This years Stellar Awards can be described as a breath of fresh air for many reasons. A few things that I wanted to see happen happened, making the experience fun for the artists, fans, and media in attendance.
The Stellar Awards openly embraced the other events capitalizing off of the Stellar Awards weekend. Many of them took place at the same hotel. Don Jackson, 
head of the Stellars said he “Supports the events that furthered the Stellar Awards brand.” The Grand Ole Opry hotel in Nashville brought a who’s who list of artists and mainstream entertainers. Many of which bounced from event to event trying to support multiple venues.
The overall experience brought about the same feelings and emotions as previous years that I’ve attended. Artists feeling over-whelmed by fan and media attention, media personnel complaining about standing and their sore and numb feet. Fans excited to catch their favorite artists in pre-show and after-show parties, and artists and media running off a few hours of sleep. The end result is always rewarding though. The artists catch-up with industry friends, media personnel get a ton of material for their outlets, and fans get to reach their favorite Gospel singers in an accessible way.
Path MEGAzine had a very successful Stellar Awards Weekend. We collected well over one hundred interviews from Gospel artist and Hollywood actors. The plethora of talented new and established artists made me feel proud of the direction Gospel music is heading.
I was particularly happy that urban Gospel and Gospel rap is finally getting the long awaited respect it deserves. Artist like Lecrae
and Flame blew the doors off the stereotypes that prevented it from getting radio play; a hurdle that continues to be a problem for the genre. Lecrae was heavily recognized with a standing ovation after his performance at the Central South Distributions Stellar Awards pre-show event; A somewhat validating moment for the artist that sits at #1 in sales. Look out for our interviews with urban Gospel artists Canton Jones, Mr. Del, Da Truth, Deitrick Haddon and more!
Some of my more memorable conversations came from interviews with TONEX, now going by the name of B-Slade. Lord help me, you do not want to miss that one!
Trinity 5:7 was hilarious and Da Truth opens up with us about his very public marital problems. All this and much more will be coming out soon in our February issue.
I want to say congratulations to all the nominees and winners of the 26th annual Stellar Awards. Fans of Gospel music continue to support these artists and awards shows so they can continue to bring you great Gospel music without the need for a part-time job. Most have a heart to be in full-time ministry and you can help them do that by continuing to support their ministries. That is the kind of recognition that not even the Stellar Awards can provide. Until next time Stay on the Path!
Kris Patrick – Publisher
kris@pathmagazine.com
