Perhaps pressure from media and social networks caused Joel Osteen to finally call homosexuality a sin.

In an interview with Piers Morgan, airing on CNN, January 26th, Joel Osteen goes further than he ever has on the subject of homosexuality.  Many felt Osteen has been skating around the issue by saying on numerous occasions that “homosexuality was not God’s best,” a statement that does not go far enough to many Christians.  Shows like “The View” and the Larry King Show have tried to get Joel to stop straddling the fence on the issue, and take a defining stance.  Christians on YouTube and web-shows like The Gospel View.com have debated the statement stirring up opinions in the Christian community.  Host Piers Morgan is the replacement for the recently retired Larry King.

Piers mentions that Elton John is his friend and asks Joel Osteen if he believed that Elton John was a sinner for having a gay partner?  Joel said yes, and mentions that there are many sins in the bible, and he is judging no one.  Boldly, Piers Morgan says that Joel is judging, referencing the over 8 million people that watch Joel Osteen on television to make his argument.

Later, Joel would sorrowfully state that there are things that he doesn’t understand about the issue.

As a media outlet it was clear to see that Piers Morgan was looking for the headline in the interview.  Something that was sure to stir up the internet and media outlets.  He got that by bombarding Joel with situational questions that related to the homosexual lifestyle.  He added opinions of people being born gay, seemingly trying to see if Joel would approve or disagree with him to add to the debate and audience backlash. 

The gay lifestyle is becoming more and more un-popular to speak out against, and increasingly accepted as a part of society.  Many preachers are softening their stance on the issue to keep their pews occupied.  We can only wonder what the impact of Joel Osteen’s interview will be but one thing’s clear, Joel will continue to field questions on the topic even more by making clear his position.  Christians will continue to have heavy hearts on the issue prompting televangelists to answer tough questions. 

Do you agree with Joel?  Was he bold enough with his position on the issue?  Is being Gay still a sin?  The last time I went to bible study we couldn’t pick and choose what we wanted to believe out of the bible.  What are your thoughts?

Here’s a sneak peek of Whitney Houston performing “I Look to You” with Kim Burrell on the upcoming Celebration of Gospel concert.   

Whitney Houston gets a lot of love from the Gospel community, and rightfully so after all that she has been through.  Her voice will probably never be the same, but you can tell she believes what she is singing.  Kim Burrell is being installed as Pastor in February, and she’s having a huge concert to celebrate.  Click Here for details on that.  The Celebration of Gospel airs Sunday, January 30, 2011 at 8/7c on BET.

Ricky Dillard has announced that the first single from his upcoming album will be “God Is Great.”  The album is due out in April of this year on Light Records.  Dilliard posted a YouTube link to the tune via his Twitter account over the weekend.  What do you think of the song?

Kirk Franklin released the second song off his upcoming album scheduled for release March 22, 2011. The First single “I Am” is getting raving reviews. Check out the second single “I Smile” below. What do you think?  Check out the first single “I Am” by clicking here.

Also Read: Kirk Franklin’s New Single “I Am”

Word has it Tye Tribbett and Wess Morgan will be on the Monique Show.  Pastor Wess Morgan is currently in Billboards Top 5 for the song “I Choose to Worship.”  Tye Tribbett is riding the wave of his first solo CD release “Fresh.”  Tune into BET Thursday to Check Tye & Wess Out!

Also Read: Steve Harvey’s Ex-Wife Takes to YouTube to Air Dirty Laundry

The 42nd Annual NAACP Image Awards have announced this years nominees.  Gospel artists are recognized by the “Outstanding Gospel Album” category.  The nominees are–

Kirk Whalum – Gospel According to Jazz, Chapter III
Marvin Sapp – Here I Am
Brian Courtney Wilson – Just Love: Deluxe Edition
Tamela Mann – The Master Plan
Mavis Staples – You Are Not Alone

Congratulations to the nominees and also to Kirk Franklin for his book “The Blueprint: A Plan For Living Above Life’s Storm” being nominated for Outstanding Literary Work-Instructional.  The televised special airs LIVE on March 4, 2011 at 8pm ET on FOX.

Steve Harvey has been very open about the his faith in God and the lessons he has learned in his first marriage, appearing on shows like TBN’s Praise the Lord and most recently BET’s Celebration of Gospel.  The lessons learned catapulted him to be a best selling author with the book Act Like a Lady, Think like a man, and his new book “Straight Talk No Chaser.” 

The question posed is should Steve be giving relationship advice if the things his ex-wife is saying is true?  Listen below and decide for yourself.

Keith “Wonderboy” Johnson is by far the most successful quartet singer of his generation. The man behind quartet hits such as “Send A Revival” and “Let Go and Let God” has a new album with his group, The Spiritual Voices, in the works. It’s entitled, “Back 2 Basics,” and is scheduled to hit stores in the first quarter of 2011. The mellow R&B-flavored radio single, “True Love,” is currently #23 on the Radio & Records gospel airplay chart and climbing. “Over the years, I’ve put my trust in a lot of people and they let me down,” Johnson confesses. “I had to go back and realize that Jesus Christ is the only true love who will never let me down.”

“I call the album Back 2 Basics because my group is known for doing traditional music that everybody can listen to,” Johnson explains. “My record label started bringing in producers and songwriters with a different sound than mine to expand my audience and to freshen my sound. That’s all good. Songs like `True Love’ come from that collaboration but I call myself a universal gospel singer. I keep it simple and sing all kinds of gospel for anybody and everybody.”

The “Back 2 Basics” CD hits stores in January but in the meantime, Johnson’s fans can digitally download a deluxe EP featuring six of the songs from the new CD on ITunes, Amazon mp3, and other online music portals. One of those songs is the finger-popping ditty, “I’m Gonna Make It.” Johnson says, “I love that song. I’m hoping that will be my next radio single. I think that can go all the way to the top.”

Johnson has been making noise on the gospel landscape since 1998 when he burst on the scene with the smash hit, “Hide Behind The Mountain.” He quickly became known as a young man with an old soul for mixing introducing quartet to a young generation of gospel fans. Since then, he’s birthed modern-day quartet standards such as “I Made It,”  “Send A Revival,” “Be Right,” and “Let Go and Let God.”

When asked what keeps he and his music fresh after all these years, Johnson says one thing. “Dreams,” he offers. “Dreams keep it fresh. I dreamed about doing this since I was a little boy. Not too many people can say they are living their dream. God made that dream a reality and every time I hit a stage, I’m gonna rock the house and stop the show.”

Entertainment Guru Jawn Murray has partnered with EMI Gospel to search for “Untapped” talent. 

“I’ve worked my entire career to be in a position where my influence can help others live their dreams.  This project gives me an opportunity to do that and I’m extremely happy to get that chance.  There are a lot of people who don’t know the first thing about gaining exposure or visibility for their music and participating in this ‘Untapped’ movement really gives them a shot at seeing their dreams come to fruition.  I’ve worked with EMI Gospel for years doing some artist development and media training with several of their marquee talent and to now partner with them to release my own endeavor is really awesome.” – Jawn Murray 

If you want to share your talent with the world be sure to watch the video below and take action.

For official rules and regulations go to http://untapped.emigospel.com/