(New York, NY – January 17, 2016) -- Gospel recording artist Latice Crawford receives her first Stellar Gospel Music Awards nomination for Contemporary Female Vocalist of the Year. “I am humbled and honored to receive this nomination,” says Crawford. “Sharing this project has meant so much to me and to know that it has made an impact with my supporters and in the industry is truly encouraging. To God be the Glory.” The 31st Annual Gospel Music Awards will be held at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, NV on Saturday, March 25 th, 2017.

Crawford’s nominated project, Diary of a Church Girl, debuted at No. 15 on Billboard’s Top Gospel Albums chart. Her new single, “Choose Me” is currently at gospel radio. “‘Choose Me’ is a song about our human need and desire to be accepted,” says Crawford. “We live in a society that focuses so much on pointing out flaws, imperfections, and then using them as the basis for declaring each other as not good enough—not good enough to receive love, a job, and even respect. God’s acceptance is just the opposite. There are countless stories of God extending His grace to men and women who didn’t quite fit in and then using them to do magnificent things—Moses, Esther, David, Joseph, and Jesus. God doesn’t call the qualified, he qualifies the called.”

In addition to Crawford’s upcoming appearance at the 31st Stellar Gospel Music Awards Weekend, she will make appearances at the TCM 2017 Empowerment Convention in Atlanta, GA (Friday, March 3); Martin Crosswinds in Washington, DC (Saturday, March 18); Club His-Hop in Las Vegas, NV (Thursday, March 23), and other appearances to be announced in the coming weeks.Crawford’s BET performance will air on Joyful Noiseon Sunday, March 5 at 9:00 a.m. ET/8:00 a.m. CT. She is also a regular contributor for the Huffington Post.

Best known as the second runner-up of Season 2 of BET’s Sunday Best, Crawford presents Diary of a Church Girl as the follow-up to her 2014 debut self-titled album, which entered on four Billboard charts and peaked at No. 12 on the Gospel Albums chart. Diary of a Church Girl is written by Crawford and produced by Bruce Robinson (Alexis Speight, The Showers, Justin Bieber, and Brittany Spears).

It took a few years of hard work, but finally, local Playwright Philly Weeden is reaping the reward. That reward is pretty indeed, as the world is realizing the star talent this brother has. Tonight's showing of his hit stageplay SOULMate is evidence in itself. The venue has sold out, and the audience is eager as ever for a great show.

Starring Taral Hicks, Alvin Frazier, Archie Berwick, Tiffany Allison, and Makeda Grier, the storyline takes you through the lives of two hopeless romantics who by textbook standards should never end up together. Sabrina is like many other high school girls... popular, beautiful, and intelligent, while William is as geeky as they come [picture Steve Urkel]. Despite their differences, they ultimately learn they have much more in common than any would know, and they forge ahead in life as one.

Their lives aren't without demons, however. William has dreamed of a life with wife and kids, and Sabrina wants with every fiber of her being to give him that, but her daunting past has ultimately prevented that. The secret she's kept for so many years has finally caught up with her, and threatens to rip apart the only family she knows! The audience gets to see firsthand how they work through the devastating blows of life to triumph in the end. The story takes you through their lives, from teenagers to their final years. Their true love is evidenced in the way they regularly reminisce about the high school letter that William nervously wrote, pouring his heart and soul out about how he dreamed of life with Sabrina. That very letter surfaces many times throughout the storyline, right down to their final moments together. They were right by each others' side through the worst, and the best times.

To some, this story may be no different than that of other plays and scripts, but SOULMate is amazing not only in the story it tells, but the cast as well. From Sabrina (Taral Hicks) and William (Alvin Frazier) to Sabrina's best friend, her cousin, their uncle Ralph and Pretty Tony, you instantly see the work that each individual has personally invested. The humor is side-splitting at times, and you immediately fall in love with the characters throughout.

To say we're impressed with Philly Weeden is quite the understatement. It's not just with SOULMate. It's his entire life story, and the triumph he's made in pursuing his love. This story, sided with all the other amazing scripts he's produced and delivered to the world, has been perfected in every way possible. We're thrilled to have had the opportunity to witness the magic of everyone involved, and know that this is just the beginning of his life lighting of the universe.

Catch the next showing of SOULMate February 25 in Atlanta, Ga! We're thrilled to say we'll definitely be there cheering this crew on!

Also, for more on Philly Weeden, catch a video playback of our recent conversation with Philly Weeden at www.urbancityradiostation.com, and a new cover story in the latest edition of Cleveland's Triumph Magazine.

[NEWS] Gospel Recording Artist @LaticeCrawford Receives Her First Stellar Gospel Music Award Nomination for Contemporary Female Vocalist of the Year...

[THE STAGE] SOULMate: A True Love Story (Review)