Hallelujah 95.3 FM nominated for two major gospel awards

By Alexis Thornton
Special to the outlook

So far Hallelujah 95.3 FM has proven it belongs in the running to be considered the best small-market gospel radio station.

The next step could be an appearance on stage that has been graced by the likes of Kirk Franklin, Tasha Cobbs, Kierra Sheard, Michelle Williams, Keke Wyatt and The Clark Sisters. Voting recently concluded for that honor and winners are expected to be announced shortly.  The ceremony is scheduled for July 15 at Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, Nev.

The Tallahassee Black-owned gospel radio station made it to the second round of the Stellar Awards competition, representing the small market regions for a second time. In addition, the station has been nominated for the Tampa Bay Gospel Awards, which will take place on Oct. 7. 

Michael Cork, host of the Hallelujah Morning Show with Mike Cork and Friends, is also nominated for Radio Host of the Year and Photographer of the Year for the Tampa Bay Gospel Awards. 

Stellar Awards competition process is broken into three categories — small market radio station, medium market, and large market. 

Two years ago, Hallelujah 95.3  was nominated for the Stellar Awards. That year it made it to the final stage of the competition with three other stations from around the nation. 

The station’s push to make it to the final round again is being led by Darius Baker, a two time Stellar Awards nominee radio programmer and the founder and Executive Director for Tallahassee Night Live. Baker, who is also CEO of DReel Productions, is producer and program director of Hallelujah 95.3 FM.

The annual radio competition is opened only to members of the Stellar Awards Gospel Music Academy. One of SAGMA’s criteria is each entrant has to prove its community involvement. It also requires a legitimate social media presence. 

“What is different this time compared to two years ago is the amount of change we have made since then with creating an entirely new website, and staying on top of our social media,” Baker said. “We have done a lot of improvement since the last time we were in the running. We moved to another tower, and raised our antenna like up to 250 feet. We have a morning show now with Michael Cork, and so many other improvements regarding the radio station.”

The Tampa Bay Gospel Awards nomination is a first for Cork,  a photographer, videographer and producer.

“We just launched a brand new website that fits a lot of the criteria the Stellar is looking for,” Cork said. “We’ve done a lot of community service projects, helped with book bag giveaways which all enhance the visibility and awareness of the station.”

Cork acknowledged that his role with the station puts him in a position to be more than just host of a show.

“The radio station becomes the voice that the community and people listen to for relevant information whether it’s for fun or for important reasons,” he said. “So it’s having a heart to basically create a product that serves its people and from there everything else all falls into place.” 

This year’s Stellar Awards will be held July 15th, at Orleans Arena in Las Vegas. 

Tickets for this year’s Stellar Awards can be purchased online on several websites, including www.ticketmaster.com.

The Tampa Bay Gospel Music Awards will take place on Oct. 7 in Tampa, Fla., and will be hosted by Dexter Phillips and Kym Jenkins. Tickets can be purchased on www.tampabaygospelawards.com

 Community involvement has a lot to do with the station’s growth, Baker said.

“It does not matter how big or small you are, just take pride in what you do have and make the best of that,” he said. “We didn’t have what we have now in the beginning but we still took care and pride in those stages and where we were. 

“Take pride and care in what you have now and God will bless you with so much more.”