Stellar Awards Place Charlotte’s Gospel Scene in the Spotlight

Charlotte is one of nine American municipalities that has been dubbed the City of Churches. A 2015 Business Insider article ranked our city eighth in total number of religious institutions per capita while finding that 83% of local residents are religiously affiliated.

With numbers like that, it’s a wonder the Stellar Gospel Music Awards took so long to come to the Queen City. The premier faith-based awards show is scheduled to take place at the Spectrum Center in Uptown on Aug. 15. Marking its 41st annual celebration in 2026, this will be the show’s first time in Charlotte.

It’s not just the big show, however, as there are dozens of related events taking place over the second week in August. The official Stellar-sponsored events are billed as Stellar Plus Week from Aug. 12-14, including concerts, masterclasses, comedy and interactive experiences.

Then with all the promoters planning ancillary happenings around the major event, you can think of the Stellar Awards as the Grammys of gospel mixed with CIAA Fan Fest.

Charlotte’s gospel ecosystem has been poised for this stand-out moment for years. That’s why Melanie Pratt has been lobbying Stellar Awards organizers to come to the Queen City.

Pratt has been tied in with Charlotte’s religious music community since her arrival in 1994. She started out singing in the choir for Pastor John P. Kee at the New Life Fellowship Center, later launching a gospel music website called Gospel Flava.

Gospel Flava became the go-to site for artists and record labels of the genre before social media took hold and gave people the platform to tell their own stories, Pratt said.

Pratt moved on to gospel radio, working at Praise Charlotte 100.9, where she earned three Stellar Award nominations for Gospel Announcer of the Year and was awarded Stellar Woman of Gospel for her behind-the-scenes contributions to the gospel industry.

Pratt’s extensive experience in the national gospel scene made her a great fit for the Stellar Wards steering committee, which gave her a chance to truly push for her home city.

“I said, ‘You guys should consider Charlotte,’ so they were working on it as well, then some things converged,” Pratt told Queen City Nerve.

Charlotte City Council District 2 rep Malcolm Graham also played a role in connecting city staff with the team at the Stellar Awards in the lead-up to the public announcement at a press conference in March.

The Charlotte Regional Visitor’s Authority committed $200,000 to the show while the county contributed $100,000. The state pledged $995,000 from its Major Events, Games & Attractions Fund.

“Bringing the Stellar Awards here is not only a natural fit, but it allows us to expand the reach and impact of gospel music in a city that embraces both tradition and innovation,” said Stellar Awards founder Don Jackson at the time. “Charlotte’s faith community and vibrant culture make it an ideal host for this celebration of gospel music.”

Since then, gospel fans in Charlotte and around the country have shown why the move to the Queen City made the right fit. At the Sarah Stevenson Tuesday Forum on June 30, Stellar Awards founder Don Jackson said about three-quarters of the roughly 12,000 tickets had already been sold, as reported by QCity Metro.

Pratt said past Stellar Awards have been held in venues with around 4,000 available seats.

“So, this was a bigger undertaking than usual for the show,” she explained.

As part of Stellar Plus, which begins on Aug. 12 and includes unplugged performances, a songwriters’ symposium, a fitness zone, a vendor marketplace and more, the Stellar Awards Pre-Show and Gospel Radio Awards will take place on Aug. 14 at the Carolina Theatre, featuring performances and awards that won’t make the televised awards show the following night.

PJ Morton arrives in town just in time for the Stellar Awards

Promoters and bookers have worked to bring some of the country’s most elite gospel performers to their venues during the week of the Stellar Awards. Grammy and Stellar Award-winning artist PJ Morton made sure to book a stop on his Saturday Night, Sunday Morning Tour in Charlotte during the week of the event. He’ll perform at Carolina Theatre on Aug. 12.

This year’s Stellar Awards theme is “Feels Like Home” and, for Morton, the Stellar Awards are home. Even with six Grammys on his resume, the Stellar Awards hold a special place in his heart.

“The importance for me, and the significance of the Stellar Awards, which I think I have two now, is it being my very first award ever,” he told Queen City Nerve. “I was just a kid amongst these great songwriters. And I was able to win.”

He took home Song of the Year honors for “Let Go, Let God” with Dwayne Woods at the 23rd annual awards ceremony in Nashville in 2008.

“And, you know, for me, that was like really some validation,” he recalled. “For me, that let me know I was on the right path and that I did have a gift.”

Though Morton’s roots are in gospel music, he has ventured deeply into R&B, or as he calls it, “Saturday night music.”

He has worked with the likes of Stevie Wonder, Erykah Badu, Nas, Lil Wayne, JoJo, Jill Scott, Jazmine Sullivan, Made Kuti, Tasha Cobbs Leonard, Darrel Walls, and gospel legend Kirk Franklin, who will host this year’s awards.

Morton has also had a role in Maroon 5 since 2010, becoming a full-time keyboardist with the band in 2012.
Morton said that, with eight albums under his belt, he was searching for a new challenge when he recorded Saturday Night, Sunday Morning, which dropped in June.

“I just didn’t want to put something out for the sake of putting it out this time, or just because it’s time for a new album,” he explained. “I wanted it to be a real reason and a real challenge, and I want it to be inspired to do it.”

The idea for a half-R&B and half-gospel album struck him as just the type of project he wanted to take on. Having met that challenge, he’s now focused on creating just the right vibe for a show that’s the perfect hybrid of the two genres.

“I’m trying to create an atmosphere that takes you away from whatever you were going through before you walked into the building,” he said. “We’re resetting it. And then for this hour to 90 minutes to whatever, we’re escaping and connecting.”

There will be a little bit of soul music and a little bit of soul revival all at the same time. The show appeals to both the faith-based crowd and secular crowd, he explained.

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“You know, that’s what Saturday Night, Sunday Morning is,” he continued. “It’s like that Saturday night was to decompress. That Sunday morning was to recharge for this week that was coming. And so that’s kind of what I want my shows to do.”

It will fit right in with a Stellar week for gospel music in Charlotte’s, one that will see the spotlight shining on a scene that’s been quietly growing into an uplifting powerhouse.

Learn more and find tickets for the 41st Stellar Gospel Music Awards at the official website.