‘Carry Me’ Carried Kevin Downswell to a Triple Sweep at the 2021 Sterling Gospel Music Awards

[Kingston, Jamaica]  – Sterling Gospel Music Awards (S.G.M.A) soars even higher amidst the pandemic, having this year recorded over 30 thousand votes in its People’s Choice categories, from gospel fans across Jamaica, the Caribbean, United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Africa, among other regions.

While the pandemic for the second year in a row, clipped the wings on the physical staging of the Awards, the organizers bulldozered through the challenges, to host the second edition of a Virtual Winners’ Reveal for the fifth staging. The show was aired via Television Jamaica (TVJ) and on the station’s online platforms last Sunday evening (July 11).

Kevin Downswell

Gospel Recording Artiste/ Producer and top 2021 Sterling Awardee, Kevin Downswell, made a giant comeback from 2018 to cop four Sterling awards at this year’s reveal showcasing. He won three awards for the song Carry Me in the categories for Local Hit of the Year, Local Hit Producer of the Year and Video of the Year; while his virtual series, Conversations with Kevin Downswell, won the award for best Virtual Series of the Year.

Reflecting on his inspiration behind Carry Me and why he believed the song resonated so well with local and international Sterling voters, Downswell said:

“From ever since, whenever I get a song, I get everything… I get baseline, keyboard, everything; but you have to have the right people around you to help bring to pass what you can’t do by yourself. I might be the vessel that the Lord chose to release this song, Carry Me, but I quickly recognized that this song did not belong to me alone, it belonged to everybody”.

Orville Sutherland

The Mac 11 singer, Orville Sutherland, who is a first-time Sterling winner lit up the scene, having led the nominations, contending in seven categories, walked away with two awards: Male Artiste of the Year and E.P of the Year.

Ava-Gay Blair

Ava-Gay Blair is also a top awardee, who for the second year in a row won the award for Most Rated Radio Programme of the Year with the Gospel Light Show which is a featured programme on Gospel JA F.M. She was also named Gospel Personality of the Year.

Shanessa Grant

Another consecutive winner, Shanessa Grant, nabbed the award for Virtual Event of the Year with her Surrender Worship Experience event. The same event, last year, topped the category for Most Rated Event of the Year.

Hector Wheeler

Special honour was given to Hector Wheeler, a gospel industry pioneer and longstanding media practitioner, for his immense contribution to the gospel media landscape, since 1979. Wheeler was presented with the 2021 Sterling Award for Excellence on the basis of him paving the way during a time when gospel programmes on television and radio were not sought after nor seen as valuable to the stations.

Wheeler made an indelible mark in media with his programmes, Gospel Goodies on JBC radio and the Break of Day show on JBC television. Wheeler’s advocacy for gospel opened the doors for several gospel programmes in the media. And through his own ministry, Hector Wheeler is credited with having a golden hand in the growth of several artiste careers and gospel events.

Among the 2021 Sterling winners in other categories are:

• Latoya HD for her album, Your Way, which copped Album of the Year
• Female Artiste of the Year was Marvia Providence
• The Foster Triplets took the Group of the Year award
• The song, Jesus Junkie by Wayne Stoddart feat. Marion Hall won Collab of the Year
• Caribbean Artiste of the Year went to Blessed Messenger
• International Artiste of the Year award went to Tasha Cobbs-Leonard;
• The Jamerican Gospel Show with Danville Howell snatched the award for Online Radio Programme of the Year

S.G.M.A for the first time ever, recorded a high of ten first time winners which includes notable figures, like Marion Hall, Tasha Cobbs-Leonard, Marvia Providence, Blessed Messenger, among others.

The Sterling Gospel Music Awards has been dubbed “…the Caribbean’s premiere awards ceremony for the Gospel music industry…” and “… a vehicle for culture preservation in Jamaica.” Endorsed by the Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, the annual ceremony remains the only of its kind in Jamaica and has received global recognition from media and international artistes from around the world.