"You know you’re at GMA when you drink more cups of coffee than hours of sleep you had the night before".  That was my epiphany when I found my self-telling people "Good Morning" at 4:30 Monday afternoon.  There is a lot more to GMA than coffee and music.  The following article is my general ramblings of a DJ’s view of the GMA experience.

First things first, I guess I should tell you a little about me, my name is Michael Joseph (MJ) www.immj.com. I don’t only DJ.  I am a vocal artist, Producer / Remixer, host of a radio show called "In The Mix" and I do interviews for a TV show called "MXTV".  All of this I do to tell others about God’s Love and Grace.  It is a calling that sometimes tests me to my limits and always shows me how powerful God’s Grace is because I couldn’t do any of this with out Him.

Secondly, in case you don’t know, I should tell you about GMA.  Some people (who have been there before) may say GMA stands for "Give Me Attention".  Although that is a good description, it really stands for "Gospel Music Awards".  GMA is mostly spoken of as the week before the GMA aka "Dove Awards".  The GMAs are held every year on a Wednesday.  GMA week is the 4 days before the awards, where everyone who is in, or wants to be in, the Christian music industry converges on the town of Nashville Tennessee for what seems like an endless stream of showcases, interviews, seminars, junkets and meetings; thus the need for all the coffee.

This was my fourth GMA and what a year it was.  I may sound a bit "tainted" by what I’ve heard and seen over my many years in the Industry but by the Grace of God I think I have held together quite well. For anyone who has tried to take their "ministry" beyond their hometown can testify what a brutal machine the Christian music Industry can be.

Don’t get me wrong … hang with me … God is still at work and I will tell you what keeps me coming back to GMA year after year.

I may have lost my “rose colored glasses” along the way, but it’s just tuff to hear bands who are signed to major record labels with #1 hits on the CCM (Contemporary Christian Music) charts say things like "It’s time to put the GOSPEL back in GMA".  Has the industry lost its true direction?  In it’s defence, the industry has made a momentous shift in the past three years alone.  The change in the way music is sold and bought has left many labels LOST.  Major labels close there doors on a Friday and the artists and staff don’t find out until they show up for work on Monday.  Some of them have lost why they do what they do and whom they do it for.  I’ve even heard of a band, with a song still in the top 5 of the CCM charts, get dropped by their "major" label because "they weren't selling as much as we thought they would". 

Not to mention the whole DJ culture, both Hip-Hop and Electronic genres being lost to a million rock bands that are all trying to sound like each other.  Hip-Hop is one of the number one styles of music in the world and it gets one or two plays an hour. Electronic music doesn’t even get played.  One of the showcases I was a part of this year had 60 bands over two days and there were 2 Hip-Hop acts and NO Electronic Acts.  Can someone say “Cookie Cutter”?

In the past 2 years, I have heard on more than one occasion that the industry is not looking for "Christian" music but "Positive" music: less Jesus and more positivity.  Not everyone thinks that way.  I was a part of another showcase this year where the head of a major label said to me "This is our anti GMA Showcase".  Others share those same feelings.  There are many bands, managers, producer and artists that want to make ministering the hope of God more important than moving a ton of units. It is a business but are we Christian entertainers or Christians who entertain?

If you want to find out which you are GMA is a good way measure … but I warn you … it is like jumping into the fire and waiting to see if your refined gold or just burnt up.  It’s easy to get caught up in all the "selling of self”.  This is where what I like about GMA starts to shine.

If you are a "seller" it shows.  That’s ok to a point because that is a part of what GMA is all about.  It’s when you join with other artists from other band, to pray together on a street corner of an over crowed showcase, which is when it all starts to click.  It’s meeting other people for lunch and just for that, not for selling, but to talk about what you do outside of ministry, your family, your church, and your hometown.  It’s about making industry friends for non-industry reasons.

GMA can be very hard to take unless you remember it’s all about connecting with others who have the same passion and calling you have.  It’s God’s people coming together for working reasons and getting relationship results.

It is a great experience every year. I have gained some very dear friends at GMA.  In fact each year is kind of a of a reunion of people that I have met at GMA, friends I’ve met at different show across the nation and even meeting some of my "Internet Friends" for the first time.  It’s also not uncommon to get to hang out with some of your favorite big name artists in the industry, just standing around, people watching like you are.

If you ever decide to spend a week at GMA, my advice for you is, prepare WAY a head of time.  Have lots of promotional material, business cards, flyers, CDs, DVDs and anything else you can carry in your pocket to exchange with other.  You will come home with a big pile of cards and sticker of people you meet.  Try to make some contacts in the industry before you go.  There are only a few showcases open to unsigned acts and they will usually cost you a couple of hundred to perform on them.  That is not the only way to be noticed.  Contact agents and promoters who will be there, they might give you 5 minutes on the run that may turn out to be very beneficial down the road.  Remember it’s all about making connections.  Connections – Connections – Connections.

I have to say that GMA week one of the toughest weeks of my life every year, but I would never trade it for anything.

Great Friends, Great Music, Great Caffeine … That’s GMA.

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