by Logan Butts | Oct 3, 2014 | News Slider
In less than a week, the 45th annual Dove Awards will be taking place in Allen Arena. With Lumination’s final installment of our Dove Awards preview series, I will be breaking down the Best Artist category. This year’s nominees for Best Artist are: Casting Crowns 2 Hillsong United 5 Lecrae 4 Mandisa 5 NEEDTOBREATHE 3 Switchfoot 4 The lineup is full of heavy hitters in the world of Christian music. All of the artists up for this award earned nominations in multiple categories. The Casting Crowns notched two nominations, NEEDTOBREATHE earned three, Switchfoot and Lecrae received four each and Mandisa and Hillsong United lead the pack with five. Hillsong United have to be considered the favorite in this category. Their smash hit “Oceans (Where Feet May Fail)” earned nominations in the categories of Song of the Year, Worship Song of the Year, Contemporary Christian Performance of the Year and Pop/Contemporary Song of the Year, and it is the favorite to take home most of them. “Oceans” and the band in general have been everywhere this year, so I would not be surprised if they ended up going home with a wheelbarrow full of trophies. Switchfoot, NEEDTOBREATHE and Casting Crowns are always formidable foes when it comes to Chrsitian music awards, but I do not think they can stop the momentum Hillsong has built up. Mandisa is another strong opponent. Her song “Overcomer” was nominated for four awards as well. Keep her in mind as a potential dark horse candidate if she begins to pick up awards throughout the show. However, I think the true threat to Hillsong’s night of...
by Erin Turner | Sep 29, 2014 | News Slider, Opinion
For the second year in a row, Lipscomb is hosting the 45th Annual Dove Awards. On Tuesday, Oct. 7, the title for New Artist of the Year will be given to one of five artists. The nominees are as follows: 1 Girl Nation Andy Mineo Ellie Holcomb Hillsong Young & Free Love & The Outcome Andy Mineo seems to be a popular artist as he offers a different sound for those who listen to Christian music. Mineo’s popularity is distinct, as he has two songs nominated for Rap/Hip Hop Song of the Year — “Stop The Traffic” and “You Can’t Stop Me.” Mineo’s album Never Land is also nominated for Rap/Hip Hop Album of the Year. Hillsong Young and Free, not to be confused with Hillsong United, has become popular for the younger crowd. Their song “Alive” has been nominated for Pop/Contemporary Song of the Year. In addition, their album We Are Young & Free has been nominated for Pop/Contemporary Album of the Year and Praise and Worship Album of the Year. Contrary to the upbeat sounds of Andy Mineo and Hillsong Young and Free, Ellie Holcomb offers a more folk, singer-songwriter sound. Holcomb’s album As Sure As The Sun was nominated for Pop/Contemporary Album of the Year. Although she is not nominated for as many categories as the other artists listed, I think she could easily take away New Artist of the Year. Holcomb’s sound resonates more with me, and I would guess it does for many other college students as well. As I listen to her music, I imagine myself sitting in a coffee shop studying or fellowshipping with friends. Her...
