CeCe Winans belted out 'To God be the Glory' as she accepted on of her honours.,,,
Gospel star CeCe Winans made music history by becoming the first African American female solo artist to win the GMA Dove Awards Artist of the Year title.
Winans capped a memorable night at the 53rd annual Dove ceremony by also winning Song of the Year – celebrating as she accepted the double honour by belting out the hymn ‘To God be the Glory’.
She also had an inspirational message for the audience of gospel and contemporary Christian music fans at the awards in Nashville.
“I am believing for God to move in this industry like he has never moved before,” Winans said.
She took the Song of the Year title for number one Billboard hit ‘Believe for It’, adding it to a glittering collection of 15 Grammy Awards amassed while selling 19 million records and earning a star on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame.
The award-winning song was recorded during the pandemic and performed in an almost deserted auditorium because of COVID restrictions. It was part of Winans’ first live album.
She recalls: “I had never done a live record before. And I was like, ‘God, this is the first time I do a live record and now I’ve got to do it in front of no people?’”
She was able to make it work, though, by inviting a small audience and seating them throughout the venue.
“It wasn’t the live concert I was planning on, but we were able to do that. We were also able to allow some of the people from our church to hear it and respond. So, if you listen to the record, you get a little bit of the live feel.”
She sang in the UK this year in front of thousands at the ExCeL London for Franklin Graham’s God Loves You Tour.
Winans was the best friend of Whitney Houston and godmother to her daughter, Bobbi Kristina Brown. She sang ‘Jesus Loves Me’ at Houston’s 2012 funeral.
• Musician Anne Wilson, who featured in New Life in August, was also a double Dove Awards winner. She took the New Artist of the Year and Pop/Contemporary Recorded Song of the Year titles for her debut single, ‘My Jesus’.
Wilson performed the song at the awards and shared that it was written about the death of her brother, Jacob, in a 2017 car crash.
She told the Dove audience: “Most of all, I want to thank Jesus for his grace, his mercy and his forgiveness. I’m so thankful for all the artists in this category as well. You are changing lives.”
