Rev. Timothy Wright, known as the "godfather of gospel" has made Heaven his final resting place. He passed over into his peaceful resting place, early Friday morning, April 24th, 2009.

After a successful 2008 inaugural run, Verizon Wireless presents the 2009 edition of the How Sweet The Sound church choir competition. This national competition gives church choirs in 11 cities the opportunity to perform and compete for the title of "The Best Church Choir in America" and up to $50,000 in cash and prizes. GRAMMY award-winning singer, producer, and choir director Donald Lawrence is returning as emcee for the tour while Stellar award winning artist Marvin Sapp is resuming his role as tour judge. Registration for the competition is open through June 15, 2009 with tour stops in Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Memphis, Newark, Oakland, Philadelphia, St. Louis, and Washington, D.C..

David "Pop" Winans, Sr, famed patriarch of the musical Winans dynasty, passed on April 8, 2009, in Nashville, TN. Winans suffered an initial heart attack and subsequent strokes in the fall of 2008. He was 74 years old. Winans, along with wife Delores Winans formed the group Mom & Pop Winans and released two albums collectively with their 1989 self-titled album garnering a GRAMMY nomination. In 1999, Winans released his solo effort titled Uncensored, garnering yet another GRAMMY nomination. Arguably, Winans' greatest contribution to this industry was his family that produced ten children and the musical presentations of BeBe & CeCe Winans, The Winans,Angie & Debbie, Daniel Winans, and Michael Winans to name a few. Winans' most recent recorded effort can be found on BeBe Winans' 2006 release titled Cherch. In recent years, Winans and wife, Delores, have been regulars at Benny Hinn crusades as well as TBN's Praise The Lord program. There will be a memorial service and viewing for Winans on Tuesday, April 14, 2009 at 7pm. The Homegoing Celebration will take place on Wednesday, April 15, 2009 at 10am. Both services will take place at Perfecting Church in Detroit, MI, where Winans' son Marvin Winans is pastor. GOSPELflava.com joins with many family and friends in mourning the passing of this legendary Gospel pioneer.

It’s been five years since Donnie McClurkin’s last CD and yet his mass appeal remains strong as he lands in the #1 position on Billboard’s Gospel Sales Chart. 

     Addition, the CD is #7 on Billboard’s R&B Albums Chart, #26 on its Top-200 Albums Chart, and #1 on CMTA’s Top Christian/Gospel Albums Chart.  The first single, “Wait on the Lord,” featuring Karen Clark Sheard, is #2 most added and #2 most increased spins at radio. 

     This past Sunday, Pastor McClurkin and Perfecting Faith Church held services at noon at the David. S. Mack Sports & Exhibition Complex at Hofstra University in New York.  

     Last week, McClurkin made a special guest appearance at New York’s J&R Music World, and more than 300 fans stood four hours in a line wrapping around the block to have their CDs signed by the artist.  The most remarkable experience that fans took home was the poise and grace that McClurkin held as he greeted each fan individually, spending nearly three minutes with everyone to thank them greatly for their ongoing support and, in many cases, offering his own words of encouragement.

     “We all are one (Live in Detroit)” is receiving rave reviews from press.

     Christianitytoday.com says “when it comes to top-flight contemporary Gospel, the minister leaves no stone unturned and offers a near-spotless crop of self-penned praise anthems, ballads and sing-alongs that simply beg to be heard in local sanctuaries.”

     Gospelflava.com calls the CD “…a body of work filled with excellence in both musical and lyrical presentation.”  

     Released March 31, “We all are one (Live in Detroit)”  is the third #1 debut for McClurkin, following the trend set by the 2003 release of “Donnie McClurkin…Again” and the 2004 release of “Psalms, Hymns and Spiritual Songs.” 

     “We all are one (Live in Detroit)” is an eclectic recording that McClurkin says was created to magnify the glory of God and how wonderful He is, and to remind listeners that “despite differing opinions, backgrounds, ethnicities and religious affiliations – we all are one, we’re one family.”

Our break through artist of the month is Bishop Bobby Hilton.  Bishop Hilton is the overseer of the Mega-Church Word of Deliverance in Cincinnati, Ohio.  The talented Bishop Hilton is a preacher, songwriter, author, and artist.  Bishop Bobby Hilton has made long strides with his catch single and album titled, “God Did That Thing.”  The album features Twinkie Clark, and on the Path Bishop Hilton discusses the meaning of the single that is seeing increased airtime on radio stations across the country.  “I first heard the single by e-blast 2 months ago.” “I knew it would catch on,” says publisher Kris Patrick.  The song has an affirmative message that God will do what he says he will do.  What better way to say that then “God Did That Thing!” 

Tune in now for more on the soulful single with a powerful message.  Welcome Bishop Bobby Hilton on the Path. 

Bio:  

We Are Now Accepting Media Kits for Any Christian genre to be featured as the Artist of the Month (AOTM). Whether you're a new artist or an artist with a major deal, we want to help spread your ministry. The Media Kits should feature the following. A Bio, A picture/Cd Cover (Emailed in jpeg format), An audio CD. Optional: DVD performance footage. Only requirement is that your CD can be purchased somewhere. Online is OK.

Our preferred method is through mail. Photos and/or CD covers can be emailed. Thank you for your interest in being featured in our publication. "Stay On The Path"

pathmagazine@hotmail.com

March 31 – Ann Nesby "The Lula Lee Project" (It's Time Child/Tyscot)
March 31 – Donnie McClurkin "We All Are One: Live in Detroit" (Verity)
March 31 – Resurrection Baptist Church Mass Choir "Let's Celebrate" (Reaching Beyond The Church)
March 31 – Various Artists "Oh Happy Day" (EMI Gospel/Vector)

May 5 – Cedric Ford & Heart of Worship "Created 2 Worship" (Tyscot)
May 5 – Men Of Standard "Men Of Standard Greatest Hits" (Muscle Shoals Sound Gospel/Malaco)
May 5 – Rev. Timothy Wright "The Godfather Of Gospel" (Savoy/Malaco)
May 12 – Clarence Fountain & Sam Butler "Stepping Up And Stepping Out" (Gospel Truth)
May 19 – Claude Deuce "Young Elder" (A. Williams)
May 19 – CoCo McMillian "I've Been Delivered" (T)
June 2 – Bishop Larry D. Trotter & The Sweet Holy Spirit Combined Choirs "I Still Believe" (Tyscot)
June 2 – Brian Courtney Wilson "Just Love" (Spirit Rising/Music World)
June 30 – Troy Sneed "In Due Season" (Emtro Gospel)
Fall 2009 – Shirley Caesar TBD (Light)

After the Jeremiah Wright controversy that threatened to derail Barack Obama’s presidential campaign, there was word that he will be cautious and careful in becoming closely identified with any particular religious leader.

     Last week the president selected a close knit group of select pastors to join him in a quiet prayer session and share with him their views and perspectives on the role of religion in politics.

     Since his is election questions have swirled around what church he would join once he moved to Washington, DC. Now we know the answer.

     The group of ministers is a diverse group and includes Dr. Otis Moss, Pastor Kirkjohn Caldwell, Bishop T.D. Jakes, Rev. Jim Wallis and Rev. Joel Hunter. The group is not associated with any particular denomination or reformation while all of them have their own affiliations with Christian groups.

     “Every time that we have come together it has been initiated by the president,” said Rev. Hunter of the group.

     All of the participants are maintaining the privacy and contents of the sessions, but all are impressed with the authentic seriousness that the new president has about his faith, his intellectualism and impact that he has on the weighty decisions that he, the president, has to make. (source: www.gospeltoday.com / www.blackchristiannews.com)  

Marvin Saap, Casting Crowns, Steven Curtis Chapman, Fireflight, Third Day, TobyMac and Chris Tomlin have been nominated by the Gospel Music Association (GMA) membership for Artist of the Year at the 40th Annual GMA Dove Awards to be held on April 23, 2009 in Nashville.

     Those artists were among the Dove Award nominees announced at the Nashville Convention & Visitors Bureau Visitor Information Center. The GMA Dove Awards, Gospel music’s biggest night of the year, featuring artists from every style of Gospel/Christian music coming together for a night of music and celebration, will be broadcast nationwide live on the Gospel Music Channel from 8 – 10 p.m. (ET/PT) on Thursday, April 23, 2009.

     For the first time, fans will become stakeholders in the Dove Awards with an opportunity to vote for the winner of Artist of the Year along with New Artist of the Year, which includes nominees Addison Road, Francesca Battistelli, Fee, Jonathan Nelson, Remedy Drive, Chris Sligh and Tenth Avenue North. Fan voting, which will be conducted through the Gospel Music Channel website (http://www.gospelmusicchannel.com) and at http://www.doveawards.com, will open on February 26, the same day online voting opens for GMA members. The cumulative fan vote, which will continue through the live Dove Awards broadcast, will account for one-third of the total vote in those two categories.

     While the awards are the purpose of the show, music performances will definitely share center stage at the Dove Awards, showcasing some of Gospel music’s hottest and most diverse artists. In addition to the exclusive live broadcast, Gospel Music Channel will present back-to-back encore broadcasts that night and additional re-airings following. Gospel Music Channel’s rapid growth has made it the fastest growing network in television for the past two years and GMC is now available in more than 43 million homes in all major markets on the major cable systems as well as on DIRECTV on Channel 338.

     Artist and Male Vocalist of the Year nominee Marvin Sapp made history last year when his single "Never Would've Made It," from the gold-selling CD Thirsty, became the longest-running No. 1 single ever across all radio formats, spending a staggering 47 weeks at the top of the gospel radio charts. Earlier this year, Sapp was honored with eight Stellar Awards. 

     Natalie Grant and Francesca Battistelli each are receiving five nominations. Grant, the current three-time Female Vocalist of the Year recipient, receives another nomination in the category, along with a nod for Pop/Contemporary Album of the Year for Relentless, while the No. 1 radio hit from that record, “I Will Not Be Moved” was nominated for Song of the Year and Pop/Contemporary Recorded Song of the Year.

     Other artists receiving four nominations include Mary Mary. A producer and songwriter also enjoyed big nomination success this year is Warryn Campbell (Mary Mary, Kierra Sheard) receiving five nominations.

     Dove Awards will be handed out in 43 categories. The complete nominations list is at http://www.doveawards.com. The American Bible Society (http://www.americanbible.org) is official charity of the GMA.

     Founded in 1964, the Gospel Music Association serves as the face and voice for the gospel/Christian music community and is dedicated to exposing, promoting and celebrating the gospel through music of all styles including Pop, Rock, Praise & Worship, black Gospel, R&B, Hip-Hop, Southern Gospel, Country, and more. The GMA community consists of more than 3,000 members including agents, artists, church leaders, managers, promoters, radio personnel, record company executives, retailers, songwriters and other industry visionaries. The GMA produces the GMA Dove Awards, GMA Music Week and the GMA Academy. For more information, please visit http://www.gospelmusic.org.

Battery Records, a newly formed imprint under the Sony Music Entertainment’s RCA/ JIVE Label Group umbrella, is pleased announce the release of singer/songwriter TONEX. His forthcoming album Unspoken, dropping March 17th, will bring his unique talents to the forefront of music. Though TONEX’s name might be new to some, his impactful work has long been a mainstay in the Gospel world.

TONEX, indeed a prolific artist; having released three albums on Verity Records over the years, while producing for both gospel, secular and mainstream artists alike, he has also amassed several awards including eight Stellar Awards and two GMA Awards. He also earned a Grammy nomination for Best Soul Gospel Album for his 2004 critically acclaimed album, Out The Box.

TONEX is excited for the shift from the Verity to Battery. On Battery Records he’ll be given the freedom to showcase his true talent as a music-maker. His brand new LP Unspoken features hard-hitting R&B, dance and even a smattering of alternative with its lead single "Blend". The timely song addresses the need to stay true to oneself. "I knew that ‘Blend’ was going to be the lead single from the start,” TONEX stresses. “It represents who I've been all along by bringing that artist to the masses for the first time."

For TONEX, Unspoken is a transitional album that heads in a more mainstream direction yet still targets his longstanding gospel segment. Says TONEX, “I didn't want to alienate the fan base generated from the Out the Box phenomenon. Even though I appreciate that album's success, I felt that there were so many people from different demographics I still had yet to reach. I made the transition from Verity Records to Battery Records to facilitate that career evolution."

Unspoken conveys TONEX’s variety, musical prowess and adaptability. A dreamer, TONEX’s dream of showcasing his rare spectrum of talents to an R&B audience is coming true. The project will be marketed to not only gospel music lovers but also mainstream R&B music lovers. Battery Records stands wholly behind TONEX and his ambitious project. Neil Levine adds “It is important that TONEX keeps his credibility within the gospel community while Battery helps him expand to a more mainstream audience”

Battery Records was formed to develop young urban talent, in an age where such development is sorely lacking. Neil Levine, Battery Records’ Senior Vice President and General Manager, aims to uncover and cultivate young talent and thereby create an indispensable niche in the marketplace.

Check out the single “Blend”:
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