Kick your praise into high gear as the Super Bowl Gospel Celebration kicks off Super Weekend

Kick your praise into high gear as the Super Bowl Gospel Celebration kicks off Super Weekend

The highly-anticipated 23rd Annual Super Bowl Gospel Celebration returns to television with faith, family and football during the biggest weekend in sports! Premiering with a brand new trio of distribution partners, Super Bowl Gospel Celebration is simulcast on Saturday, February 12 at 8pm ET/7pm CT on Bounce TV and for the very first time will stream on Prime Video and on IMDb TV, both without need of a Prime membership.

The debut telecast will be followed by an encore on ION Sunday, February 13 at 12am ET/11pm CT, and will continue to be available to stream in front of the paywall on Prime Video and on IMDb TV throughout February in celebration of Black History Month.

Themed “Catch the Light,” the groundbreaking praise and worship extravaganza is an annual highlight of Super Bowl weekend, hosted this season by inspirational figure Sarah Jakes Roberts and funnyman DC Young Fly. This unique annual praise fest highlights NFL players and their faith, with uplifting songs of joy and shout-worthy, never-before-seen performances and mashups. Viewers are offered a rare glimpse into the spiritual lives of their favorite NFL players, as well as what inspires them to greatness each day. The hour-long show was taped in Los Angeles, Atlanta and Dallas as a concession to the still ongoing COVID pandemic.

“This 23-year journey with the Super Bowl Gospel Celebration is a testament to how faith can grow the seed of a dream into a reality far greater than any plan we might have set out to achieve. Despite every obstacle placed in our path, our faith in this vision has been rewarded with this anointed production that has touched the lives of so many.”

Melanie Few, Founder and Executive Producer

Super Bowl Gospel Celebration is making a special presentation to the 2022 Lifetime of Inspiration Award recipient Deion “Coach Prime” Sanders, sponsored by Amazon’s Black Business Accelerator. The current head coach for Jackson State University’s football team, two-time Super Bowl champion, Pro Football Hall of Famer, and Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year is being honored for his commitment to bringing more visibility to HBCU sports franchises, and reinvigorating HBCU sports into high-profile must watch events. Coach Prime is one of only four NFL Players to ever receive this prestigious award.

“As we approach our 23rd anniversary, I am so very thankful for the support and partnership of the National Football League. I am also excited for the amazing partners that have joined forces to help elevate this brand. It is truly a privilege to honor Coach Prime as I have followed him his entire career and watched him be a light to others, both on and off the field,” added Few, the only woman and person of color that produces an NFL sanctioned event during Super Bowl week.

“Super Bowl Gospel provides an opportunity for our players to celebrate their faith,” said Arthur McAfee, the NFL’s senior vice president for player engagement. “A large number of our players are of faith, and they celebrate that faith many ways during the course of the game and throughout the season. You may see them take a knee and pray, either prior to or after the game. This is one of the natural connections we have to help players elevate their platform.”

This year’s production features a roster of anointed performances including a Gospel medley from multiple Grammy Award winner CeCe Winans; a duet between Pastor Mike, Jr. and multi-talented entertainer CeeLo Green; Mali Music joining singer/actress Chloe in a heartfelt collaboration to salute individuals impacted by cancer; singer/songwriter Natalie Grant; and a cypher led by two-time Grammy-winning Christian rapper Lecrae.

Songstress Regina Belle is joining the famed NFL Players Choir for an inspiring song selection closing out the show. Other slated guest appearances include Seattle Seahawks Quarterback – Russell Wilson,
Cleveland Browns Defensive End – Myles Garrett, New Orleans Saints Defensive End – Cam Jordan, Minnesota Vikings Quarterback – Kirk Cousins, Buffalo Bills Wide Receiver – Stefon Diggs, Kansas City Chiefs Tight End – Travis Kelce, New England Patriots Linebacker and Defensive Player of the Year contender – Matt Judon.

The Black Women’s Health Imperative, the first and only national non-profit focused on the health and wellness of Black women and girls, will present a special recognition to retired Carolina Panthers running back DeAngelo Williams for his contributions to driving life-saving cancer screenings through his nonprofit, The DeAngelo Williams Foundation.

The Super Bowl Gospel Celebration continues its decades long run as the only sanctioned gospel event and will be available to stream on Prime Video in the U.S., Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand, and on IMDb TV in the U.S. and the U.K. Super Bowl Gospel Celebration (SBGC) was originally founded and executive produced in 1999 as a gospel brunch in Miami by Atlanta-based marketing consultant Melanie Few and continues as the only multicultural program and inspirational event sanctioned by the NFL during Super Bowl weekend. The evening brings together an ensemble of NFL players, gospel/contemporary Christian performers, award-winning musicians spanning all genres, and faith-based leaders on one stage for a spectacular show filled with song, prayer, hope and uplifting messages.

Past SBGC shows have featured performers such as Yolanda Adams, Kirk Franklin, Snoop Dogg, Pharrell Williams, Koryn Hawthorne, Patti Labelle, Erica Campbell, Gladys Knight, Fantasia, Donnie McClurkin, and Anthony Hamilton among others.

This year’s Super Bowl Gospel Celebration is sponsored by NFL Player Engagement, Black Women’s Health Imperative, United Airlines, Juice Plus+, Amazon’s Black Business Accelerator, and Compassion International. For more information, visit superbowlgospel.com and join the social conversation using

#SuperBowlGospel and #CatchTheLight.

Broadcast Airing – Multi-Network:
● Premiere – Saturday, February 12 on Bounce TV at 8 pm ET/7pm CT
● Encore airing – Saturday, February 12 on Bounce TV at 9 pm ET/8pm CT
● Encore airing – Sunday, February 13 on ION at 12 am ET/11 pm CT
● Encore airing – Sunday, February 13 on Bounce TV – (2) timeslots – 10 am ET/9am CT and 11 am ET/10am CT Streaming – Prime Video
● Premiere – Saturday, February 12, 2022
● Video On-Demand – All of February 2022 as Black History Month Spotlight

Mali Music returns to a gospel music roster in a partnership with RCA Inspiration

Mali Music returns to a gospel music roster in a partnership with RCA Inspiration

Mali Music Performs at Megafest in Dallas ©2013 SoulProsper Media Group

Remember when Mali Music “left” gospel music? Many of us thought he was never coming back, but his message never changed though he was an R&B artist. His last album “Mali Is” featured a bevy of songs that never quite deviated to “secular” though his opportunities and notoriety certainly did.

Gospel music listeners were disappointed that he left the scene but because Mali was more of an enigma than artists, his baffling exit at what many perceived to be his breaking through kept them curious. How curious? So curious that his music has found a way into our cars, onto our streaming platforms and into their personal libraries, regardless of the imprint on which it was released. 

“It’s Been a Long Time…”

On the 2000 release “Try Again” by Aaliyah, super producer Timbaland said: “it’s been a long time, we shouldn’t have left you without a dope beat to step to…” and two artists come to mind in gospel music when I hear this. Tonex/B-Slade and Mali Music. Both of them left gospel music due to their frustration with the genre and have given premium art to other genres. B-Slade continues to produce gospel and secular artists and displayed his iconic brilliance on Snoop Dogg’s “Bible of Love” (also released on RCA Inspiration). With Mali Music’s return to gospel music, hopefully his qualms about the gospel industry and the plateau he bemoaned years ago are a thing of the past. For B-Slade, a prolific preacher and performer, the door remains propped open for the prodigal who was more than excited to share what little he could in an interview with The SMG Report on the red carpet at the Stellar Awards in 2017.


Mali Music was also featured on “Bible of Love” and his song “New Wave” was another slept on deep cut.


Today, Billboard released an exclusive interview with the artist detailing his return to a gospel music roster, RCA Inspiration. According to Billboard, Mali will record via a partnership between RCAI and his imprint, K Approved Enterprises. The first single from the partnership is “Let Go” which video premieres today (January 30) and releases on tomorrow! 

Though he never quite left gospel music or the message, it’s quite fair to say that Mali Music has expanded his audience. The music somewhat exclusively endeared to believers had gone mainstream. Seeing Mali Music on the red carpet in the conversation for leading GRAMMY nominations created more questions than they answered. Surprisingly, Mali successfully packaged clean wholesome messages in secular products.

This happened mainly because he was the same artist, in a different space. He was as musical and thought provoking on songs like “Beautiful“, “Heavy Love“, “Fight For You“, and “The Transition of Mali” as he was on songs like “I Hate You” and his ever popular “Yahweh“. Understandably, not everyone will be ready to embrace a return to gospel music, but it’s Mali Music…it shouldn’t be hard to let go of any hard feelings! Here’s to new great music from Mali! 

The SMG Report