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Music City and Capitol Hill came together Wednesday night as the RIAA Honors saluted leaders in Christian and gospel music, as well as two senators who have led the fight to protect creators’ rights.

Though it may be a fractious time in Washington, D.C., as the government shutdown and partisan discord continues, there was nothing but good vibes and glorious music at the Recording Industry Association of America’s headquarters.

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“RIAA Honors recognizes artists, industry leaders and policy makers who have made important contributions to American culture,” said RIAA chairman/CEO Mitch Glazier, at the packed event. “Over the past few years, we’ve honored pioneers of country music, hip-hop and Latin music, and tonight, we come together to celebrate pioneers in one of music’s most important and meaningful genres: Christian and gospel music.”

At the event, sponsored by Billboard, the RIAA recognized platinum contemporary Christian artist Lauren Daigle as artist of the year, while Nashville-based executives Jackie Patillo, president of the Gospel Music Association and GMA Foundation, and Ed Leonard, president of Daywind Music Group and an executive committee member of the GMA, were honored as industry executives of the year. Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) and Chris Coons (D-DE) were celebrated as policymakers of the year.

Morna Willens, RIAA’s chief policy officer, cited the many pieces of legislation that Blackburn has been behind, as much of her constituency in Tennessee includes the creative community in Nashville. “You want her in your corner when things are rough, and her record from the Music Modernization Act to the NO FAKES Act to her defense of Tennessee’s rights to protect the citizens from AI abuses speak for itself,” Willens said.

Blackburn took the stage and joked that “In Nashville, I can’t go to church, I can’t go to one of the kids’ games, I can’t go to the mailbox, I can’t go out for a walk without seeing somebody that’s a singer, a songwriter, a record producer.” She added that when she first came to D.C. as a U.S. representative, she was surprised to realize “not everyone had an appreciation for the role that intellectual property and the protection of that intellectual property [plays and] why it is so important,” adding, “It is the basis on which so many people make their living.” 

Pictured (L-R): RIAA Honors Executives of the Year Ed Leonard & Jackie Patillo,
Artist of the Year Lauren Daigle and Policymakers of the Year Senators Marsha Blackburn & Chris Coons

Daniel Swartz

She mentioned a number of other pieces of legislation she has championed, including 2006’s Songwriters Capital Gains Tax Equity Act and the newly introduced CREATE Act, as well as gave a shout-out to Coons and Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Tom Tillis (D-N.C.) for their co-sponsorship of the NO FACTS Act, which protects artists and minors against unauthorized AI deepfake impersonations, before concluding, “In other words, we’ve got your back and we’ve got you covered, and it is truly an honor to do that for you.”

Next, Willens lauded Blackburn’s NO FACTS Act co-sponsor Coons as someone who “has earned his colleagues’ respect, on both sides of the aisle, as a principled, substantive and pragmatic leader,” as well as praised his championing of such momentous legislation as the CLASSICS Act and the Music Modernization Act.

Coons noted that protecting music creators is close to his heart: His step-brother has recorded seven albums and his half-sister is an opera singer. He thanked Blackburn for her partnership, stressing the importance of bipartisanship. “At a time when — you might have heard this — there’s division in Congress, it is so wonderful to be able to reflect back what music does for all of us, which is to bring us together and to find common solutions to the challenges that face singers, songwriters, publishers and producers, the whole creative community,” he said. Turning to the NO FAKES Act, he added, “I’m confident, optimistic that we will get it through Congress and to President Trump’s desk this year to protect your voice, your face, your likeness and your music.”

Moving to the industry executives of the year, a video featuring top gospel and Christian artists For King + Country’s Joel Smallbone, Natalie Grant and Jekalyn Carr saluted Patillo, who many of the artists have known for decades — including Grant, who thanked Patillo for signing her when she was a label executive and for introducing her to her husband. Carr thanked her for her “contribution to gospel music” and for “God trusting you with the assignment” to protect and spread gospel music.

Michele Ballentyne, RIAA’s president and chief operating officer, shared seeing firsthand the unifying impact Patillo has had on the gospel community, calling her “a force of nature,” and noting that she has proven to be such a leader that the GMA even named its leadership award after her.

A humble Patillo spoke briefly, praising God’s plan for her, despite her doubts. “I am so grateful that God chose me,” she said. “Every time I’ve wrestled with Him and said, ‘But I’m not qualified,’ He said, ‘Trust me.’ And I’ve never done anything other than facilitate the creation and the furtherance of Christian and gospel music. So I’m honored to be at the table with Mitch and to be able to represent the gospel music trade association at the table for advocacy of all of our intellectual properties.”

Similarly to the video saluting Patillo, an artist package for Leonard featured gospel icon CeCe Winans, Joseph Habedank and Karen Peck of Karen Peck and New River, who noted, “Ed’s vision, integrity and dedication have not only strengthened Daywind, but also enriched the entire Christian and gospel music industry. His leadership has guided artists, writers and labels through seasons of change with wisdom and grace, while his advocacy has ensured that creators are valued and protected.”

Ballentyne recited a litany of music industry organizations that Leonard either leads or is a member of, adding, “I doubt there is a more experienced or accomplished executive out there in the genre.”

Leonard used most of his speech to praise others, including Patillo, whom he said took the GMA “from the ashes to the pinnacle,” and thanked both the RIAA staff and Senators Blackburn and Coons for “saving culture by saving music.” But his most touching moment came when he teared up as he thanked Daigle for her music. He recalled that one of his children, upon finding out he was being honored along with the singer, said, “’You know, Dad, her music got me through some of the toughest times in my life over the last five to 10 years,’ and to be able to say thank you to you publicly is something that is very special to me.”

That sentiment led beautifully into the artist of the year presentation honoring Daigle, which kicked off with a performance by Jon Batiste, who called Daigle “a light in the world. And in these times, we need beacons of light to lead us home,” he said. “You exist in the truth the way that God made us to be, and your music is a reflection [of that.].”

Appropriately, Batiste, seated at a grand piano, then launched into an effervescent, jazzy version of the children’s song and later Civil Rights Movement anthem “This Little Light of Mine.”

Glazier then addressed Daigle, who has more than 20 million units certified by the RIAA and is a two-time Grammy winner, eight-time Billboard Music Awards winner and 12-time GMA Dove Awards winner. “She’s been an unparalleled ambassador for Christian music, growing the genre and reaching new generations, embraced by fans in countries around the world, and proving over and over again that powerful, unapologetic Christian music reflects just as much talent, commitment and musical craft as the biggest hits of any genre ever recorded,” he said, before thanking her for her support of the NO FAKES Act, as well as her work with the International Justice Mission to support the  STOP CSAM Act, which addresses online child exploitation and human trafficking.

Daigle, with her father in the audience, spoke of the power of music. “I’m so grateful that music is this bonding agent in a time of division, right?,” she said. “We get to all sit and listen to songs together, and in the process of doing that, we see the world become one. We see the world become whole again, even if it’s for but a moment, and that, to me, is so beautiful.” Admitting she suffered from imposter syndrome and felt that she didn’t deserve the honor, she turned her praise to Jesus. “He is for me. He is not against me. He is for you. He is not against you. And to receive a gift that you don’t deserve, but that you feel so deep to represent that around the world, is the highest of honors,” she said.

Then she let her music do the talking, launching into a heartfelt, beautiful rendition of “You Say,” her 2018 breakthrough hit that spent a record 132 weeks at No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot Christian Songs chart, the first time a song had 100 or more weeks atop any of Billboard’s “Hot” charts. She and Batiste then came together to perform an emotional version of “Be Okay,” a song she wrote with Ellie Holcomb inspired by a terminally ill fan who asked Holcomb how to die. Their voices, separately and together, soared through the room, ending the evening on a high note and proving definitively the power of music that so many in the room are fighting to protect.