Christian Artist CeCe Winans Makes History as First Black Female Artist of the Year
CeCe Winans is no stranger to awards and accolades. She is a multi-Grammy winning Christian singer, and she is the bestselling female gospel artist of all time.
But on Oct. 18, Winans, 58, who has sold millions of albums during her long and distinguished career, made history by become the first Black female soloist to win Artist of the Year at the Dove Awards.
After earlier winning the award for Song of the Year for the title track to her 2021 album “Believe for It,” her acceptance speech for Artist of the Year was simple: She began singing, “To God Be the Glory, for the things He has done. God bless you and thank you.”
“All I wanted for this record was for it to touch the hearts of people so they would be encouraged and filled with hope; but its success far exceeded all that I could have imagined. To God be the glory!” Winans said in a statement.
Check out what happens in this video at the 14:57 mark:
Winans won Song of the Year for the track she co-wrote with Dwan Hill, Kyle Lee and Mitch Wong.
Winans has won 15 Grammys during her career and has garnered more than two dozens Dove Awards. She won her first Dove Award in 1988, New Artist of the Year, along with her brother, Bebe.
After winning the award for Song of the Year, Winans said: “Praise God, I am totally speechless. Thank you, Jesus. Yes, that Jesus. I really do love this Jesus. And I want to thank everybody in this category; you all have blessed my heart and my soul. It’s just amazing what God is doing, working with these guys, and grabbing songs that touch my heart. I know I’m up here for ‘Believe for It,’ but when we come together and when we love each other and stand for righteousness, it’s amazing what God will do.
“It’s amazing what He has already done, but He wants to do so much more. I am believing for God to move in this industry, greater than He ever has before. Thank you for voting for us, for those who have prayed for us. The God we serve responds to faith. The testimonies I’ve heard through this song have blessed my life. The God of miracles is still working miracles, so keep believing.”
Winans, who co-pastors a non-denominational church in Nashville, Tennessee, Nashville Life Church, is in the midst of a 21-city tour for “Believe for It,” and is set to release her new book, “Believe for It: Passing on Faith to the Next Generation,” on Nov. 15. {eoa}
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Shawn A. Akers is the online editor for Charisma News.
