The National Urban League and The Super Bowl Gospel Celebration, which is the first and only inspirational concert sanctioned by the National Football League (NFL) and lead by Atlanta Native Melanie Few; are collaborating to present THE BLEND: GA SENATE SEAT EDITION; a holiday feel-good virtual give back event for the nation promoting voter engagement in preparation for the January 5th, 2021 Senate seat run-off elections in Georgia.
Co-hosted by award-winning radio personality Rickey Smiley and GRAMMY winner Erica Campbell, THE BLEND: GA SENATE SEAT EDITION is an inspirational, fun, uplifting, motivational, living room-style PRAISE PARTY mixing old school and new school Gospel Music with appropriate R&B and Hip-Hop music – with sounds by DJ DEX (“Sirius XM”). This edition will promote voter engagement for the very important senate race in Georgia. Viewers will be encouraged by Marc H. Morial, April Ryan, Jermaine Dupri, Sonja Norwood, Kierra Sheard, Isaac Carree, Bri Babineaux, JJ Hairston, Kelontae Gavin, Travis Greene and more.
THE BLEND: GA SENATE SEAT EDITION will broadcast virtually on the Facebook pages of The National Urban League and Super Bowl Gospel Celebration on Sunday, December 27th at 7/6c.
Returning to BET Networks for the sixth consecutive year on February 2, 2019 is the 20th Annual Super Bowl Gospel Celebration! This year’s celebration is hosted by national radio and TV personality Rickey Smiley and singer and TV personality Adrienne Bailon Houghton. The annual NFL-Sanctioned event, which took place during Super Bowl LIII week (and which I was able to attend 🙂 ), will air on BET Saturday, February 2, 2019 at 8PM ET/PT!
The one-hour special features performances by Kirk Franklin, Tasha Cobbs Leonard, The Winans, Lecrae, Hezekiah Walker, Tamia, Koryn Hawthorne, and the Super Bowl GospelNFL Players Choir. The special also includes appearances by Cam Newton and NeNe Leakes and honors Denver Broncos linebacker Von Miller with the annual “Faith in Action” Award for his work with his charity Von’s Vision.
Below are a few pictures of what I saw last night and what you will see when you watch tomorrow!
From the Red Carpet:
Kirk and Tammy Franklin…
The Winans and Deborah Joy Winans…
Deborah Joy Winans and her husband Terrence Williams…
Grant Hill & Tamia…
Tasha Cobbs Leonard…
Koryn Hawthorne…
Lecrae…
Gregg & Nene Leakes…
Hezekiah Walker…
Cam Newton…
Melanie Few, founder and executive producer of the Super Bowl Gospel Celebration…
From the Celebration:
Co-Hosts Rickey Smiley and Adrienne Bailon Houghton…
the NFL Players Choir…
Tamia along with The Winans as Rickey & Adrienne clown…
Von Miller…
To see more from the celebration, you have to tune in to BET Saturday, February 2, 2019 at 8PM ET/PT!
Brett Daniels (Atlanta Super Bowl Host Committee), Pamela Taylor (SBGC), Bryan Scott (NFL Players Choir), Cameron Newton (NFL Players Choir), Melanie Few-Harrison (SBGC), Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, Rickey Smiley (National Radio/TV Personality), Arthur McAfee (NFL), Tim Davies (Radio One), Olrick Johnson (NFL Players Choir) and Terrence Stephens (NFL Players Choir) attend the Super Bowl Gospel Celebration Press Conference at Atlanta City Hall on January 9, 2019 [credit: Marcus Ingram/Super Bowl Gospel]
Hello World,
Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms officially welcomed the 20th Annual Super Bowl Gospel Celebration (SBGC) to Atlanta during a press conference at City Hall with officials from the NFL, the Atlanta Super Bowl Host Committee, Boys & Girls Club of America and Radio One in attendance.
Rickey Smiley
Returning to Atlanta for its 20th anniversary, the concert will be taped in front of a live audience on Thursday, January 31, 2019 at Atlanta Symphony Hall during Super Bowl LIII week. National radio and tv personality Rickey Smiley is set to co-host the show, which will feature performances by Kirk Franklin, Tasha Cobbs Leonard, The Winans and the Super Bowl GospelNFL Players Choir. More talent will be announced.
The Super Bowl Gospel Celebration special will premiere exclusively on BET Networks on Saturday, February 2, 2019 at 8:00PM ET.
“Atlanta is proud to host the 20th anniversary Super Bowl Gospel Celebration,” said Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms. “As a beacon of Southern hospitality and the cradle of the civil rights movement in America, Atlanta is excited to showcase the greatest talents in gospel music on the stage of Atlanta Symphony Hall. We look forward to sharing this memorable concert experience through the telecast on BET Networks.”
Melanie Few-Harrison
“I can think of no better place to host our 20th Super Bowl Gospel Celebration than in my hometown of Atlanta,” says Melanie Few-Harrison, NFL Sanctioned Holder,Creator & Executive Producer of the Super Bowl Gospel Celebration and daughter of a minister. “Atlanta’s vibrant music scene, rich culture and diverse community are the perfect backdrop for Super Bowl 53 and all of our incredible artists will inspire audiences, touch lives and put on a show the city will never forget!”
“We are proud to have The Super Bowl Gospel Celebration as a sanctioned event partner with the NFL and we celebrate this 20-year milestone!” said Arthur McAfee, NFL, Senior Vice President of Player Engagement. “The Super Bowl Gospel Celebration is a favorite with the players and one of the best attended and most talked about events during the Super Bowl weekend year after year. We look forward to continuing to build this relationship with the Super Bowl Gospel Celebration as it continues to grow.”
“On behalf of BET Networks, we are beyond excited to partner with Melanie Few and the Super Bowl Gospel Celebration team for the 6th year in a row to bring the special to our loyal BET audience and gospel fans around the world,” said Connie Orlando, Head of Programming for BET Networks. “We congratulate Melanie and team on the 20th Anniversary of Super Bowl Gospel Celebration and for bringing this inspiring and uplifting event to her hometown of Atlanta, GA. Each year we have continued to see the growth of the special, drawing in thousands of fans in each city – from Minnesota to Houston to Arizona – and we are proud to have been there every step of the way! We look forward to continuing our partnership with another successful Super Bowl Gospel Celebration.”
Mayor Bottoms with members of the NFL Players Choir — (l-r) Terrence Stephens, Olrick Johnson, Bryan Scott and Cameron Scott.
Originating at Super Bowl XXXIII in 1999, the annual event joins together key NFL Players, top Gospel/Contemporary Christian and mainstream GRAMMY® Award-winning artists and special guests all on one stage to bring audiences an evening of uplifting music and inspirational messages.
By far, the largest multicultural event to take place during Super Bowl weekend in its 20-year run as an NFL-sanctioned event, SBGC has featured artists including Patti LaBelle, Yolanda Adams, Gladys Knight, Natalie Grant, Mary Mary, Fantasia, Donnie McClurkin, Anthony Hamilton, among many others.
Check out a video of members of the NFL Players Choir below:
