Franklin Theatre Hosts K-LOVE Nominee Press Conference

At a press conference at The Franklin Theatre, K-LOVE announced the nominees for the third annual K-LOVE Fan Awards Show to take place on May 31, 2015. K-LOVE – the leading Christian music radio network with a weekly listenership of over 14 million people – will once again bring the only fan-voted award show in Christian music history to the Grand Ole Opry House in Music City. The show will be the pinnacle event of the K-LOVE Fan Awards Weekend and Ultimate Fan Experience, which includes tickets to the Awards show, a three-night stay at Opryland, dinner with the K-LOVE staff and friends, a weekend kick-off concert, a late night event, two breakfasts, encouraging speakers, access to the K-LOVE Fan Zone and more.

Among the attendee’s for tonight’s press conference were K-LOVE President and CEO Mike Novak and K-LOVE CCO David Pierce, as well as host Steven Curtis Chapman, Colton Dixon, Francesca Battistelli, Matt Maher, Matthew West, Plumb, Nashville industry and media executives and, for the first time, fans.

Leading the nominations with four each, including an Artist of the Year nomination, were for KING & COUNTRY and Newsboys. Additional nominees for K-LOVE Artist of the Year include Casting Crowns, Chris Tomlin, MercyMe and TobyMac. For the first time, nominees were selected and voted upon completely by fans. Voting for the 2015 K-LOVE Fan Awards will open at Midnight ET on May 1 and will close at Midnight ET on May 30. Nominees for Film/Television Impact, Book Impact and Sports Impact Awards will be announced at a later date.

Additionally, Pierce and K-LOVE Fan Awards co-creator and producer John Sanders introduced special guest Jon Klein, co-founder and CEO of TAPP, to unveil K-LOVE TV. The network, set to launch as a subscription based TV channel this spring, is the first of its kind for the faith-based entertainment industry. TAPP, the brainchild of reality television pioneers Jeff Gaspin and Jon Klein, recently launched the Sarah Palin Channel, Herman Cain Channel, New Life TV and is partnering with K-LOVE and John Sanders LLC to build K-LOVE TV from the ground up.

“We’re excited to provide K-LOVE fans with a gathering place where they can be fully immersed in a community that they love,” said Klein. “The artists they’ll meet and the stories they’ll watch on K-LOVE TV will pull members deeper than ever into the music, message and meaning of the Christian songs and artists they adore. We’ll offer premium content and provide subscribers ongoing opportunities to interact with fellow K-LOVE fans and radio personalities.”

“We are thrilled about K-LOVE TV creating another avenue for fans to connect and go deeper with K-LOVE, their faith and the artists they love,” said Mike Novak, K-LOVE President and CEO.

Steve Curtis Chapman says He was thrilled to host the nomination event and it incredibly  grateful to be nominated again this year.

Co-Host from last year’s event, Matthew West, told us he will not be hosting the show again this year but is so excited to be nominated for Song of the Year.  West will be releasing a new album later this year.

Colton Dixon, former American Idol Season  11 finalist, just returned from the K-LOVE cruise to be a part of the nominee announcement. Dixon tells us he is in awe of being nominated with  others in the industry that he admires.

Here are the list of the 2015 K-LOVE Fan Nominees:

Male Artist of the Year
Chris Tomlin
Colton Dixon
Crowder
Jeremy Camp
Matthew West
Steven Curtis Chapman

Female Artist of the Year
Francesca Battistelli
Jamie Grace
Kari Jobe
Mandisa
Natalie Grant
Plumb

Group/Duo of the Year
Casting Crowns
for KING & COUNTRY
MercyMe
Newsboys
Tenth Avenue North
Third Day

Best Live Show
for KING & COUNTRY
NEEDTOBREATHE
Newsboys
Tenth Avenue North
Third Day
TobyMac

Worship Song of the Year
“Overwhelmed” Big Daddy Weave
“Jesus Loves Me” Chris Tomlin
“Come As You Are” Crowder
“No Other Name” Hillsong Worship
“How Can It Be” Lauren Daigle
“Because He Lives” Matt Maher

Song of the Year
“Hope In Front of Me” Danny Gokey
“Fix My Eyes” for KING & COUNTRY
“He Knows My Name” Francesca Battistelli
“Do Something” Matthew West
“Greater” MercyMe
“We Believe” Newsboys

Artist of the Year
Casting Crowns
Chris Tomlin
for KING & COUNTRY
MercyMe
Newsboys
TobyMac

photo credit:Aaron Crisler for The Media Collective

From L to R: Matthew West, Steven Curtis Chapman, Plumb, John Sanders (K-LOVE Fan Awards Co-Creator and Producer), Jon Klein (TAPP Co-Founder and CEO), Mike Novak (K-LOVE President and CEO), Francesca Battistelli, David Pierce (K-LOVE CCO) and Colton Dixon.