Gotta Have Gospel! Christmas In Stores

The best-selling Gotta Have Gospel series, made possible by a joint-venture between Integrity Music and Zomba Gospel, has released its first holiday compilation featuring a strong list of gospel artists including John P. Kee, Richard Smallwood, Yolanda Adams, Juanita Bynum, Israel Houghton, CeCe Winans and many others.

"Gospel consumers and music fans everywhere will love this homage to the greatest songs of Christmas as well as newly re-purposed classics done in a contemporary gospel style," says Daniel D. McGuffey, chief marketing officer of Integrity Media. "Some of the biggest gospel artists in the world have put their unique signature spin on these wonderful songs, which makes for a marvelous seasonal experience."

The single disc collection is in stores now and is available in CD and digitial form at Amazon.com.

The Happenings at GMWA 2009

This year's festivities at the 42nd annual Gospel Music Workshop of America convention is loaded with wonder and lots of stargazing. Of course, since the week long gathering sports a laundry list of worship services, musicals, concerts, live recordings and new artist showcases, we decided to condense some of the big events down to a thread. Hopefully, if you're anywhere near the Cincinnati area during this week, you will find a way to get to one or two - if not all - of our personally selected events.

MONDAY, JULY 27
Intercessory Prayer starts at 8:30 a.m. with the Daily Bread Service starting at 10:00 a.m. An unsigned artist showcase takes place at 4:30 p.m. Midnight musical (let the Praise Continue) takes place at midnight.

TUESDAY, JULY 28
Bishop Paul S. Morton, Sr. will be preaching during the Daily Bread Service from 10:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m. After the service, according to the folks at Light Records, Morton will be signing copies of his new book and CD, Cry Your Last Tear.

A Gospel Announcers Guild (GAG) Showcase and Luncheon will take place afterwards at 4:30 p.m. where Bishop Morton will showcase his latest single and bonus track "Don't Do It Without Me."

WEDNESDAY, JULY 29
The 25th annual National Prayer Breakfast, sponsored by the GMWA Men of Promise, will take place at 7:30 a.m. The guest speaker will be the GMWA chairman Bishop Albert Jamison, with musical selections provided by Lamar Campbell and Chester D.T. Baldwin. The event will also honor a number of GMWA legends including founder Rev. James Cleveland, Rev. Theodore King, Dr. Isaac Whittmon, Bishop Richard "Mr. Clean" White, Rev. Quincy Fielding, Jr., Dr. Charles Fold, Dr. Steven Roberts, Rev. Daryl Coley and Rev. Timothy Wright. Individual tickets are $35.00.

The Tribute to the King celebration, in honor of Rev. James Cleveland, takes place at 4:00 p.m. Youth and young adult forum is scheduled at 11:00 p.m.

THURSDAY, JULY 30
A Who's Who in Gospel will make their way to the Duke Energy Convention Center for the Macy's sponsored-Gospel Festival at 7:00 p.m. Tickets are from $20-$40. Special musical guests include Shirley Caesar, Yolanda Adams, Byron Cage, Kurt Carr, Smokie Norful, Dorinda Clark-Cole, Bishop Paul S. Morton, Dorothy Norwood, Dottie Peoples, Youthful Praise feat. JJ Hairston, the Tommies Reunion Choir and others.

If you're into the Hat & Tea thing, check out the 5th annual Hatter's Tea at 3:00 p.m. The event will honor the musical contributions of Yolanda Adams and the legendary Clara Ward Singers. Individual tickets are $35. For more information, you can call the chairperson Juanita Suggs at 832.231.4590.

Men's and Women's night services takes place at midnight.

FRIDAY, JULY 31
Academic convocation and workshop recording begins at 9:00 a.m. and will conclude at 3:00 p.m.

Madea Actor Terrell Carter Caught in Media Spin

The rumor mill ran abuzz this week when Terrell Carter, a star in Tyler Perry's stage plays and featured actor in the famed Madea movie blockbusters, was outed this past weekend by an alleged ex-boyfriend who posted photos on the Internet featuring Carter and him together. Alex Cortez, the boyfriend, began posting pictures on networking web sites and on his profile pages at Twitter and MySpace while also writing about the scorn of the aforementioned relationship going wrong. In his words, Cortez wrote "Hell yeah i’m angry!…there are fucked up ppl out there no matter how nice they seem to be & it’s their fault, ppl they harm are bitter!"

Since the outing, black gossip blogs, gay news sources and other media outlets including MediaTakeOut, Rod 2.0, Sandra Rose, Advocate and PerezHilton have been lit up with hundreds of comments from Carter's supporters and some of Perry's hardcore fans. Sandra Rose, who reported last year that Carter was suspect, didn't help much when she wrote that "99 percent of the actors in Tyler's movies are gay."

The actor is also an indie soul artist who has released three albums, according to CDBaby. Along with his background in Tyler Perry gospel plays like Meet the Browns and Madea's Class Reunion, Carter was a background singer for Fred Hammond and Yolanda Adams.

No correspondence or a press statement from Carter's camp has surfaced since the rumored allegations hit the fan. Maybe he's hoping all of this will die down until the next Madea movie announces casting calls.

J MATT'S COMMENTS:
Since I have been heavily criticized for running a rumor mill at my gospel e-zine and blog (Keish, hope you're reading this), I wanted it to go on record that this blog entry was only submitted because no other gospel web site won't touch it. I was also questioned by the media about the immediate reaction from the faith community. I personally felt it was newsworthy because other news outlets have covered it and it also raises a lot of questions.

Will Carter press charges against Cortez for defamation of character?

When a gospel-related star is in trouble, why do the gospel web sites choke up?

And when issues of homosexuality arise, why is it the church gets louder and the gospel community goes silent?

These and other issues are bound to make you wonder if we are really being effective in our outreach of Christian evangelism. I hate that Carter is now the victim of a bitter, heartbroken drama-king, but the popular, yet paranoia-like proverb remains a careful reminder to our decision-making. It is also a title to one of Perry's stage plays in which Carter was also cast: "What's done in the dark...shall come to light."

American Music Ball Cancelled

Last night, TMZ reported that some of the dozen planned inauguration balls were in deep trouble due to poor ticket sales. The American Inauguration Ball, headed by music legend Dionne Warwick, was cancelled for those reasons. Her party was set to feature headliners including Yolanda Adams, George Clinton, Chaka Khan, Marvin Sapp, Smokie Norful and Kirk Franklin. Alongside with her star-studded event, the joint party for the kids at the Hip-Hop Ball, which featured hip-hop stars Ludacris and T-Pain, was also axed at the last minute. Ticket sales proved to be a troubling factor for both events, with sales reaching over $450.

At Gawker, a popular online blog, they decided to leave some extra commentary on the subject after it was revealed how pricey the tickets were going. "Like subprime mortgages packaged up and resold as AAA bonds, the promoters were hoping they could transform their ball scams, through some alchemy, into Obama gold. We may feel bad for Warwick — but not for the fool who hired her."

But they also forgot to report the big truth: Dionne booked too many gospel acts. You know folk ain't going to pack a music hall for a gospel concert even for $50. $450 is really pushing it.

[DIONNE'S NOT HAVING A BALL]
Dionne Warwick Not Having a Ball at Inauguration [Gawker]

IRS Looks Into Yolanda Adams

GRAMMY award-winning and gospel superstar Yolanda Adams has a big battle on her hands. It's not just the Lord's battle either. This time, it's serious business as the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) launched a probe into Adams' financial records from as far back as 2000. According to the Houston Chronicle, the Houston native failed to keep an appointment ordered by the IRS to explain her financial affairs and to determine Adams' tax liability and how the agency would collect on the debt.

The investigation surrounds the two million-dollar mortgage loan applications filed by the singer, where there were inconsistencies listed in her assets.

A 2005 Ocwen application said Adams earned $40,000 a month and listed $8 million in assets — including an $800,000 trust account, $4.9 million in other personal holdings and jewelry worth $1.5 million. That document said she owned a Lexus and a Hummer.

A subsequent Chase home loan application listed $3 million in assets, including a business worth $1.5 million, a Mercedes-Benz and a Range Rover. She owns a home worth more than $2 million in Houston's Royal Oaks Country Club subdivision.

The agency also wants details about her endorsements and royalties as well as music companies and foundations with whom she is affiliated.

Houston entertainment lawyer and Adams' attorney Ricky Anderson said that he was unaware of the lawsuit and declined to comment until he could look at the IRS filings and reach Adams, who was being featured on a gospel cruise to the Bahamas.

According to sources, she failed to appear with the IRS on Feb. 5 because she decided to appear on her syndicated morning show.

Earlier this year, the agency issued a summons that required Adams, 46, to bring financial documents for the last six years to Houston's IRS office in February and answer questions. When Adams missed her appointment, the government asked the court to force the entertainer to cooperate. She is scheduled to appear in court next month.

Let's hope she doesn't do a Bobby Brown by dodging the heat. The morning show can wait.

[MORE ON YOLANDA'S BATTLE]

Federal judge orders singer Adams to appear in court (Houston Chronicle)
Yolanda Adams subject of investigation (GospelCity.com)