The jury of the Shine Gospel Awards 2024 rewarded, on December 6, a dozen artists based on as many categories from the world of music – artists, musical works and actors behind the scenes of gospel production. The celebration took place at the sumptuous Cité royale in Paris, where thousands of spectators followed the rhythm of this festive evening.
Gospel in turmoil
To name just a few, Sandra Kouame and Dan Luiten won the Worship of the Year award for the song “You Keep Your Promises,” focused on trust in God. Singer-songwriter Dena Mwana (“An Army,” “Never Without Him”) won the Shine Gospel Award for female artist of the year and NK Divine won the award for male artist. Sébastien Corn (“Everything is new”) was named composer of the year and Sandra Mbuyi won the single of the year trophy. The International Artist Award went to Maverick City. Finally, the Honorary Shine was awarded to Maggie Blanchard (“Liberated”, “When I Look at Your Holiness”) (photo).
Among the musical collectives, the prize for clip of the year went to the Ecole Pierre for the song “Guérir”, in which the journey of a broken-hearted man who ends up finding his consolation in God is outlined. The Hillsong FR collective won the prize for music group of the year.
“Gospel is not simply a human celebration”
The team recalls, in the press kit for this second edition, the vision of this event dedicated to the promotion of French-speaking urban gospel: “Gospel is not simply a human celebration, but a true adoration addressed to God, carried by artists described as “lights of the world”. […] The Shine Gospel Awards are not just a ceremony: they are a powerful vector of salvation for those who long to know God. The organizers add that it is a musical genre “in full expansion, but which remains marginalized on the French scene”.
The first ceremony of this award ceremony took place in 2023 with more than 3,000 spectators. Excerpts from the artists’ 2024 performances as well as some of their comments are available on the Shine Gospel Awards Instagram account.
