I Love You Twelve

Here is the second and last part of my story.

Mandisa wowed everyone with her gorgeous dress. She spoke about her new album, What If We Were Real.  She says this album is her most honest album because of her part in the writing process. “The songs are probably a little bit edgier than what people are used to from me,” she says. She continued to speak about masks that we has Christians put on and how she was able to remove her mask for this album. Mandisa also stated that her spiritual walk has become stronger since American Idol.

To learn more about Mandisa, you can go here.

Erica Gluck was probably the youngest person in the press room, yet she definitely had a way of winning everyone over. She will be starring in the upcoming movie, Trinity Goodheart, which is scheduled to be released this year.

To learn more about Erica Gluck, you can go here.

Kim Fields spoke very eloquently throughout her press conference. The actress, who is mostly known for her role as Tootie on Facts of Life, said that her advice to up and coming actors and actresses is to make sure that they have good listening skills. “Listening is a necessary trait to acting.” When asked if she had given Erica Gluck any advice she quickly chimed in and said that she didn’t need to and that Erica had wonderful traits as an actress and young lady.

To learn more about Kim Fields, you can go here.

Kenny Rogers entered the room following a very sweet performance with Point of Grace. He talked about his music and what gospel music meant to him. He said that he really enjoyed being able to be in a room with so many great musicians. “Everyone comes with a different perspective of who God is to them,” he explained.

To learn more about Kenny Rogers, you can go here.

Sandi Patty has won forty Dove Awards in her career and went home with the award for Most Inspirational Album of the Year. She was honored this year at the awards with a tribute. She joined the stage with Audrey Assad, Britt Nicole, Laura Story, Kerrie Roberts, Natalie Grant, Janet Paschal, and Francesca Battistelli. The tribute was extremely beautiful and memorable.

In the press room, Sandi Patty beamed about her weight loss, “I feel much younger. I’m actually my Wii Fit age!” She then admitted that her Wii Fit age was now 40 and she was turning 55 in a few weeks.

Sandi smiled as the tribute was brought up. “I told Audrey Assad if she doesn’t cover Via Delorosa and put that on her record, she’s crazy. Natalie Grant and I are going to take her out at the knees. ‘Cause it was just beautiful,” she complimented.

Not only did she have the room smiling and chuckling, she also hit some soft spots. She spoke about God’s grace and how she understands it a lot better now that she has lived longer and how different she is from when she won her first award.

She left with saying about God’s grace, “Even when I don’t feel it, I know it to be true.”

To learn more about Sandi Patty, you can go here.

You can also watch her tribute by going here.

Steven Curtis Chapman, Mary Beth Chapman, and Third Day entered the room after a beautiful performance of “Children of God”. The Chapmans and Third Day are all adoptive parents. Their passion for these children was very evident in, not only their performance, but in their speech during the conference as well. Their ministries have reached the lives of many.

The Chapmans were honored for their work with Show Hope and won the first ever Uplift Someone award. The very respected couple accepted the award with love and grace.

To learn more about Steven Curtis Chapman, you can go here.

To learn more about Mary Beth Chapman, you can go here.

To learn more about Show Hope and how you can help, you can go here

To learn more about Third Day, you can go here.

David Crowder Band probably had the most fun with their press conference. The band won for Short Form Video of the Year for “SMS (Shine)”. The video was created by the band members themselves and took three months to make. When asked what his favorite Lite Brite color was, David Crowder went into a very detailed explanation as to why the pink and orange ones were not his favorite. “My favorite is green,” he laughed, finally.

The bands advice to upcoming singers: 1. Play in tune. 2. Always say yes when asked to sing at church. 3. Pray.

To learn more about David Crowder Band, you can go here.

To see the video for “SMS (Shine)”, you can go here.

Chris August was nearly speechless as he accepted his first three Dove Awards ever. “I don’t even have a mantle!” he exclaimed. The singer was extremely humble in accepting the awards. He spoke a little about how his music has evolved since he became a Christian. He won for New Artist of the Year, Male Vocalist of the Year, and Pop/Contemporary Album of the Year for his album No Far Away.

To learn more about Chris August, you can go here.

Gerald and Jason Crabb shared a win for Song of the Year for “Sometimes I Cry”. The father-son duo gratefully accepted. Their sweet spirits were definite as they answered many questions about writing and singing together.

To learn more about Jason Crabb, you can go here.

Francesca Battistelli won for Artist of the Year, Female Vocalist of the Year, and Pop/Contemporary Recorded Song of the Year for “Beautiful, Beautiful”. When she was asked about her dress, she told how it was a last minute purchase due to her other dress not fitting correctly. She shared a little bit about her husband and her son, Eli. She was all smiles and said that the fact that Steven Curtis Chapman was the person who presented her one of her awards was a huge honor to her.

To learn more about Francesca Battistelli, you can go here.

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Thank you so much again for everyone’s support and for this incredible opportunity!