I got a press release today that says that the Gospel Music Channel will add a Southern Gospel show to its weekly programming, starting in 2009. The production crews are at the National Quartet Convention this week, where they’re shooting performances of artists like The Dove Brothers Quartet, The Hoppers, The Kingdom Heirs, Brian Free & Assurance, Gold City, Greater Vision, Isaacs, and Karen Peck & New River.

Understand that I don’t know a whole lot about Southern Gospel, but I can tell you this: when I went to the Gospel Music Channel recently to do some research, the pickin’s were slim – which I found weird and maybe a little bit insulting to the SoGospel industry. I mean, the station is the Gospel Music Channel, right? And historically, we had Southern Gospel long before we had Christian rock and pop, right? But if you to go the “artists” section of the site, the only categories to select from are rock, country, pop, soul. You can look for specific artists, if you know the artists you’re looking for. (There’s not even a category for Gospel!)
Anyway, I think it’s a great that during Gospel Music Heritage Month, the Gospel Music Channel announces that it’s going to start including Southern Gospel music in their line up.