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Here is the Church, Here is The Steeple Awards!

By
Editorial Staff
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steeple awards chandon carter and tim bowman jr.

What a privilege for C. Chandon Carter and staff to “Open the doors, and see all the people!”

When the doors of Siloam International Church in Atlanta, Georgia opened on Saturday, March 19th, people from near and far, donned in their Hollywood best, were there to honor those who honor Christ at the inaugural Steeple Awards, Gospel’s newest national award show. Carter, CEO of Carter Unlimited, purposed to create an award show where signed, mainstream artists and unsigned, independent artists were honored together for their ministry contributions to the gospel music industry and to the world. Likewise, Pastors of mega-churches and pastors of smaller ministries were all honorees of the Nehemiah Award for their great Kingdom work in demonstrating the 5-fold ministries as outlined in the book of Ephesians.

And the Steeple Awards Go To…

The following gospel artists are 2016 Steeple Award Winners:

    Church of the Year: The dReam Center Church of Atlanta (Pastor William Murphy, III)

    CD of the Year: One Place Live (Tasha Cobbs)

    Song of the Year: I’m Yours: (Casey J)

    Group or Duo of the Year: The Walls Group

    Female Artist of the Year: Le’Andria Johnson

    Male Artist of the Year: Canton Jones

    Author of the Year: DiShan Washington (Diary of a Mad First Lady)

    Choir of the Year: Kevin Lemons & Higher Calling

    New Artist of the Year: Ahmad Hall & Friends

    Best in Media: Twanda Black of KISS 104FM

    Comedian of the Year: Karlton Humes

    Inspirational Rap Artist of the Year: Luke G

 

The following Pastors and First Ladies are 2016 Nehemiah Award Honorees:

    Bishop Stephen B. & Co-Pastor Vanessa Hall of The Rhema Nation Church

    Pastor Kerwin B. & 1st Lady Yolanda T. Lee of Berean Christian Church

    Bishop William,  & Co-Pastor Danielle Murphy of The dReam Center Church of Atlanta

    Dr. Jonathan C. & Co-Pastor Sylvia D. Carter of Siloam Church International

    General Overseer Craig L. & 1ST Lady Chi’lra Oliver of Elizabeth Baptist Church

 

Broderick E. Rice, Steeple Awards 2016
Comedian Broderick E. Rice, Host

The Steeple Awards Show host and comedian, Broderick E. Rice, brought his unique brand of comedy and kept the audience laughing throughout the night, while local and national artists kept the audience uplifted with splendid musical selections. Local Atlanta favorites included: Sonya McGuire, Marica Chisholm, John Mero and the Atlanta Masonic Choir shared the stage with Miles D. Mealing, and national artists Tim Bowman Jr., Canton Jones, Tyler Little, Bashir Hogue, The Showers Family Group, saxophonist Jeff Sparks, Zebulon Ellis and Corey Webb blessed crowd. Several industry members were also on hand and served as presenters including Actress and Producer Reece Odum, Gospel Recording Artist Debra Prather, industry executive, Cappriccieo Scates, President of Mytrell Records and Grammy Award winning producer, Kevin Bonds, as well as Dr. Sherry Blake of Ask Dr. Sherry and seen on Love and Hip Hop, Braxton Family Values, and Preachers of Atlanta, and Lyanta Tomlin publisher of Divine Voice magazine.

Daryl ColeyA special moment to pay homage to the life, legacy, and artistry of Pastor Daryl Coley included a riveting medley of three of Coley’s popular songs presented by Marica Chisholm and BET Sunday Best alums, Corey Webb and Zebulon Ellis.

Team Jesus Events was honored to be among invited media for the auspicious occasion, and enjoyed the fellowship and festivities with Steeple Awards nominees and performers. As we do it here at Team Jesus Events, we ended our interviews with Red Carpet Prayer Request, giving the artists and pastors a chance to share how we as TEAM JESUS can support them in their purpose to honor God. Do support these guests with your prayers.

Stay connected and be on the look out for The Steeple Awards voting season and nominees for 2017.  In the meantime, check out some of the sights and sounds of The Steeple Awards 2016!

 

The Steeple Awards 2016

 

 

 

 

 

The Birth and Rise of the Steeple Awards

By
Kim Brightness
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steeple awards pastors

For we are laborers together with God: ye are God’s husbandry, ye are God’s building. 1 Corinthians 3:9

Newsflash: Working for Jesus ain’t easy.

There are always these little distractions, like loving your enemies, serving ungrateful or unappreciative people, and the all too familiar job requirement of self-denial – “Not my will, but Your will, Lord.”

And while every co-worker and teammate on “Team Jesus” has a job to do, there are those chosen leaders and generals in our Household of Faith who do the heavy lifting; they’re responsible for building up the body of Christ (Ephesians 4:12) by proclaiming the Gospel in speech or song, at an expense many of us cannot comprehend, let alone pay.

It is for these co-laborers of the Gospel that the Steeple Awards has been created.

On March 19th, 2016, Atlanta, Georgia and all of America will celebrate the inaugural Steeple Awards, Gospel’s newest award show honoring Pastors and Psalmists for their ministerial contributions to the Kingdom of God. Whether the honoree is a Pastor of a megachurch, or small congregation…a signed, mainstream artist, or an independent artist –  “We are honoring those who are honoring Christ”, says C. Chandon Carter, the award show’s Founder and Carter Unlimited CEO.

All roads lead to Siloam Church International at 3695 Roosevelt Highway, where “the biggest day in gospel music” will be launched, and men and women of God will come from all over the country to celebrate each other.

Steeple Awards Invited Guests and Award Show Nominees

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The Steeple Awards will be another exciting night, celebrating Gospel all-stars Kirk Franklin, Marvin Sapp, Tasha Cobbs, Richard Smallwood, Canton Jones, The Walls Group, Bishop William Murphy, singers Kelly Price and Demetria McKinney, actress Reece Odum, as well as the cast of Preachers of Atlanta. To view the illustrious list of all Steeple Awards nominees, presenters, and speakers, please visit www.steepleawards.com. There you can also purchase general admission or VIP tickets.

The host for the inaugural award show is internationally acclaimed comedian, author, and motivational speaker, Broderick Rice. Guests will be uplifted with performances by Gospel music’s rising star, Tim Bowman Jr., who will sing his #1 Gospel Billboard hit single, “I’m Good”. Other appearances include BET Sunday Best alums, Corey Webb from Season 1, and Tyler Little from Season 6.

Team! Let’s continue to pray for every staff member, vendor, artist, presenter, and production team member working to make the Steeple Awards a huge and rising success for many years to come. We are excited about this inaugural celebration and look forward to seeing YOU on the red carpet.

The Steeple Awards is a Carter Unlimited event created by CEO C. Chandon Carter, produced by The Anchor & Company under the direction of Pamela Johnson. The Steeple Awards staff includes Branding Director, Rahru R. Arceneaux, and Public Relations Director, Ronnika Ann of inGENEus PR.

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Maranda Willis: Fill Me Up

By
Editorial Staff
-

Maranda Willis and the House of Hope Atlanta praise team deliver a moving medley of “Fill Me Up” by Kim Walker/Fill My Cup Lord.

Lifehouse Skit: Everything

By
Editorial Staff
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Have you ever been in so much trouble and turmoil – you knew only Jesus could fix it and set you free? This popular skit during Winterfest to Lifehouse’s “Everything” will move you every time.

Winter Jam Tour Spectacular 2016: The Stop Home at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta

By
Kim Brightness
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winter jam tour

When the Winter Jam Tour Spectacular blew into Atlanta, Georgia on Feb. 6th, home to many of the artists, the Georgia Dome transformed into a place where everybody was somebody. Everybody anxiously waited in long, twisting lines to see their favorite Christian artists; everybody was ready to get their socks rocked at the nation’s largest Christian music tour – but most importantly, everybody was somebody Jesus loved and gave his life for.

And that’s been the mission and ministry of Winter Jam since its inception in 1995 – to win souls for Jesus Christ through the good news of the gospel in song.

Winter Jam Tour: Big Artists, Small Price

Co-headlining the 2016 tour includes Grammy®-award winning Australian duo for King & Country, and four-time Grammy®-nominee singer/songwriter Matthew West. The exciting artist line-up included heavy hitters in contemporary Christian music such as Crowder, Lauren Daigle, RED, We Are Messengers, Stars Go Dim, and Sidewalk Prophets, with Reach Records’ own KB, Tedashii, and Trip Lee bringing the Christian Rap/Hip-Hop flavor to the tour.

This was no modest lineup for the modest $10 donation at the door (no tickets required). “The idea from the beginning was to make it so that everybody can come, and God has honored that” said Eddie Carswell, creator of Winter Jam and founding member of the Christian music group NewSong, during our pre- Winter Jam Atlanta interview.

The uplifting evening brought in over 40,000 guests to the Georgia Dome, including churches and youth groups from all over the country. Atlanta was the 20th stop this year as the 2016 Winter Jam Tour makes its way to 48 markets, including some of the largest venues typically reserved for pop icons such as Beyonce’ or Justin Bieber. The myth that only music superstars can pack the country’s largest arenas was debunked by Winter Jam in 2011, when the tour was ranked the #1 tour in the world, outranking the likes of Bon Jovi, U2, Lady Gaga, Brad Paisley and Justin Bieber, according to Pollstar’s 2011 Worldwide First Quarter Ticket Sales “Top 100 Tours” chart.

Winter Jam Tour: Circus-style Christian Entertainment with Back-to-Back Acts

mwestconfetti2_cIn addition to moving performances by the main artist lineup, the evening included special highlights and surprises: a soul-stirring rendition of “Georgia (Jesus) On My Mind” by American Idol’s 2015 Runner-up, Clark Beckham; RED’s infamous masks and pyrotechnics-laced show;  the moving testimony of survival and God’s providence by Stephanie Fast, author and orphan/adoption advocate for Winter Jam sponsor Holt International; Matthew West invites a 12-year-old attendee on stage to sing with him – greatest moment of his young life!

The night would not have been complete without sharing the Word of God, and author, soul-reaper, and Evangelist Tony Nolan did just that. Sharing from Romans 5:8, Pastor Nolan reminded the crowd that when it gets hard to see God’s love for us, all we have to do is look to the cross where God’s love was demonstrated in the death of his Son, Jesus. The invitation to accept Jesus Christ was received by thousands, and included a follow-up plan to seal and encourage their new journey with Christ.

Team Jesus Mag publisher, Kim Brightness, with new Winter Jam friends.
Team Jesus Mag publisher, Kim Brightness, with new Winter Jam friends.

We may have gathered as strangers from different cities, as people from different cultures and backgrounds, but everybody united under the banner of God’s love, and in celebration of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. We ask the body of Christ to continue to keep Winter Jam Tour Spectacular and other Christian tours/events covered in prayer for more souls won for Jesus, safety, and God’s continued blessings on the artists, tour staff, and the families who share their loved ones in ministry with the masses.

Winter Jam Tour Spectacular is still going on in a city near you, with its last stop in Louisville, KY on April 3rd. Visit JamTour.com for more information. In the meantime, check out our photo gallery below of some of the night’s best moments, as well as live snippets from our Periscope at Winter Jam!

 

Winter Jam Tour Spectacular 2016 - Atlanta

 

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“What We Do Isn’t Who We Are.” – Rapper Andy Mineo to Ronda Rousey…and You!

By
Kim Brightness
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It’s true. Ronda Rousey took a hard, very public fall in her fight last year with Holly Holm, her third title fight in only 9 months. She expected to win; everyone expected her to win. But finding herself admittedly knocked out on her feet from the first exchange is not exactly how she planned the fight to go. With the reality of defeat growing more and more imminent, to the final blow that sealed the deal – what did Ronda Rousey do that we all sometimes do, Team? We become our failure.

“What am I anymore, if I’m not this? I’m nothing.” Ronda thought, crouched in the corner of her hospital room after the fight. Ronda recently shared this transparent moment on the Ellen DeGeneres Show.

What “title” have you attached your entire identity to? I’m a {insert what fuels your confidence and causes you to stick your chest out}. Did you know that if you weren’t a {___}, you still have worth, meaning, and are treasured by God?

What Say You, Andy?

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I love how Andy Mineo put it in his Facebook post, after hearing how Ronda Rousey wanted to end her life, because for a moment, she actually thought her life was over:

I struggle with my own identity often. My accomplishments are fleeting. What has been able to keep me in my greatest moments of struggle is my faith in Jesus. Knowing God gives me identity and validation that no person can take away. If I succeed, He loves me. If I fail miserably, He loves me. He calls me His son – and like any good father – His love for his children isn’t based on performance.

Are you so busy performing for God, trying to win love, worth, and acceptance that Jesus Christ has already gifted to you? STOP! Accept the love of God and Jesus’ gracious work on the cross given to us all when we deserved far less (Romans 5:8).

Ronda understands she won’t win all the time – and neither will we. But trust in those seasons of failure, God is stirring up our fortitude, our integrity, and teaching us lessons we need for the next purposed victory. As long as you have breath in your body, and the will to keep going, you’ve got what it takes for a great comeback! Best wishes to Ronda Rousey on her comeback journey, or wherever she decides to go next – and cheers to YOU, Team, for those of us re-building after a loss.

And bravo to Mineo…this is how Team Jesus rolls! We are humans saved by grace, journeying with Christ to encourage others!

Now, go and be greatly loved! That’s WHO you are – win or lose.

 

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Artist Interview: Eddie Carswell of Newsong

By
Kim Brightness
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new song

Team!

Check out our interview with a legend in Contemporary Christian Music, Newsong co-founder, Eddie Carswell.  Newsong, the award-winning Christian band who’s touched hearts and ushered us to worship with songs like Swallow the Ocean, Arise My Love, and Christmas Shoes, has been making the name of Jesus GREAT for over 30 years. As the co-founder of Winter Jam, the nation’s largest Christian music tour, Eddie shares his heart for winning souls through music ministry, Newsong’s commitment to causes like adoption through Holt International, and his personal prayer requests for the tour. Listen in!

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Artist Interview: Rapper KB

By
Kim Brightness
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Team!

We were blessed to catch up with Reach Records artist and Dove Award winner, KB, before his stop in Atlanta for the Winter Jam Tour 2016! KB has been doing some phenomenal things in the kingdom of God, along with his follow 116 squad, all while maintaining that challenging balance between ministry and family. He keeps it 100 with us, Team! Listen in for updates on Winter Jam, how he was discovered, advice to aspiring Christian rappers, and most importantly – his personal prayer requests as he fulfills the assignment that God has on his life.

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BET’s Celebration of Gospel Gave Us Something to Celebrate!

By
Kim Brightness
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bet celebration of gospel

The good news of Jesus Christ doesn’t really need any help to be worthy of celebration, but the 2016 Celebration of Gospel via BET gave us a variety of expressions and styles of gospel music – there was something for everyone to celebrate!

Hosted by NAACP Award, BET Award, and Golden Globe Award winner, Taraji P. Henson, the Celebration of Gospel took us all to church, to the block party, to Christian rap night at the club, and back again – with the biggest names in gospel music, e.g. Yolanda Adams, Donnie McClurkin, Kirk Franklin, Tye Tribbet, Erica Campbell, Shirley Caesar, John P. Kee, Jonathan McReynolds, Travis Greene, Tamela Mann, and more – paired with R&B greats like Chaka Khan, Chrisette Michele, and Anthony Hamilton.

It was one of the more memorable Celebration of Gospel shows in recent years, and always a much needed and appreciated platform to share the joy of gospel music with the world. Here are a few clips from the evening to celebrate again, and again.

 

Anthony Brown – Worth

 

Yolanda Adams, feat. Tank – In the Midst of it All

 

Travis Greene, Tye Tribbett, Jonathan McReynolds and Chrisette Michele – Intentional

 

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Review: The Sanctuary with Ms. Anita Wilson, Featuring Special Guest Avery*Sunshine

By
Kim Brightness
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anita wilson the sanctuary

Ms. Anita Wilson: Live & Uplifting

I caught the pre-show excitement bug without even knowing it. Sitting in the audience of the soul music experience, The Sanctuary: Ms. Anita Wilson featuring special guest Avery*Sunshine, felt like the initial runway taxi before takeoff. I’d never seen Ms. Wilson perform live before, but with a beautiful, packed Oasis Buckhead church filled with supporters from near and far, I knew the final destination was about to knock my socks off.

There were no instructions to buckle our seatbelts, but there was one request that Ms. Wilson so poignantly announced before take-off:

“Check all troubles and negativity at the door; this place is for positive vibes only.”

Take Off with a Testimony

What better way to start the evening than with a testimony in song, “That’s What He’s Done for Me”, from Ms. Wilson’s sophomore album and latest release, Vintage Worship. Before long, those positive vibes were flowing freely from the stage to the audience, from heart to heart. Clearly this Grammy®, Stellar, and Dove-award nominated singer is a worshiper at heart, and the words it’s “All About You” are more than mere lyrics – they’re the artist’s lifestyle.

Good News Music is God’s Music

While some may prefer that gospel music walk the straight and narrow of mentioning Jesus, God, or a scriptural reference in every verse, hook, or vamp, the truth is there is good news and good times to be had by all in the simplest words of encouragement.

Ms. Wilson’s detour to the land of Stevie Wonder and his “Higher Ground” did just that – encourage and moved the crowd to their feet for a funky good time. And for an intimate moment with God, when simple words aren’t nearly enough, when we can’t find the words to describe God or how in awe we are of Him, Ms. Wilson’s “Speechless” / “Everything” medley took us to the throne.

It’s All in the Family

Such a powerfully positive stage is meant to be shared with like-minded artists with dope vibes, and that’s exactly what Ms. Wilson did. In true “Auntie of the Year” fashion, Ms. Wilson’s niece, Jaz McClendon, mounted the stage clad with acoustic guitar, stylish ripped jeans, and endearing nervous energy. But the gifted 15-year-old quickly lost herself in Tori Kelly’s “Confetti”, and impressed the crowd with her smooth, honest vocals and skills with the strum. With continued grooming by her talented aunt, and more gigs under her belt, Jaz is sure to be a rising star and one to watch behind the mic.

A Sister from Another Mother: Avery*Sunshine

Cut from the same musical tapestry as Ms. Wilson, with mean keyboard chops and a fierce, sneak-up-on-you vocal range, Avery*Sunshine was a great complement to the night from the moment she took the stage. Comical and real, Avery*Sunshine lifted us even higher with “See You When I Get There” and the Urban/UAC chart-topper “Call My Name” from her latest release, The Sun Room. We were quickly transported to Sunday morning with her rendition of “Safe In His Arms” and “He Keeps On Doing Great Things for Me.”

Flashing the bling on her left hand, Avery*Sunshine declared her love to musical partner, Dana Johnson (on guitar), and made us realize the importance and excitement of celebrating love – God is love!

Mission Accomplished

The night couldn’t end without Ms. Wilson’s acclaimed “Jesus Will”, and undoubtedly sent the masses home with a little more faith for the journey. If the intent of the evening was to encourage hearts, uplift spirits, and share God’s love, I’d have to say mission accomplished! All of us in the audience were no longer strangers or random attendees, but fellow participants in an evening where positivity triumphed, and negativity was defeated.

With it being the BMI Trailblazers 2016 weekend in Atlanta, it’s always awesome to see artists come out and support one another, as “Team Jesus” does! Shout out to Ledisi (who took the mic for a hot moment), Willie Moore, Jr. (and his awesome testimony), Kelly Price, James Hall, Chuck Harmony, Zebulon Ellis, and many others in the house.

If you’re ever looking for a place to check your troubles at the door and feel the freedom of soulful worship, catch Ms. Anita Wilson in concert near you. “Jesus will” definitely keep blessing this inspirational artist with good success.

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