Fun Clip Friday - Kelly Bowling in Virtuous

Kelly Bowling has become the latest Southern Gospel artist to star in a movie. She will be in the movie Virtuous as Nurse Kathy. IMDB.com describes the movie as "a modern day version of Proverbs 31. It's the story of a Hollywood starlet, a soldier on the battlefield, the successful businesswoman, and the housekeeping and cooking skills of dear old Mom."

So for today's Fun Clip Friday, check out a sneak peek of the movie Virtuous.



Sneak Peek VIRTUOUS from Bill Rahn on Vimeo.

Todd Suttles Announced as New Member of the Gaither Vocal Band

Gaither Music issued an announcement this afternoon that Todd Suttles will officially join the group as the baritone. He has been at Vanderbilt University where he served as a sports fitness director as well as youth program director. He will continue there when he is not traveling with the vocal band.

Todd's name had been circulating for some time with him filling in during recent weeks. From the clips I've seen, I think it will be a great fit.

Here's more from Gaither's release -

Todd has sung with the Settles Connection and can be heard in the background vocals on numerous recordings with artists whom you know and love. He comes highly recommended by fellow artists, university faculty, and many others who have had the privilege of working with him.

“First of all, I want to thank Mark Lowry and Michael English for giving us some really wonderful years and incredible recordings that will live on in gospel music history,” Bill states. “We knew when they left, we had big shoes to fill and, as I have said before, you never truly replace anyone. You have to create something new and unique. I have been putting voices together for a long, long time and never before have we considered more possibilities or auditioned so many incredible singers than we have during the past few months. This decision came down to finding a vocal range and texture that would offer just the right balance to the current mix of voices in the group. I could not be happier with this decision. Not only do we love the rich tones in Todd’s voice, he also happens to be a wonderful human being to be around. So not only have we gained a talented individual, we have gained a new friend. And very soon, I believe you will agree. Trust me. This is going to be good!”

Here's a full link to the announcement including a behind-the-scenes video of the vocal band - http://gaither.com/news/new-era-begins-gaither-vocal-band

Transformation Tuesday - Scotty Inman

It's another Transformation Tuesday post. I like spotlighting some of the younger singers in the genre to see how much they have changed and grown during their time singing. Today, let's look at Scotty Inman. He got his start with Poet Voices in 2001. In 2002, he was named the Singing News Horizon Individual. Here's a look at him with Poet Voices from 2002.




He is joined Triumphant Quartet later in 2002 alongside his dad where he has stayed. In 2007, he was awarded the Fan Favorite Young Artist. He's not only received acclaim for his vocal ability but also recently he's been recognized for his songwriting ability. He's written songs not only for Triumphant Quartet but also the Inspirations and most recently Mark Trammell Quartet. Here's a look at Scotty now from a recent Triumphant Quartet concert.

Women's Conference with Lauren Talley Alvey

Saturday I had the chance to attend a women's conference I had been looking forward to for some time. Last summer when I saw the Talleys, Lauren mentioned that they were trying to schedule her for a women's conference next year in Fordyce. The event was scheduled for Feb. 15, and it was marked on my calendar.

I really had not planned on blogging about it, just wanting to enjoy the day, the music and the seminars. But it was so good, I feel like it would be an injustice not to mention it. A couple of local groups (New Reason and the Peters Family) from the church and Fordyce sang as well as Lauren. All the music was great. It was good to hear Lauren sing songs you don't normally hear during a Talleys concert.

She led two different seminars, and both were equally great, encouraging and challenging. In the afternoon, she shared more of her personal testimony. She shared from her book Songs in the Night, which if you don't have I highly recommend. I have the tendency when something is not right to put on the brave front that everything is ok, so others don't see the struggles. So I really admire when someone can go on stage tell you where they've been and how God delivered them and use the testimony to help others. Lauren was just so real and opened up about her journey.

Saturday was great, and if you or your church is considering hosting a women's event, you should definitely consider having Lauren. You won't be disappointed.

Fun Clip Friday - Valentine's Day with Jeff and Sheri Easter

One of the cutest married couples in Southern Gospel music has to be Jeff and Sheri Easter. Every project they record contains a love song. Just for Valentine's Day, today's Fun Clip Friday features one of their love song duets. Enjoy -