The wait is over: tickets for Verizon Wireless’ How Sweet The Sound are now on sale! Fans across the United States can now purchase tickets to the regional concerts of Verizon Wireless’ How Sweet the Sound™ national church choir celebration that will be held at some of the hottest venues across the country.
The 2009 How Sweet the Sound competition brings together choirs to perform and compete for a chance to earn the title of best church choir in their hometowns, a cash prize of up to $15,000, and the opportunity to represent their city in the grand finale concert later this year. How Sweet the Sound floor seats are $7 and lower- and upper-tier seats are available for $5. Performances will take place at the following venues this fall:
Donald Lawrence, GRAMMY®-winning songwriter, producer, arranger and music director, will emcee the tour for the second full year, while award-winning gospel artist, Marvin Sapp, will also be back as a judge. Once again, Verizon Wireless will select a local artist in each city to create a fine art piece to reflect the competition in their home city, and the artwork will be on display at each performance.
Last year, Chicago’s Acme Missionary Baptist Church was named the overall winner for the 2008 How Sweet the Sound tour. According to church pastor, the Rev. Bernard Sutton, the choir used their prize money to help purchase the congregation a new building.
Details about How Sweet the Sound, including schedules, judging criteria, tickets and official rules, are available online atwww.HowSweetTheSound.com.
Hello All! Please bear with us while we catch up. We recently added a new addition to the family. So that is why we have been missing for the last few weeks. If you emailed us we will get back with you as soon as possible. We will slowly be adding some more posts, they will probably be a little late/old but still worthy of reading.
The life story of Markilo Allen is one of redemption and restoration. A story that began February 19, 1970 in Kansas City, Missouri. The eldest of two sons born to Gregory Allen and Naomi Harrison, Markilo has been displaying his musical talents from an early age. Although he was introduced to Jesus Christ as a child, it would take awhile for the seed that was planted to flourish.
After moving to Salt Lake City, Utah as a teenager, Markilo was lured into the street life. Subsequently he spent 11 years of his life incarcerated for a gang related homicide. While in prison Markilo still honed his craft knowing that when he was released his life would take another direction. But what he didn’t know was that God had a plan for his life.
Kilo (as he is affectionately called by his family and friends) tried his hand at the rap game that the world had to offer. Although he enjoyed success in secular music he just wasn’t getting the satisfaction or the sense of accomplishment that he expected.
Now at the age of 35, Markilo has answered God’s call. “The Lord had called me to rap for His kingdom and I fought Him on it for awhile, but finally gave into His will,” he said.
Change is evident in Kilo now that he has given everything over to Jesus Christ. He, along with his mother work together to insure that his five daughters know who their savior is. Under the leadership of Pastor Corey J. Hodges of New Pilgrim Baptist Church Markilo is growing in his Christian walk. Diligently studying God’s word has strengthened his ability to proclaim the message of the bible clearly and effectively through rap.
“More of Him,” the debut album of Markilo’s gospel label, Heaven Bound Musik, will certainly encourage both the young and the old to turn to God. At the same it will glorify the kingdom of heaven.
We have an upcoming Interview with Markillo on Monday at 7pm EST on blog talk radio. Be sure to check it out.
Markilo Allen - Help Mate - first single for his upcoming sophmore album " The Story behind my Praise "
Hello and God bless thanks for stopping by the site I hope everyone had a blessed 4th of July weekend. Today I want to revisit the Struggle album from my man J. Johnson. Now this album was released a couple of months ago and has been at topped many of the various holy hip-hop charts. To some you may recognize this artist as J-Silas but he now goes by the J. Johnson. J has worked side by side with some of Holy Hip-Hop's premiere artist and has ministered at countless events promoting the name and word of Jesus the Christ. If your familiar with J's work you already know he stay's true to with use of hard hitting lyrics and catch phrases he gets straight to the point no sugar coating at all. Some may say his lyrics can at times be a bit rough or harsh when it comes to subjects like sex, drugs, violence. But I would beg to differ because I personally feel that part of the reason some Christians and Hip Hop heads in general are attracted to secular artist like Tupac, Biggie, and 50, is because they spoke what they saw and live just how they saw and lived it. Now if your worried about the younger listeners I'm going to go out on a limb and say this unless you've got your child on super lock, most likely they have already heard lyrics at least three times worse being used in a negative and destructive context. All I can say is that if something on the album was that pressing I don't think it would've received the welcome and high regards that it did. J. approaches this project with with a concept that reveals a transparent view of his thoughts and life experiences. though as in all of our lives we have ups and downs J. Johnson always points out how God is there every step and is with us no matter the situation. In the intro to the album J spits just short of 3 minutes no hook no pauses but straight metaphors and punch lines, each carefully selected. What really got my attention was that he touched on so many issues in a way that it doesn't become a garbled or sound like a bunch of words cluttered. You definitely have to really listen close and maybe even repeat the track a couple of times to catch everything in its fullness. Its in part the reason this isn't a short album because all of the tracks carry this attribute. From track to track J is very consistent in the aspect of coming full circle to bring the listener back to the focus of Christ, salvation, and our day to day actions. The second track I'm Back is a high tempo laced with hard hits, heavy cymbal crashes, kicks, amplified snare rim hits, and an array of background synths, shakers,and carefully placed noises that fill what would've otherwise been dead space between kicks and snares. This song truly captures the essence of classic east coast Hip-Hop from the production to the smooth delivery of J. Johnson's verses. In this track J speaks on the activities people engage in that unknowingly bring them that much closer to death through greed, disease ignorant speaking, and how through the lack of knowledge of the work of Christ leave us to the misconception that getting into heaven is next to impossible. J then states how through the work of Christ his and his blood shed we have salvation and not by our works. He also touches on how blind we are to our position as far as where we stand in God's eyes. The next track called The Odds list some personal as well as general restrictions and limitations that are spoken over us by sometimes we place them on ourselves and sometimes others speak them on us. This song also brings to light the struggles of staying on the Ghristian course and how it's necessary to lean on the Lord for the strength need to persevere. Overcomaz, this track is a banger that packs a lot of energy though the tempo isn't really fast. You can feel the emotion and hear the passion in J's voice as he articulates each word of the verse. The song is about true trust in the Lord in the face of grave danger and how with the help of the Lord we can withstand and overcome any opposition. This song brings to mind the many Christian martyrs that have given their lives in the name of the faith both in the bible days and in more recent times. The next track Remember is J's personal testimony of the time he spent struggling to live right and the consequences that come with making choices outside of Christ. The next track Go is an up tempo song with a steady head nodding beat lead with heavy kicks, shakers, and layered claps. This song is about the command to go out into the world to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ. J speaks on encounters, the perils, and reaction sometimes given by those you share your faith with. I like the determination in this song it's a very motivational to some sharing the faith can be difficult what ever the reason may be this song definitely will have you looking at witnessing in a different light. You Can Make It ft. T King is another outstanding track off The Struggle project. The unique production style of Tony Stone the hook with T King and verses by J. Johnson really come together to make this a very powerful song. You Can Make It brings a message of encouragement for those times we have when we feel everything that can go wrong does. J encourages us not to beat up on ourselves or look to look to the father for help and pray for guidance. Amazing Grace ft. Corey Red and Yankee B on the hook. Yankee B brings reggae flavor to track with a hook and a strong verse as well. This song paints a picture of where J, Corey and Yankee B, would be if they didn't take heed to the grace God so graciously gives. Now there other tracks on the album but for the sake of time the last track we'll look at is called I'm Just Me. This is one of my personal fav's off the album the beat the lyrics and the structure of the track is outstanding. This track strong in more ways than one. The beat features strong but subtle horns, a lightly played keys all accompanied by deep kick drums and hats and claps. I especially like the what!! chants in the background. The structure is set up so that every 8 bars the words '' I'm just me '' are recited to make for a kind of sub hook, and the kicks hitting with each word really set it all off. But to top all that J rips it up with authority, the song list countless issues, situations, and emotions but despite anything that comes his way he's gone be him because God made him. In his failure in his success it was God who created him and for that clean cut reason there's no reason for shame,or disappointment in who he is because of the unique purpose God has placed in each and every one of us.
For those like myself who can appreciate well thought out and clever lyricism this one project you don't want to sleep on any longer than you already have. For all my crunk heads the album is definitely worth checkin out regardless of what your use to, the flow is grimy and gutter hard hitting and so full of pure truth it might just hurt for a lil bit. I'm trippin but The Struggle by J. Johnson formerly known as J-Silas is strong in content, biblically sound, and has some bangers in the mix its hard to pin point the tone of the project because it's pretty well balanced. J. Johnson has truly grown as an artist and minister congratulations J on all success with the album .
The Struggle gets four and a half hipe hope headphones for dope lyrics,strong biblical content,great delivery,hot production,and last but not least balance ( musical style,tempo,subject matter ) .
New York City—(JUNE 29th, 2009)— Co-written by James Fortune and Terence Vaughn, the sensational Gospel Anthem “I Trust You” was named the GOSPEL SONG OF THE YEAR at the 22nd Annual American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers Awards. The ASCAP Awards honor songwriters and publishers of the most celebrated songs on the Gospel, R&B, Hip-Hop and Rap Charts. “I Trust You” topped Billboard's Hot Gospel Songs chart for a historic 29 weeks, and claimed the title of the longest running #1 Gospel single. The star-studded event, which was attended by leading recording artists, songwriters and music industry notables, began with a moment of silence in remembrance of Michael Jackson and his music. James Fortune dedicated his riveting performance at the award ceremony to the Late King of Pop. A short montage highlighted the illustrious career of Michael Jackson while several award recipients and presenters mourned the great loss. When award recipients and presenters mourned the great loss. When Alicia Keys accepted ASCAP’s Golden Note Award she thanked Michael for his legacy and said “"He gave from his heart and was a genuine and blessed artist.” James, who until a few years ago was homeless and could not provide a home for his wife and children, has struck a chord with millions with his passionate music and true to the heart Gospel Anthems. Distinguished music artists such as Wyclef Jean, Melissa Ford, GS Boys, NeYo, Jeremiah, D-Woods, Shanice, Alicia Keys and Christiana Milan, among others, were moved by James’ riveting performance at the ASCAP Awards and paid homage to his music as well as his inspirational testimony. James Fortune & FIYA have gone from empowering youth in the Greater Houston area to uplifting millions with their nationally acclaimed debut album You Survived!, released in September 2004. They have been blessed to open for celebrated artists such as Stevie Wonder, John P. Kee, Kim Burrell, Fred Hammond and several others in addition to being nominated four years in a row for the Texas Gospel Youth & Young Adult Choir of the Year. Accompanied by iconic GRAMMY-Award winning Gospel artists such as Kirk Franklin, Shirley Caesar, and Yolanda Adams, James Fortune & FIYA have dazzled audiences with their fiery presence and continue to enjoy trail-blazing crossover success with their wide-reaching message of hope and salvation set to uplifting urban contemporary music.
Disclaimer: The reviews on this site are more for recommendation than not. We cannot review every album that is available. We purchase 95% of these albums ourselves. So we try to only buy and review albums that we think are the best. And hope you will think so as well.
Plagerism Will not be tolerated!
Listen to our latest or upcoming Interviews.
With a song called "Enough For Me" that is currently in rotation on BET Video Gospel, The Word Network and also GMC's Hype & Glory. We will be Interviewing Christian Artist Mr John Duncan.
To Any Artist who would like to be Spotlighted. Please email your testimony, your music, a promo, album or professional photo,
your press kit, and if you have, a music video, to me
ExoticMommie(at)gmail.com.
Also if anyone has any gospel news or feels that a certain artist should be spotlighted please email me that info as well.
If you want your song to added to the next podcast please email me as well.
Spotlighting Holy Hip Hop and Christian Urban, Soul, and Gospel Music Artists. As well as whats going on in Christian News
and Entertainment.
