Dove Awards Wrap-Up: The Big Winners, And The Big Moments
Spoiler alert! The Dove Awards won't be televised until Sunday night, April 24, but the cute little dove-shaped statues were handed out in Atlanta on Wednesday. If you're like us, you think waiting is for suckers, so tune in to Rhapsody right now as we reveal the big winners and the show's top moments.
The 42nd-Annual Gospel Music Association Dove Awards were held at the historic Fox Theater, with Francesca Battestelli, Chris August and Jason Crabb racking up the big wins.
Battestelli grabbed the biggest one, Artist of the Year, for the first time, along with Female Vocalist of the Year for the second year in a row. She also earned Pop/Contemporary Recorded Song of the Year for "Beautiful, Beautiful."
"What is wrong with you people?" the shocked singer asked, laughing, as she accepted the Artist of the Year trophy. "This is ridiculous. I don't know what to say."
August scored on three of his four nominations, grabbing Male Vocalist of the Year, New Artist of the Year and Pop Contemporary Album of the Year for his debut, No Far Away.
The other major-category awards:
Group of the Year - NEEDTOBREATHE
Rock Album of the Year - Horseshoes & Handgrenades by Disciple
Rock/Contemporary Album of the Year - Tonight by TobyMac
Inspirational Album of the Year - a tie between Downtown Church by Patty Griffin and Edge of the Divine by Sandi Patty
Contemporary Gospel Album of the Year - Love God, Love People by Israel Houghton
Performance highlights:
The Female Vocalist of the Year nominees paid tribute to Christian-music legend Sandi Patty. Battistelli, Britt Nicole, Janet Paschal, Kerrie Roberts, Laura Story, Audrey Assad and Natalie Grant sang Patty's best-loved classics, including "Via Delorosa," " We Shall Behold Him," and " In the Name of the Lord," which made for a beautiful collaboration.
Smokie Norful, Marvin Sapp, Donald Lawrence, Bishop Paul Morton, Deitrick Haddon and Bishop Darrell Hines, billed as "The Singing Pastors," joined forces to sing "Undivided," backed by a stunning gospel choir. It was a powerful song for a powerful group of gospel greats, each a force to be reckoned with in his own right. The crowd agreed, as the performance ended with a standing ovation.
Steven Curtis Chapman and Casting Crowns' Mark Hall teamed up with Third Day on "Children of God," from the band's current album, Move. Wearing T-shirts reading "Adoption," all of the performers' children joined their parents on stage to sing. This was particularly poignant because those performers -- Third Day frontman Mac Powell and his wife Aimee, Casting Crowns' Mark and his wife Melanie, and Steven Curtis and Mary Beth Chapman -- all have adopted children.
The 42nd Annual Gospel Music Awards will air on GMC on Easter Sunday, April 24, 7 p.m. EST.