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Pilgrim Baptist Church to Host April 25 Premiere of Kathryn Kemp’s Documentary on the Birth of Gospel Music in Chicago
Author and gospel music historian Dr. Kathryn Kemp is teaming up with Chicago's historic Pilgrim Baptist Church to host the screening of Jessica Parker picturesMake a Joyful Noise, a documentary about how God used suffering to birth a movement that changed music forever. The Red Carpet World Premiere will be held at Pilgrim Baptist Church, 3301 S. Indiana Avenue, Chicago, Illinois, on Saturday, April 25, 2026, at 4:00 p.m. The documentary, which is touted as the definitive documentary on the birth of Chicago Gospel, and the legacy of Professor Thomas A. Dorsey, the Father of Gospel Music, also focuses on [...]
JGM Pick of the Week – September 15, 2025
A week after Bishop Norman Hutchins left this earth, Pastor Markees Williams released his version of Hutchins’s “Nobody But Jesus.”
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Recent Posts
Pilgrim Baptist Church to Host April 25 Premiere of Kathryn Kemp’s Documentary on the Birth of Gospel Music in Chicago
Author and gospel music historian Dr. Kathryn Kemp is teaming up with Chicago's historic Pilgrim Baptist Church to host the screening of Jessica Parker picturesMake a Joyful Noise, a documentary about how God used suffering to birth a movement that changed music forever. The Red Carpet World Premiere will be held at Pilgrim Baptist Church, 3301 S. Indiana Avenue, Chicago, Illinois, on Saturday, April 25, 2026, at 4:00 p.m. The documentary, which is touted as the definitive documentary on the birth of Chicago Gospel, and the legacy of Professor Thomas A. Dorsey, the Father of Gospel Music, also focuses on [...]
JGM Pick of the Week – September 15, 2025
A week after Bishop Norman Hutchins left this earth, Pastor Markees Williams released his version of Hutchins’s “Nobody But Jesus.”
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Nikki Berry’s “Shine on Me,” a vocal solo with only organ accompaniment, is the kind of gospel performance that enlivens a church congregation.
The Journal of Gospel Music is saddened to report that Philadelphia's longtime gospel announcer Linwood Heath passed away.
“Jesus” Sydnee Danielle Revival Music Co. (release date: August 18, 2023)
Bishop Carlton Pearson died on Sunday night in hospice care in Tulsa due to cancer, said his agent, Will Bogle.
With the full-throated Biblical People choir supporting him with bursts of staccato lyrics, Weaver reminds the church that when times are toughest, like when loved ones pass away, just let go and let God do his job.
Crawford's performance after the first 90 seconds is what sells the song.
LATEST 5 STAR REVIEWS
LATEST PICK OF THE WEEK – SINGLES
“Holy Ghost” Frozene Lott Hayes LotHay Music (2018) Available on iTunes By Bob Marovich You can be certain that a song titled “Holy Ghost” is going to be a church burner, and Frozene Hayes delivers on this promise. Supported by a chugging band and a choir of BGVs, Hayes sings about the exhilaration of salvation [...]
“Chainbreaker” Angela “Missy” Billups E’Mazin Entertainment (release date: May 15, 2018) Available digitally By Bob Marovich New York-based singer Angela “Missy” Billups is known for both traditional church wreckers and rhythmic praise ballads. Her latest single, “Chainbreaker,” is right in the middle in terms of tempo, while the lyrics are consistent with the message she [...]
“Enter His Gates” Patrick Lundy and the Ministers of Music From the New Day Distribution CD By Faith www.plundymom.com By Bob Marovich Minister Patrick Lundy’s musical instruction in the gospel and classical worlds are in evidence on the robust church rouser “Enter His Gates.” Taking its text from Psalm 100:4, the song features full production, a solid [...]
“Are You Ready” Jason Champion My Block Records (release date: October 27, 2017) By Bob Marovich To a mid-tempo boogie-woogie rhythm, gospel singer Jason Champion asks the ultimate salvation question: are you ready for Jesus when He comes? He then lets loose with a couple of Sam Cooke yodels and declares he’s ready – in fact, [...]
“If God” Casey J From the forthcoming Tyscot album The Gathering (single release date: June 25, 2018) www.tyscot.com Bob Marovich As a schoolteacher, Casey J has had to ask lots of hard questions. So it’s not surprising that on her new single, “If God,” she wonders aloud why there is still cancer, still violence, and [...]
By Robert Marovich
In A City Called Heaven, gospel announcer and music historian Robert Marovich shines a light on the humble origins of a majestic genre and its indispensable bond to the city where it found its voice: Chicago.
By Robert Marovich
In A City Called Heaven, gospel announcer and music historian Robert Marovich shines a light on the humble origins of a majestic genre and its indispensable bond to the city where it found its voice: Chicago.
By Bob Marovich (UPDATED 12/17/16) Gospel quartet legend Willie Joe Ligon passed away on Sunday, December 4. Homegoing and memorial details are at the bottom of this report. Born October 11, 1936, in Troy, Alabama, Ligon migrated to Los Angeles at age 14 and met his future mates in the Mighty Clouds of Joy in the [...]
The Gospel Division of Sharp Records informed the Journal of Gospel Music yesterday that Eric Allen Byrd of The Golden Crowns of Louisville, Kentucky, has passed away. Allen was the quartet's manager, lead and background vocalist, and songwriter for many years. First organized in Bowling Green, Kentucky, as the Shanklin Brothers, the Golden Crowns made one 45 [...]
