[jitterbug13]

Sorry for the delay. Computer problems this week.

Live Strong

They don't call Vickie Winans the "Hardest Working Woman in Gospel" for nothing. The 52-year-old, Detroit-bred singer just released her newest CD, 'Woman to Woman: Songs of Life,' which came in at No. 1 on Billboard's Gospel Chart and cracked Billboard's Top 200 chart at number 87. "I ain't going to stop working until I sell a million copies of this album. Then I can go somewhere and sit down," Winans told me following her in-store appearance at a Wal-Mart in Detroit.

Fans were lined up a block and a half long, hoping to get a signed copy of the CD and see Winans perform. "Everybody in the Wal-Mart was crying. They were shouting in the Wal-Mart. They took off and was running into the shirts. I thought they were going to put us out of there. The Wal-Mart people were like, 'Oh, our shirts,'" laughed Winans. "But I was telling those people what I had been through and they were like, 'My God, if she can make it, I can too!'"

What Winans has been through is conveyed through music on 'Woman to Woman.' The two-CD set is a compilation of new songs and covers of songs that helped her cope with the various crises in her own life. It features appearances by Winans' sons Marvin Winans Jr. and Bad Boy recording artist Mario Winans. "I've been through everything. I'mma tell you, I tell people I've been evicted, convicted, depressed, possessed and repossessed. I lost my baby girl; she died. My daddy died instantly after leaving my house on Christmas day. I've been divorced. I've been sick. I've been down to 99 pounds while sick and almost at death. I've been broke. I've been fat. What else can you go through?"

Winans said that it was during those low points in life that she promised God she'd record an album that would encourage women in the areas that were difficult for her. "At those times, I was using songs to soothe the things that were hurting me. I promised that one of these days, I was going to make a record, and I am going to think about all the things that ever happened to me and I am going sing until I get it all out. I have been thinking about doing it for 10 years," she said.

Music and the support of her mother Mattie A. Bowman is what kept Winans from her breaking point. She said she doesn't know where she would be now if her mother had not stayed by her side. "My mom was the reason why I didn't' go into total depression about being sick and almost dying. I would lay in the bed for day in and day out. I didn't want to get up, and I didn't want to take a shower. I just wanted to just die. You sick for eight months and don't anybody know what's wrong with you. I had 12 and 13 doctors, and they were just giving me medicine to treat symptoms. I needed somebody to help me," recalled Winans.

Though people call her a "superwoman," Winans knows it's impossible for her to meet everyone struggling with issues she faced. But it's her prayer that her spirit resonates through her CD and gives women the support that her mom gave her. "Now I can't physically be at everybody's house. But through my lyrics and through my songs and through the feeling that I can put in a CD, I can still be able to lift you, bless you, make you jump and make you know that you can triumph. Make you know the rainbow is coming. This storm is over! You may have another one that you're going to go through, but this storm, you won't have to see this one anymore. That's what I am talking about," she explained.

And women are responding! Not just by purchasing the CD, but they're overloading the singer with correspondences as well. "I opened my email up the day that [the CD] came out and there were 611 emails. I had just answered it the night before. People have been calling me, emailing me, telling me, 'My God! We love this CD,'" said Winans.

If making music wasn't enough for Winans, who also manages herself, the singer has recently added the title supermodel to her resume. She's the latest spokesmodel for the Donna Vinci clothing line and will actually be appearing with the line at the MAGIC Show in Las Vegas Aug. 28-31. Look out Tyra Banks! "She don't have to look nowhere," laughed Winans. "That Tyra Banks is beautiful. You need to be put in jail for that Jawn. That Tyra Banks is all that and a bag of chips!"

Joyful Noise

Gospel music's largest convention, Gospel Music Workshop of America, convened last week in Dallas for its 39th annual conference. The seven-day workshop, founded by the late Rev. James Cleveland, is made up of educational forums, various mass choir rehearsals, nightly worship services, youth activities and private industry-only functions for gospel radio announcers and media professionals. Every Tom, Dick and local church star attends GMWA because it's the place where the record labels roll out new projects and break fresh talent. It's also where aspiring artists work to get noticed. More than 15,000 registrants show up to see and be seen.

I arrived in Dallas last Monday, though thanks to United Airlines, one of my bags arrived the following day. (Yes, I am, and will still fly United despite what Mo'Nique says.) General Motors provided a Cadillac Escalade for me to dash around steamy downtown Dallas. Here are some of the highlights:

* EMI Gospel artist Myron Butler hosted a musical at his home church, St. Luke Community United Methodist Church. It was a who's who of hot young talent, and folks such as Maurette Brown-Clark, Vashawn Mitchell, Nikki Ross, Malcolm Williams, DeWayne Woods, Carolyn Traylor, Jonathan Nelson, George Huff, Sean Simmonds, Deon Kipling and others all sang. Oscar Williams, Ted Winn of Ted & Sheri and Candy West were also there. And who said church folk can't be on one accord? The emcee announced that the guests were to only sing one song in order to preserve time. When newcomer William Demps hit the stage, he sang one number and had the sound man cut the track just shy of its completion and prepared to sing a second tune. The audience unanimously said: "No, only one song!" I almost fell in the floor laughing.

* Neily Dickerson's Church Howse showcase was one of the week's standouts. The theme of her showcase was an old-school Sunday service-complete with opening processional, responsive reading, prayer and scripture. Guests dined on Sunday school favorites such as hot dogs, pretzels, Cracker Jacks and orange juice while artists including Ernest Pugh, Antwaun Stanley, Onitsha, Sunny Hawkins, Tiffany Gilkey Chears and Focus performed. There was then a throwback choir concert, featuring classic songs by gospel greats like The Thompson Community Choir and Walter Hawkins. During the impromptu musical, singers Kim Burrell, Melonie Daniels, Lemmie Battles, and Lucinda Moore, who revved back so hard while singing "Safe In His Arms" I thought she was auditioning for the next installment of 'The Matrix,' all dazzled the crowd by covering other artist's hits. Brent Jones and B. Chase Williams directed the choir while folks like Percy Bady played with the band. The best part about it is that it'll be released on DVD sometime next year.

* EMI Gospel's late night showcase was hosted by radio veterans Willie Mae McIver and Lee Michaels, along with Joe Ligon of the Mighty Clouds of Joy. A new music video by Kierra "KiKi" Sheard was premiered during the showcase. The video is a venture between EMI Gospel, Ford Motor Company and the Gospel Music Channel. There was also a pre-taped video greeting from Dallas Austin's new gospel trio V3. Showcase performances were given by Marcus Cole, Darrell Pettis & SIP, Kevin Vassar, Myron Butler & Levi, Smokie Norful and the legendary Vanessa Bell Armstrong. Butler and his group really stole the show-well, that was until Armstrong decided to show everyone what the meaning of "hit it and quit it" was all about. With the showcase running extremely long and well past 3 a.m., Armstrong, who is readying her EMI Gospel debut, sang a show-stopping oldie-but-goodie and upon completion told the crowd, "And I'm done!" That alone was almost worth the trip to Dallas!

* Zomba Gospel, home to the industry's big two-Verity and Gospo Centric, showcased on the last afternoon of the conference. The sit-down luncheon was hosted by Byron Cage, who also sang, and featured performances by Vickie Winans, 21:03, DeWayne Woods & When Singers Meet, Trin-I-Tee 5:7, Dave Hollister, Kelly Price, Kenny Lattimore & Chante Moore, Deitrick Haddon, Fred Hammond and Richard Smallwood & Vision. The awesome Woods is the protégé of gospel star Donald Lawrence and really impressed the sometimes-stuffy radio announcers with his two songs and testimony of being delivered by God from H.I.V. Unfortunately for Destiny's Child-like trio Trin-I-Tee 5:7, they had to follow Woods with an R&B-esque performance that was clearly out of place. The saddest thing about this former gold-selling group is that everyone but them seems to get why they just don't appeal to the gospel consumer anymore. Hey ladies, if you're reading this, call my phone! And for the record, everything I said about me being mad that Hollister was singing gospel I now take back. His gospel set was hot, to say the least.

* I judged a semi-final round of GMWA's talent contest Gospel Treasure along with Tara Griggs-McGee (Sony Gospel), artist Stephen Hurd, Neily Dickerson (the ND co./Church Howse Music), and Cheryl Jackson (Washington, D.C.'s Heaven 1580-AM). The event was hosted by beloved radio talent Donna Creer and K.D. Bowe (Sheridan Gospel Network)... Kenny Taylor's fiesta-themed showcase was a hit and featured dynamic performances by Lucinda Moore, Ziel and The Anointed Pace Sisters... Patti LaBelle performed for the first time at the conference at the founder's night musical. LaBelle sang an upcoming cut from her forthcoming gospel debut and sang while reading the words from a sheet a paper since she's yet to learn the words to the song... Coko of SWV introduced three songs from her gospel debut 'Grateful' during performances at the youth musical and at the Rev. James Cleveland tribute service, including a remake of Tramaine Hawkins' "Look At Me" and her single "Clap Your Hands."... Industry veteran Al "The Bishop" Hobbs was saluted during an appreciation concert to celebrate his 50-year anniversary in gospel. Even though GMWA is over, I'm willing to bet the tribute service is still going on. Richard Smallwood, Angie Spivey, Kathy Taylor Brown, Vashawn Mitchell, Melonie Daniels and The Caravans were among the many that performed.

Next year GMWA will celebrate its 40th year anniversary in Orlando, Fla.

Buzzworthy

Online blogs have been buzzing about actor Brian J. White ('Mr. 3000') dating the reigning Miss California, Tamiko Nash. The pair has been spotted out together recently and was even photographed at several events together. But a source close to the actor would only say that "they're friends," but added that White enjoys Nash's company because he feels "it's fairly rare to meet such genuinely good people in Los Angeles."

Speaking of dating, actor Donald Faison ('Scrubs') is apparently romancing Jessica Simpson's former assistant CaCee Cobb. The two have been making the rounds on the party scene in Hollywood and haven't been shy about their public displays of affection. I broke news about a year and a half ago that Faison had divorced his wife Lisa Askey. The couple has three children.

Is there trouble with Tyra Banks' 'America's Next Top Model?' CEO of the new CW, John Maatta, sent out a letter last Thursday assuring affiliates that the ongoing issue with the show's behind-the-scenes employees-it was reported that more than a dozen writer-producers recently walked out, demanding recognition as members of the Writers Guild-won't stop the show from premiering on time. In fact, Maatta told affiliates that all 13 episodes of season seven, premiering Sept. 20, are already completed, and a Plan B is in place for season eight as well. "If this proves to be a lengthy dispute... a contingency plan will be developed, and whatever necessary steps will be taken to continue developing episodes that maintain the show's high standards," wrote Maatta, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

Can't Say Names...

What's more embarrassing than being a celebrity whose credit card gets declined? Try being a celebrity driving a Bentley and it being parked in front of a swank restaurant in Beverly Hills and it not starting! That's what happened to a certain singer-actor recently during a night out at Wolfgang Puck's über -popular eatery Spago. When said entertainer tried to leave the dining establishment, his car wouldn't start and the valet's attempted to check the engine to see what was wrong. Fans began snapping pictures with their camera phones and gathering around in amazement. A Spago employee recalled a similar situation with another celebrity's Bentley failing to start and after pushing some button in the trunk, the car started and said entertainer drove off. Usher, Omarion, Tyrese, Mario, Ginuwine