::THE SLICE REPORT WITH MONA AUSTIN

-- James Fortune Leads with Ten Nominations, Followed by Bebe & Cece Winans, Fred Hammond and Marvin Sapp tied with Seven Nominations -- -- Special Honorees Kirk Franklin, Vanessa Bell Armstrong and Donald Lawrence also Announced -- For the first time, nominees for the 26th Annual Stellar Awards were announced in a live telecast from Nashville, TN on October 23 and a fresh voice leads the list. It's a fortunate time for James Fortune and FIYA, the youngest and newest artist among the top Stellar contenders.  Representing an independent label, Black Smoke Music, they received a phenomenal 10 Stellar Award nominations in association with their sophomore album "Encore," the follow-up to the debut CD "Transformation" that yielded the popular "I'll Trust You." Multi-nominated veterans  BeBe and CeCe Winans ("Still"), Fred Hammond ("Love Unstoppable") and Marvin Sapp ("Here I Am"), tied with 7 nominations...

Contestant on Bravo's The Fashion Show appreciates gospel music and fashion Designer Reco Chapple was doubly inspired when he attended The Stellar Awards last week – by the fashion and the music. “ Gospel, it always inspired me to get my juices flowing and get my day going.” Said the Chattanooga, TN native, whose all-time favorite gospel artist is Smokie Norful, Male Volcalist of the Year winner. Chapple also came to the award show to pull a page from the gospel industry fashion book. “I wanted to see what everyone was wearing to give me a new direction on where I want t take my career. In the gospel industry they love glitz, they love glamour, they love being over the top ad that is so much my style,” admits the designer. As the lone African American designer on season 1 of Bravo’s the Fashion Show, Chappele’s “over-the-top” vision of style landed him the honor of fourth place finalist. The Chattanooga, TN resident is the owner of The House of Chapple based in Atlanta. V...

Jireh Communications Group named official producers of first ever gifting suites for silver anniversary of The Stellars It’s not too late to get your company’s product into the bags of Gospel music celebrities (Bristow, VA) Dec. 18, 2009 -- Jireh Communications Group (JCG) has been sanctioned by Central City Productions , the producers of The Stellar Awards to produce the official Beauty, Wellness and Gifting Suites for the 25th annual show, aligning its prestige with Hollywood’s top award shows. Jireh Communications Group is a Virginia-based advertising, marketing and pr company that organizes events and exposes products to the urban faith-based market. In 2009 the company extended its services to include product placement and is honored to bring choice brands to the 25th Annual Stellar Awards. Erma Gray Davis , President and COO of Central City Productions said, "This is a very special year for us and we brought Jireh Communications Group on board to help us celebrate our s...