The Malaco Music Group & 4 Winds Records are proud to announce that over a half a million viewers (516,000) tuned in to watch the national television debut of 3 Time, 2011 Stellar Awards Nominees and one of the most exciting female Quartet groups to come along in decades, The Christian Angels this past Sunday, October 31, 2010 on BET’s Bobby Jones according to Nielsen’s BDS tabulations.
The Christian Angels performed their heart wrenching, soul touching, powerful single “Praise Your Name” from their debut CD “Bring It To The Altar.” It was amazing to witness the studio audience weeping with joy and praising God sincerely with their whole heart.
Advise your Twitter followers, Facebook & MySpace friends, listeners and readers that “Praise Your Name” from the CD “Bring It To The Altar.” is available now in stores or they can go online to order their copy at http://malaco.com/Catalog/New-Releases/New-Gospel-Releases/Item/2299/Bring-It-To-The-Altar.php for only $9.95. (Also available on iTunes)
Monday, November 1, 2010
Monday, October 11, 2010
Memorial Service Set For Albertina Walker
CHICAGO (AP) - A memorial service and a concert have been planned for the "Queen of Gospel" Albertina Walker, who died last week in Chicago.
The Rev. L. Bernard Jakes says a public viewing of Walker's body will take place Thursday at West Point Missionary Baptist Church in Chicago. A concert in her honor will be held late Thursday at Apostolic Church of God in Chicago.
Walker's memorial service will be held Friday at West Point Missionary Baptist Church. Burial will follow at Oakwood Cemetery.
Walker died Friday of respiratory failure at age 81. She formed the Caravans gospel group as a young woman and was a protege of famed singer Mahalia Jackson.
The Rev. L. Bernard Jakes says a public viewing of Walker's body will take place Thursday at West Point Missionary Baptist Church in Chicago. A concert in her honor will be held late Thursday at Apostolic Church of God in Chicago.
Walker's memorial service will be held Friday at West Point Missionary Baptist Church. Burial will follow at Oakwood Cemetery.
Walker died Friday of respiratory failure at age 81. She formed the Caravans gospel group as a young woman and was a protege of famed singer Mahalia Jackson.
Friday, October 8, 2010
Watch The Soul Seekers On BET's Bobby Jones Gospel This Sunday
The Malaco Music Group invites you to watch BET’s Bobby Jones Gospel this Sunday, October 10, 2010 to see Stellar Award Winning Quartet Super Group The Soul Seekers perform their Billboard Gospel Chart hit single “It’s All God” & “Come On Jesus” from her upcoming “Soul Seekers II” CD in stores November 16, 2010. (Check your local listings)
Set your VCR’s, DVR’s or TIVO’s!!!
Be prepared to have a good old fashion hand clapping, foot stomping good time!!!
Set your VCR’s, DVR’s or TIVO’s!!!
Be prepared to have a good old fashion hand clapping, foot stomping good time!!!
Sad news from the world of gospel music, Albertina Walker, known as the "Queen of Gospel" has died.
Walker was born in Chicago in 1929. She had been in the hospital since Aug. 29, the day she celebrated her 81st birthday.
She started to sing for the children's choir of the West Point Baptist Church when she was just 4 years old.
By age 22 she had organized the Caravans, her gospel group.
She is known for a long list of songs including Lord Remember Me, Walk Around Heaven and Lord Keep Me Day by Day.
She started to sing for the children's choir of the West Point Baptist Church when she was just 4 years old.
By age 22 she had organized the Caravans, her gospel group.
She is known for a long list of songs including Lord Remember Me, Walk Around Heaven and Lord Keep Me Day by Day.
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
MY BLOCK RECORDS INKS DISTRIBUTION DEAL WITH MALACO MUSIC GROUP Soul Seekers II In Stores November 16, 2010
Los Angeles, CA — My Block Records, helmed by hit making producer Warryn Campbell, officially announces its distribution deal with Malaco Music Group. The first release in this new partnership will by the new CD from the Soul Seekers – “Soul Seekers II”.
“Malaco Gospel was founded on and continues its dedication to Quartet music, so it is an honor and privilege to have The Soul Seekers as a part of the Malaco Group family. There is a special uniqueness about this group of guys that resonates not only within the Gospel industry community but among Gospel music fans who wouldn’t normally listen to Quartet music,” says D.A. Johnson, Executive Director/Malaco Gospel Division.
The Soul Seekers are one of the most celebrated groups in Gospel music, and their new CD – Soul Seekers II – will be released on November 16.
Comprised of Teddy Campbell, Warryn Campbell, Nisan Stewart, John "Jubu" Smith, Gerald Haddon, Charlie Bereal, Craig Brockman and Eric Seats, the Soul Seekers is a veritable eight-member super group of hit making producers and award-winning musicians who together create a timeless expression of church music that appeals to fans of both traditional and contemporary Gospel. According to Warryn Campbell, the group is a “musical bridge between the past, present and future.”
“We are music’s next generation, but we are deliberate about maintaining a thread of Gospel’s roots in our music” says Campbell. “I feel very fortunate to be in business with Malaco, a label whose music I grew up on, and hope that our first release – Soul Seekers II – is as warmly received as our debut CD was.”
“Malaco houses the largest and oldest Gospel catalog in the world and we have always stayed true to the traditional quartet music. The Soul Seekers are the hot new quartet group that the industry is closely watching. Malaco views The Soul Seekers as the New Ambassadors of quartet music and look forward to helping the take quartet music to the mainstream states,” says Tommy Couch Jr. VP/Malaco Music Group
For more information on the The Soul Seekers:
E-Mail: pr@sovereignagency.com
www.thesoulseekersmusic.com
www.facebook.com/thesoulseekersmusic
www.twitter.com/thesoulseekers
“Malaco Gospel was founded on and continues its dedication to Quartet music, so it is an honor and privilege to have The Soul Seekers as a part of the Malaco Group family. There is a special uniqueness about this group of guys that resonates not only within the Gospel industry community but among Gospel music fans who wouldn’t normally listen to Quartet music,” says D.A. Johnson, Executive Director/Malaco Gospel Division.
The Soul Seekers are one of the most celebrated groups in Gospel music, and their new CD – Soul Seekers II – will be released on November 16.
Comprised of Teddy Campbell, Warryn Campbell, Nisan Stewart, John "Jubu" Smith, Gerald Haddon, Charlie Bereal, Craig Brockman and Eric Seats, the Soul Seekers is a veritable eight-member super group of hit making producers and award-winning musicians who together create a timeless expression of church music that appeals to fans of both traditional and contemporary Gospel. According to Warryn Campbell, the group is a “musical bridge between the past, present and future.”
“We are music’s next generation, but we are deliberate about maintaining a thread of Gospel’s roots in our music” says Campbell. “I feel very fortunate to be in business with Malaco, a label whose music I grew up on, and hope that our first release – Soul Seekers II – is as warmly received as our debut CD was.”
“Malaco houses the largest and oldest Gospel catalog in the world and we have always stayed true to the traditional quartet music. The Soul Seekers are the hot new quartet group that the industry is closely watching. Malaco views The Soul Seekers as the New Ambassadors of quartet music and look forward to helping the take quartet music to the mainstream states,” says Tommy Couch Jr. VP/Malaco Music Group
For more information on the The Soul Seekers:
E-Mail: pr@sovereignagency.com
www.thesoulseekersmusic.com
www.facebook.com/thesoulseekersmusic
www.twitter.com/thesoulseekers
Monday, July 12, 2010
Award-winning gospel singer Walter Hawkins dies
RIPON, Calif. (AP) — Walter Hawkins, a Grammy Award-winning gospel singer, composer and pastor from Oakland has died.
Family members say Hawkins passed away Sunday at his home in Ripon, Calif. He was 61.
Edwin Hawkins says his younger brother had been battling pancreatic cancer.
Born in Oakland, Walter Hawkins studied for his divinity degree at the University of California, Berkeley, where he recorded his first album entitled "Do Your Best" in 1972.
The next year Hawkins became a pastor and founded the Love Center Church in Oakland.
Friend and family representative Bill Carpenter says Hawkins later recorded a series of albums, earning nine Grammy Award nominations for his work. His "The Lord's Prayer" won a Grammy in 1980.
Family members say Hawkins passed away Sunday at his home in Ripon, Calif. He was 61.
Edwin Hawkins says his younger brother had been battling pancreatic cancer.
Born in Oakland, Walter Hawkins studied for his divinity degree at the University of California, Berkeley, where he recorded his first album entitled "Do Your Best" in 1972.
The next year Hawkins became a pastor and founded the Love Center Church in Oakland.
Friend and family representative Bill Carpenter says Hawkins later recorded a series of albums, earning nine Grammy Award nominations for his work. His "The Lord's Prayer" won a Grammy in 1980.
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Ray Johnson, Father Of Jimmy Johnson, Passes
Ray Johnson, age 89, a native of Iuka, Miss., lived in Sheffield for more than 60 years, working until retirement as a crane operator at Reynold's Aluminum, and heading one of the most prominent families in the Muscle Shoals music industry.
Johnson was the father of Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section guitarist Jimmy Johnson, and grandfather of Jay Johnson, of The Southern Rock All-Stars. His early musical aspirations were shelved for decades while he raised his family, but emerged in 2000 when his son and grandson produced his first CD, "Cowboy Ray 2000."
Johnson began playing as a youngster with his older brother, Dexter. Performing as the Johnson Brothers, the duo built a following through weekly performances on Mid South radio programs during the late 1930s. When they began to perform, Ray was so young his feet couldn't touch the floor as he sat before the microphone at WNRA's studio in the Sheffield Hotel.
They moved to WMSD in Muscle Shoals when a fire destroyed the WNRA studios, and later were regulars on an hour-long lunchtime show broadcast by KLCN in Blytheville, Ark.
In 1940, Ray settled down, as Dexter continued to tour the Southeast with the Blue Seal Pals before returning to Sheffield to take a job with the Tennessee Valley Authority. Dexter moved into a house across the street from Ray, eventually converting his garage into the area's first recording studio.
Ray continued playing throughout his life as a hobby, and he and his wife, Hazel, were renown for the home-cooked meals and musical treats they served to celebrities working with their son at Muscle Shoals Sound. Among those that were privileged to participate in these private gatherings were The Oak Ridge Boys, The Staple Singers, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Blackfoot, Levon Helm and producer Jerry Wexler.
"Jerry Wexler would come in to produce an album, and he would always want to come to my house," Ray explained during an interview after the release of his CD. "When we got through eating, he'd ask me and my wife to get out the guitar and sing."
Wexler became a devoted fan of the Johnsons' food and hospitality and especially their music.
"He was mesmerized by their harmony," Jimmy Johnson said. "Mother sang this unusual harmony. It almost sounded like she was singing under him. It was really unique."
The recording project was conceived during conversations between Jimmy Johnson and his partner at MSS, Roger Hawkins. Hawkins' father had also been a musician.
"Roger and I had talked about doing a record on our dads since the '60s and '70s," Johnson said. "Both our dads were in country music before we were born. But we procrastinated and put it off."
Johnson was inspired to begin the effort by Tony Hooper, a local guitarist/producer, who had recently completed an album with another unheralded older musician, local guitarist Lanky York.
Tony was persuasive," Johnson said. "He looked at me and said, 'You better do this.' "
By the time the recording got under way, Ray's wife, Hazel, was battling cancer. She died May 8, 1999, and the CD, which includes her and Ray's favorite songs, is dedicated to her memory.
After the release of the CD, Ray returned to the stage for some local performances.
On Tuesday morning, July 6, 2010, Ray passed away. The family will receive friends from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thursday, July 8, 2010, at Morrison Funeral Home, Tuscumbia. The funeral service will follow in the funeral home chapel. Interment will follow in Oakwood Cemetery, Sheffield. The Rev. James Taylor will officiate.
Ray is survived by his son, Jimmy Johnson and wife, Becky C. Johnson, of Muscle Shoals; grandson, Jay Johnson, Muscle Shoals; granddaughter, Kim (Lane) Tidwell, Killen, Ala.; great-grandsons, Jimmy Ray Johnson III and Trent Tidwell; great-granddaughter, Kayla Tidwell; sister, Mrs. Louise Harrison, Dyersburg, Tenn.; and nieces, Ida Ann Bean and Elsa Maye Crabtree.
He was preceded in death by his wife, Hazel Lewis Johnson; son, Earl Johnson; brothers, Dexter Johnson, Ellis Johnson, Edgar Johnson, Maskell Johnson, Mack Johnson; and sisters, Freda Matthews, Claire Gibbons, Verlan Deaton, Rachel Loveless, Peggy Diaz; and his parents, William Homer Johnson and Edith Ophelia Arnold Johnson, of Iuka, Miss., and the Shoals.
Ray was a member of First Baptist Church of Sheffield, IBEW local No. 558 and Sheffield Masonic "Blue" Lodge.
Pallbearers will be Jerry Borden, David Hood, Dewitt Bean, Bob Smith, Jerry Hodges and Rob Harrison. Honorary pallbearers will be Raymond Goode, Bobby Johnson, Frank Crabtree, Roger Hawkins, Bob Klose, Mark Willcutt and Mike Mihelic.
The family extends special gratitude to Anita and Scotty, of Southridge Place, and to Rita Van Dyke, of Green Oaks Inn.
Memorials may be made to the Alabama Music Hall of Fame, Tuscumbia, Ala.
Published in Florence Times Daily on July 7, 2010
Johnson was the father of Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section guitarist Jimmy Johnson, and grandfather of Jay Johnson, of The Southern Rock All-Stars. His early musical aspirations were shelved for decades while he raised his family, but emerged in 2000 when his son and grandson produced his first CD, "Cowboy Ray 2000."
Johnson began playing as a youngster with his older brother, Dexter. Performing as the Johnson Brothers, the duo built a following through weekly performances on Mid South radio programs during the late 1930s. When they began to perform, Ray was so young his feet couldn't touch the floor as he sat before the microphone at WNRA's studio in the Sheffield Hotel.
They moved to WMSD in Muscle Shoals when a fire destroyed the WNRA studios, and later were regulars on an hour-long lunchtime show broadcast by KLCN in Blytheville, Ark.
In 1940, Ray settled down, as Dexter continued to tour the Southeast with the Blue Seal Pals before returning to Sheffield to take a job with the Tennessee Valley Authority. Dexter moved into a house across the street from Ray, eventually converting his garage into the area's first recording studio.
Ray continued playing throughout his life as a hobby, and he and his wife, Hazel, were renown for the home-cooked meals and musical treats they served to celebrities working with their son at Muscle Shoals Sound. Among those that were privileged to participate in these private gatherings were The Oak Ridge Boys, The Staple Singers, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Blackfoot, Levon Helm and producer Jerry Wexler.
"Jerry Wexler would come in to produce an album, and he would always want to come to my house," Ray explained during an interview after the release of his CD. "When we got through eating, he'd ask me and my wife to get out the guitar and sing."
Wexler became a devoted fan of the Johnsons' food and hospitality and especially their music.
"He was mesmerized by their harmony," Jimmy Johnson said. "Mother sang this unusual harmony. It almost sounded like she was singing under him. It was really unique."
The recording project was conceived during conversations between Jimmy Johnson and his partner at MSS, Roger Hawkins. Hawkins' father had also been a musician.
"Roger and I had talked about doing a record on our dads since the '60s and '70s," Johnson said. "Both our dads were in country music before we were born. But we procrastinated and put it off."
Johnson was inspired to begin the effort by Tony Hooper, a local guitarist/producer, who had recently completed an album with another unheralded older musician, local guitarist Lanky York.
Tony was persuasive," Johnson said. "He looked at me and said, 'You better do this.' "
By the time the recording got under way, Ray's wife, Hazel, was battling cancer. She died May 8, 1999, and the CD, which includes her and Ray's favorite songs, is dedicated to her memory.
After the release of the CD, Ray returned to the stage for some local performances.
On Tuesday morning, July 6, 2010, Ray passed away. The family will receive friends from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thursday, July 8, 2010, at Morrison Funeral Home, Tuscumbia. The funeral service will follow in the funeral home chapel. Interment will follow in Oakwood Cemetery, Sheffield. The Rev. James Taylor will officiate.
Ray is survived by his son, Jimmy Johnson and wife, Becky C. Johnson, of Muscle Shoals; grandson, Jay Johnson, Muscle Shoals; granddaughter, Kim (Lane) Tidwell, Killen, Ala.; great-grandsons, Jimmy Ray Johnson III and Trent Tidwell; great-granddaughter, Kayla Tidwell; sister, Mrs. Louise Harrison, Dyersburg, Tenn.; and nieces, Ida Ann Bean and Elsa Maye Crabtree.
He was preceded in death by his wife, Hazel Lewis Johnson; son, Earl Johnson; brothers, Dexter Johnson, Ellis Johnson, Edgar Johnson, Maskell Johnson, Mack Johnson; and sisters, Freda Matthews, Claire Gibbons, Verlan Deaton, Rachel Loveless, Peggy Diaz; and his parents, William Homer Johnson and Edith Ophelia Arnold Johnson, of Iuka, Miss., and the Shoals.
Ray was a member of First Baptist Church of Sheffield, IBEW local No. 558 and Sheffield Masonic "Blue" Lodge.
Pallbearers will be Jerry Borden, David Hood, Dewitt Bean, Bob Smith, Jerry Hodges and Rob Harrison. Honorary pallbearers will be Raymond Goode, Bobby Johnson, Frank Crabtree, Roger Hawkins, Bob Klose, Mark Willcutt and Mike Mihelic.
The family extends special gratitude to Anita and Scotty, of Southridge Place, and to Rita Van Dyke, of Green Oaks Inn.
Memorials may be made to the Alabama Music Hall of Fame, Tuscumbia, Ala.
Published in Florence Times Daily on July 7, 2010
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
DONDRIA VS PHATFFFAT PREVIEW
DONDRIA VS PHATFFFAT PREVIEW
Check out the preview of Dondria's new album brought to you by So So Def / Malaco.
Check out the preview of Dondria's new album brought to you by So So Def / Malaco.
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Rev. F.C. Barnes Is Back With His Latest Offering
Mr. Rough Side Of The Mountain himself Rev. F.C. Barnes is back with his latest offering “(God Is God) He Won’t Change” featuring Darrell Luster spent 20 weeks on the Mediabase Gospel Top 30
Click on the link below and see how Gospel music appreciators react when they hear this song performed “Live” for the first time!!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QBdG85iIyaE
Thank you to following stations for your support…
WHLH – JACKSON, MS
KHLR - LITTLE ROCK
WYLD – NEW ORLEANS
WOAD - JACKSON, MS
WHLW – MONTGOMERY, AL
WLOK – MEMPHIS, TN
WSOK - SAVANNAH, GA
KATZ – ST LOUIS, MO
WEUP – HUNTSVILLE, AL
WXOK – BATON ROUGE, LA
KOKA – SHREVEPORT, LA
WNOO - CHATANOOGA, TN
Click on the link below and see how Gospel music appreciators react when they hear this song performed “Live” for the first time!!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QBdG85iIyaE
Thank you to following stations for your support…
WHLH – JACKSON, MS
KHLR - LITTLE ROCK
WYLD – NEW ORLEANS
WOAD - JACKSON, MS
WHLW – MONTGOMERY, AL
WLOK – MEMPHIS, TN
WSOK - SAVANNAH, GA
KATZ – ST LOUIS, MO
WEUP – HUNTSVILLE, AL
WXOK – BATON ROUGE, LA
KOKA – SHREVEPORT, LA
WNOO - CHATANOOGA, TN
BeBe and CeCe Winans To Be Honored With Stars On The Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2011
The Walk of Fame Committee of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce has announced the famous folks whose names will be added to the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2011, and some locally connected artists are on the list.
Gospel stars and siblings BeBe and CeCe Winans are due to be honored with stars, as is country crew Rascal Flatts. Nashville area-reared actress Reese Witherspoon's name comes in under the Motion Pictures category, and talk-show queen Oprah Winfrey — another famous former Nashvillian — comes in the Television category.
Flatts and the Winans are joined in the Recording category by Melissa Etheridge, Slash, the Black Eyed Peas' Will.i.am and others. Buddy Holly and Louis Prima were named as posthumous honorees. Other big– and small-screen names listed include Gwyneth Paltrow (who was recently here in Nashville filming Love Don't Let Me Down with Tim McGraw), Tina Fey, Penelope Cruz and others.
~ Published by Nicole Keiper The Tennessean
Gospel stars and siblings BeBe and CeCe Winans are due to be honored with stars, as is country crew Rascal Flatts. Nashville area-reared actress Reese Witherspoon's name comes in under the Motion Pictures category, and talk-show queen Oprah Winfrey — another famous former Nashvillian — comes in the Television category.
Flatts and the Winans are joined in the Recording category by Melissa Etheridge, Slash, the Black Eyed Peas' Will.i.am and others. Buddy Holly and Louis Prima were named as posthumous honorees. Other big– and small-screen names listed include Gwyneth Paltrow (who was recently here in Nashville filming Love Don't Let Me Down with Tim McGraw), Tina Fey, Penelope Cruz and others.
~ Published by Nicole Keiper The Tennessean
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