s got everybody buzzing.  I wanna know what you’ve got planned for the people!  You’re going to Detroit, March 13th…

BC:  Yes!  March 13th.

EJ:  Talk to me about returning back there.

BC:  Oh man, you know, that’s my hometown.  I was born in Grand Rapids, but Detroit is where I consider home.  I was there for junior high school, high school, college… and I grew up in Detroit during the “golden era” of gospel music.  You had people like Donald Vails, Thomas Whitfield… I sang background for Thomas Whitfield.  Donald Vails was the minister of music at my church, Fred Hammond played the bass guitar there, I directed the choir.  Then, you have the Clark Sisters, the Winans, Rudolph Stanfield, Esther Smith, so many incredible artists… Rance Allen.  The concerts used to be amazing!

EJ:  I can only imagine!

BC:  Yeah, I grew up in that.  And even once I started in the industry… a lot of people don’t know that I sang background vocals on one of Commissioned’s albums, Will You Be Ready?

So, I look at the history of all of that, you know, the whole Detroit connection… and now I’m going back home to do my 6th recording.  I’m just so thankful that I’ve lasted in this time and people still wanna hear the ministry.

EJ:  What’s the direction of this album?

BC:  It’s a hard-hitting, praise and worship, Sunday morning, Wednesday night Bible Study, revival, on the treadmill, in your car… it’s all of that.

EJ:  I love it!

BC:  Yeah, it’s gonna be one of those CDs that you’re going to want to just get your groove on, get your worship on… there’s just such a wide variety of music on this one.

EJ:  Awesome.  Do you have any guest artists coming?

BC:  I do, indeed.  One, I can’t name yet.  We were trying to work out Pastor Marvin Sapp, but it didn’t work out for this one.  But, thank God, Pastor Marvin Winans is doing a song with me, my boy Tye Tribbett is coming to do a song I wrote called “In The Midst” with me… it’s gonna be a great time.

It’s being produced by the 2009 Stellar Award Producer of the Year, Aaron Lindsey.

EJ:  Well, we KNOW that’s gonna be hot.

BC:  Yeah, and we’ve got some great writers.  And the songs are just phenomenal.  I believe it’s gonna touch the lives of people in a special way.

EJ:  Nice, do you have background singers already lined-up?

BC:  Yeah, I’m using 3 of my background singers and I’m pulling 9 singers from Detroit.  You know, they say “it’s in the water in Detroit,” *laughs* so if I’m going home, there’s no sense in me bringing a whole aggregation of singers with me, ’cause there are so many great singers there in Detroit.

It’s gonna be like a big homecoming there, you know?  On March 13th, all roads are leading to Second Ebenezer Baptist Church and we’re just  looking forward to the Lord doing something magnificent through the praise and worship that evening.

EJ:  You have a title yet?

BC:  You know, we’re teeter-tottering.  I was thinking about calling it ”In The Midst,” but then I wrote this song with Aaron Lindsey… I just wanna do cartwheels when I hear that song!  So, I don’t know.

EJ: *laughs*

BC: *laughing*  I’m just grateful that it’s on MY record, you know what I’m saying?   Because if I heard it on someone else’s record, I’d be like “maaan…” *laughs*

EJ: Right!

BC:  But, I’m really looking forward to it.

EJ:  That’s great, man.  Tell me: how do you feel that you have evolved as an artist?  What, if anything, is different about you on this album, musically or ministry-wise?

BC:  Well, you know, I started out in the industry pretty much as a very creative artist.  I produced my first two records and I thank God for them because they kind of established me as an artist.  Both projects were nominated for Stellars, though neither of them won.  But when I got to GospoCentric, Vicki Mack Lataillade wanted to move me out of the “Byron Cage & Purpose” era and she just wanted to sign me as a solo artist, a praise and worship leader.  I said, “I don’t know if the church is ready for praise and worship,” and she was like “are you kidding me?  Did you see what happened when you did ‘Shabach’ with Full Gospel Baptist?  All the Baptist churches had praise teams the next year!”

EJ: *laughing*

BC:  So, the next song I wrote was “Yet Praise Him,” and she signed me.  We were having creative battles at first because I wanted to stay in that group setting and she didn’t want that.  She brought in Kurt Carr, a phenomenal writer and great producer, and he wrote “The Presence of the Lord Is Here” for me and the rest is history.

The next record had “I Will Bless The Lord” and, though that record was wonderful and it was a blessing, it was somewhat hurtful to me as well.  Brother Isaiah Thomas, who is a very talented writer, his original form of that song had different words.  I wrote all the words over because I wanted to add more scripture to it.  And when it won “Song of the Year,” of course I didn’t get any accolade as being co-writer of the song.  But the Lord showed me something, as I evolved in the music business of what we do, and I understood that there are just certain things that you don’t do.  If you wanna change the words to a song, you gotta let people know, you gotta sign agreements… so that was something that I learned from it.

With The Proclamation, I wrote the majority of the songs on that one and I’ve just watched this whole musical ministry go from writing for a group to praise and worship… For this upcoming album, I wrote a song called “Goodbye,” which just deals with relationships and people and strongholds that have tried to hinder you… I’m saying ”Goodbye” to them in 2009.  And that’s a growth for me, because I’ve never written a song like that.

EJ:  Wow.  That’s awesome.  You’ve also managed to feature a bunch of incredible guest artists on your albums.  Who have you NOT yet worked with that you are dying to have on one of your albums?

BC:  Hmmm… Man, I have so many favorites.  Of course, Karen Clark-Sheard has been one of my favorites of all time.

EJ:  Absolutely!

BC:  I love her ministry.  I think if there was someone I would have loved to have on this upcoming record, it would have been… like, Vanessa Bell Armstrong.  Some of these up-and-coming singers are really incredible, too, like Nikki Ross.  Oh, and I would love to get up there and go toe-to-toe, although I couldn’t, with Kierra Sheard! *laughs*

EJ:  Oh, she’s ridiculous.  I just saw her on the BMI Trailblazers thing and I just had to stare at the screen, like “this is unreal.”

BC:  Yeah, and she did a hard song.  I think she did “Jesus Is A Love Song,” right?

EJ:  Yeah, man.  It was incredible.

BC:  Oh, she ABSOLUTELY tore it up.

EJ:  Most definitely.  After your break-out hit, “The Presence of the Lord Is Here,” you were practically swept up into a whirlwind of success– tons of performance spots, a bunch of awards.  On the more personal side, how do you stay grounded?  Are you the same “Byron”?

BC:  You know what?  I stay grounded because I’m a minister of music of a church.  I’ve been here at Ebenezer AME, in Fort Washington, Maryland, for 11 years and these jokers know how to keep me grounded!

EJ: *laughs* It’s like THAT?!

BC:  *laughing*  They don’t consider me “The Prince of Praise,” or “Byron Cage the Artist.”  Some visitors come to church and they want to take pictures or get autographs, but for the most part, like… I’m at church now and getting ready to go to choir rehearsal in a few hours.

EJ:  Really?

BC:  Yeah, my Male Chorus rehearsal is tonight and those brothers, they don’t even consider me an artist.  They just consider me “Byron” and we have a blast.  So, I think that having pastors and a church where I can stay grounded, work, and be connected while serving God’s people, it all helps me to be appreciative when I can go out and do concerts and meet people.

That’s what keeps me humble.  And to know… first of all, I didn’t record “The Presence of the Lord Is Here” until I was 41.

EJ:  What?!

BC:  Yeah, man.  So to know that the Lord can bring you to a place, after holding you back in a certain area… when it was His time to really bring me forth, it took no time at all.

EJ:  That’s the truth.

BC:  And you sit there and it becomes surreal.  You just say “God, thank you so much because I don’t know that I could have handled it in my twenties.”

EJ:  That’s incredible.  I had no idea that you were 41 when that song took off.  That means you’ve been doing this for a while now.

BC:  Absolutely.  People don’t understand that I was a background singer first.  I was in Michael Matthews’ first play back in 1984, I was in Tyler Perry’s very first play, “I Know I’ve Been Changed.”

EJ:  No way!

BC:  Yeah, man.  It was starring me, Shun Pace and Ann Nesby.

EJ:  You know, it’s funny that you mention stuff from back in the day cuz I VIVIDLY remember a certain episode of The Cosby Show…

BC: *laughing*  Yep!

EJ:  And I’ve got proof of it on my DVD box set, where you were singing in a choir behind good ol’ Claire Huxtable!

BC:  You know what’s so funny about that, man?  It took us all day to film that scene and they originally had me in the last row to the right.  They dismissed everyone but the choir because they wanted to do the song over again, I was the only person they moved and they moved me right behind Phylicia Rashad!  I just think that was the favor of the Lord because even back then, and that was back in 1986 *screams*, but I think “God, Almighty!”

The journey that I have had to go has not always been easy.  But I am so thankful to God that I stayed and I didn’t lose heart when everybody else counted me out and said “he’s not this, he’s not that,” and… just know that if you’re faithful to the Lord, He will make you the ruler over many so that no one else can take credit for what God does.

EJ:  That’s great stuff, man.  I’m trying to be mindful of your time… do we have time for some quick getting-to-know-you questions?

BC:  Yeah, sure!

EJ:  Okay, fill in the blanks.  Many folks would be surprised to learn that Byron Cage loves __________________.

BC:  to ride my motorcycle.

EJ:  Seriously?

BC:  Yeah, I’ve got a Harley Davidson Soft Tail Classic.

EJ: Ok, that’s dangerous…

BC:  *laughing*

EJ:  What’s with the Detroit people and motorcycles?  You, Fred Hammond…

BC:  Yeah, but he’s got more than I have.  I’ve just got that one big hog.  He’s got like four or five.

EJ:  Okay, next one.  Byron Cage is at the airport, on his way to his dream vacation.  He’s on a direct flight to __________________.

BC:  Whoooooo!  TAHITI!

EJ:  *laughs*  Yeah?

BC:  Mmm-hmmm!  Never been.

EJ:  Ok.  When the dessert menu comes around, Byron Cage hopes it’ll have __________________ on it.

BC: *quickly* ICE WATER cuz I don’t need the carbs, or the sugar, or the fat grams!

EJ:  What?!  No.  That’s not dessert!

BC:  *laughing*  I am just not a “sweets” person anymore.  Sweets don’t agree with me– they cut off the blood circulation to my belly button when I put my belt on, so I had to let it go.  If it’s Thanksgiving or Christmas, I might do some red velvet cake or peach cobbler.  But for the most part, I’m not a “sweet” person.

EJ:  I hear you.  I wish more gospel artists would preach THAT!

BC:  Right, exactly.

EJ:  Ok, last one.  Let Byron Cage loose in a shopping mall and the first place he’ll be is __________________.

BC:  Oooh.  The first place I’ll be in a shopping mall will be Neiman Marcus.

EJ:  They’re kinda expensive aren’t they?  Their catalog has, like… cars for $50,000 in it.

BC:  I know, they’re crazy but you can catch them on some good days, too.  Catch the “20 or 30 percent off” sales.  I paid full price for a couple of Paul Smith jackets that were kind of expensive, but for the most part… yeah, man… I’m a sales king.  I don’t like payin’ full price!

EJ:  I ain’t mad at that.  One last question, on a more serious note, what is your message as an artist?  At the end of the concert, or when the last track on the iPod is over, what do you hope people will know about you as it relates to your ministry?

BC:  I pray that, when it’s over, people will know that I am a man of God who loves to worship the Lord, and my heart’s desire is that whatever has been given to me, I want to be a blessing to God’s people.  Whether that’s through salvation, healing, encouragement, I want people to leave with the authentic feeling that God has spoken to them right where they need it.  And they’re encouraged to go on in the journey.

EJ:  Sounds good to me.  Man, I’m excited for this album.  I think it’s going to be good and I hope the recording goes well.

BC:  I appreciate it, EJ.  And I appreciate you for doing this for me.

EJ:  It was my pleasure and, hopefully, we’ll talk soon.

BC:  Okay.

EJ:  Take care.

BC:  Alright, bye-bye.

*     *     *

Click here for more information about Byron’s upcoming recording.

Sooooooo?  You liiiiiike????

Lemme know your thoughts!

Haahahahaaahahaa!  Y’all were FIGHTING for this one, weren’t you?  This poll got 78 votes, the most yet!

Okay, the verdict is in and I TOTALLY AGREE.  This family is just so diverse in its musical styling, and they ALL get down in their own way.  Great music.

Which family (immediate and extended… and former) in gospel music has the best catalogue of music?

Winans – 44% (35 votes)

Hawkins – 29% (23 votes)

Clark – 27% (21 votes)

*** I’m aware that this photo omits Vickie and the fellas from Winans Phase 2.  Leeme alone… it’s all I could find.

 AGREE or DISAGREE???

Oh, and head over to the sidebar on your right to vote on the next question:

Of the titles listed below, which collaboration is your FAVORITE from Donald Lawrence? >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Sheilah Belle (The Belle Report) is reporting that David “Pop” Winans suffered yet another heart attack on Wednesday, December 3, 2008.  If you recall the details of my earlier post, you’ll note that this attack is the latest in a series of afflictions that he has faced.

PRAY for him and the Winans family– healing, peace, grace and mercy, all in God’s sovereign will.