Singing News Fan Awards - who am I voting for?

You guys know me. I'm an awards show nut. Here I go again - predicting those darned awards shows. Here is who I am voting for and who I am predicting will win:

Male Singer: Scott Fowler, Ernie Haase, Ivan Parker, Arthur Rice, Gerald Wolfe
Correctly predicted: 3/5 (I predicted the snubbed Jason Crabb and Brian Free over Ernie Haase and Arthur Rice)
Who am I voting For?: Ernie Haase. Time for some new blood in this category.
Who will win?: No doubt about - Gerald Wolfe. He owns this category.

Female Singer: Peg McKamey Bean, Sheri Easter, Kim Hopper, Libbi Perry Stuffle, Susan Whisnant
Correctly Predicted: 3/5 (I was all over the place here to. I'm highly shocked that my predictions for Karen Peck Gooch and Lauren Talley failed to recieve a nomination. Peg McKamey Bean and Susan Whisnant both got in over those two. I'm always amazed at how a group that has been under the radar for the last couple of years like Jeff & Sheri Easter or the Hoppers can still rack up in these awards - but hey - I'm just one fan.)
Who am I voting for?: Sheri Easter. No reasoning other than I like her voice.
Who will win:? Libbi Perry Stuffle. Boring. I like Libbi, but I want some new blood in this category badly. I'm needing a Kim Lord win here really bad. TaRanda Greene would also be nice considering all the success she's having with "Sky Full of Angels."

Young Artist: Scott Inman, Eric Phillips, Lauren Talley, Amber Thompson, Jason Waldroup
Correctly Predicted: 3/5 (I incorrectly predicted Aaron Crabb and Joseph Habedank over Eric Phillips and Amber Thompson.)
Who am I voting for?: Scott Inman. He's coming along as a great little songwriter in his own right, so I'm giving him props for that.
Who will win:? I'm guessing Lauren Talley, but she and Waldroup have been handing this back and forth for a couple years now. Either one could take it. What is the age cut off for this? I would think that both Phillips and Waldroup are getting very close.

Horizon Individual: Michaela Brown, Wes Hampton, Matthew Holt, Josh Simpson, Josh Singletary
Correctly Predicted: 3/5 (Anyone else seeing the 3/5 pattern here? I incorrectly predicted Crabb Family's great drummer Micah Schweinsberg and DBQ's Lance Jeffrey over Michaela Brown and Josh Singletary.)
Who am I voting for?: Michaela Brown. Love those Browns.
Who will win:? I'm going out on a limb here and saying Matthew Holt. Simpson could take it from him, but the Perrys seem to have the edge in the Singing News fans corner over Gold City.

Horizon Group: Browns, Crystal River, Hope's Call, LeFevre Quartet, Monument Quartet
Correctly Predicted: 3/5 (I left off Hope's Call and Browns because both have been on the ballot before either in Top 5 or Top 10, and I put First Love and Soul'd Out Quartet in their place. It was stupid I know - but I wasn't thinking with my Singing News fan brain.)
Who am I voting for?: Duh. Hope's Call.
Who will win:? This should be a five way battle the way I see it. Browns and Crystal River both have that industry buzz. Hope's Call has the chart and retail success, LeFevre Quartet has the name, and Monument Quartet has the veteran performers. I think ultimately it will be Monument Quartet. They've campaigned the hardest, and in the end, that usually always pays off. This is a tremendous group of artists though and any of them winning would be warranted in my eyes. (It should be noted that my company, SSE, has worked with 4 of the 5 nominees in the past year. This is a win for SSE! LOL!)

Tenor: Brian Free, Ernie Haase, David Sutton, Jason Waldroup, Archie Watkins
Correctly Predicted: 4/5. (I placed Steve Ladd here over Archie Watkins.)
Who am I voting for?: Brian Free - for the strengh of BFA's new recording alone
Who will win:? Ernie Haase. It's his to lose.

Lead: Scott Fowler, Arthur Rice, Ryan Seaton, Jonathan Wilburn, Gerald Wolfe
Correctly Predicted: 3/5 (When will Loren Harris show up here? That guy is amazing. Anyway, I predicted him and Jason Crabb over Ryan Seaton and Arthur Rice.)
Who am I voting for?: Jonathan Wilburn. He's still got it.
Who will win:? Jonathan Wilburn. Like I said - he's still got it - now in his 10th year with the Gold City.

Baritone: Doug Anderson, Melton Campbell, Rodney Griffin, Scott Inman, Mark Trammell
Correctly Predicted: 2/5 (OUCH! I incorrectly predicted the industry's best baritone Daniel Riley along with Steve French and Scott Howard over Anderson, Campbell, and Inman.)
Who am I voting for?: Doug Anderson. Love me some Ernie Haase & Signature Sound.
Who will win:? Mark Trammell. Name recognition alone gets him in this category - and after all that's what it's all about.

Bass: Eric Bennett, Tim Duncan, Glenn Dustin, Mike Holcomb, Gene McDonald
Correctly Predicted: 4/5 (I incorrectly predicted Jeff Chapman over Mike Holcomb)
Who am I voting for?: Eric Bennett. He'll move anyone to tears.
Who will win:? Gene McDonald. He hasn't won in a couple of years, and he's once again due with the release of his solo album.

Alto: Sheri Easter, Connie Hopper, Libbi Perry Stuffle, Debra Talley, Susan Whisnant
Correctly Predicted: 5/5 (Woo hoo! My first 5/5!)
Who am I voting for?: Debra Talley. You don't get any better than Debra.
Who will win:? One of these days, Kim Lord will show up here. Anways, the only one who has never won this award is Susan Whisnant - but Libbi should have no problem winning this again.

Soprano: Karen Peck Gooch, TaRanda Greene, Kim Hopper, Charlotte Ritchie, Lauren Talley
Correctly Predicted: 4/5. (I missed TaRanda Greene in favor of the incomparable Kelly Bowling. Maybe next year Kelly!)
Who am I voting for?: Karen Peck Gooch. Gotta go with my first real favorite in SG.
Who will win:? With the Hoppers being pretty low profile the last year, we could see Talley, Ritchie, or Peck taking it this year. (BTW, I love seeing Talley here, because she's so not a soprano!) However, I think Kim Hopper will probably ultimately take it again.

Soloist: Mark Bishop, Mike Bowling, Michael Combs, Tony Gore, Ivan Parker
Correctly Predicted: 5/5
Who am I voting for?: Mike Bowling. The best in this category, IMHO.
Who will win:? Mark Bishop. Unfortunately, most people don't see Bowling as a soloist anymore with the advent of the Mike Bowling Group. Bishop should have no problem taking this again this year.

Trio: Booth Brothers, Greater Vision, Jeff & Sheri Easter, Mark Trammell Trio, Talley Trio
Correctly Predicted: 3/5 (I predicted the Whisnants and Karen Peck & New River over Mark Trammell Trio and Jeff & Sheri Easter.)
Who am I voting for?: Booth Brothers. No other group of these five has been more seen or talked about this year.
Who will win:? Greater Vision.

Mixed Group: Crabb Family, Hoppers, Isaacs, McKameys, Perrys
Correctly Predicted: 4/5 (In a gutsy move, I predicted the hugely popular Collingsworth Family over the McKameys. I'm still shocked they didn't get nominated.)
Who am I voting for?: Crabb Family. I still can't believe they haven't won this award yet.
Who will win:? Perrys. It's another boring and predictable award. Again, I absolutely love the Perrys, but these awards need some new blood to keep people's attention.

Traditional Quartet: Ernie Haase & Signature Sound, Inspirations, Kingdom Heirs, Legacy Five, Triumphant Quartet
Correctly Predicted: 3/5 (I missed Inspirations and Kingdom Heirs in favor of the hugely snubbed groups Gold City and Brian Free & Assurance)
Who am I voting for?: Ernie Haase & Signature Sound. Of the five groups listed - they are by far the most popular - and I want to recognize them for that.
Who will win:? Ernie Haase & Signature Sound. None of the other nominees even come close to their level of popularity right now.

Pianist: Roger Bennett, Martin Cook, Andrew Ishee, Jeff Stice, Roy Webb
Correctly Predicted: 3/5 (I predicted Steward Varnado and Justin Ellis over Martin Cook and Roy Webb)
Who am I voting for?: Andrew Ishee. I don't think there's a better piano player today.
Who will win:? Roger Bennett. He always has the edge in this category.

Musician: Roger Fortner, Mike Hopper, Sonya Isaacs, John Pfeifer, Tim Surrett
Correctly Predicted: 3/5 (I said Kreis French and Adam Crabb would show up here, but instead Mike Hopper and John Pfeifer did.)
Who am I voting for?: Sonya Isaacs. She's got the skills.
Who will win:? Tim Surrett. He seems to be a favorite here.

Band: Crabb Family, Isaacs, Hoppers, Kingdom Heirs, Primitive Quartet
Correctly Predicted: 3/5 (Primitive Quartet and Hoppers edged out my predictions of Brian Free & Assurance and Kingsmen.)
Who am I voting for?: Crabb Family. There's no better band out there today.
Who will win:? Kingdom Heirs. This seems like about the only award this group ever wins.

Songwriter: Roger Bennett, Mark Bishop, Bill Gaither, Rodney Griffin, Squire Parsons
Correctly Predicted: 3/5 (I missed the "name-recognition for past hits only" Gaither and Parsons over two of the industry's most sought after songwriters Kyla Rowland and Gerald Crabb.)
Who am I voting for?: Mark Bishop. He's the most consistent writer to me of the five.
Who will win:? Rodney Griffin should have this award named after him at this point.

Favorite Artist Website: Ernie Haase & Signature Sound, Greater Vision, Inspirations, Legacy Five, Triumphant Quartet
Correctly Predicted: 1/5 (Here I thought the fans actually knew what a good website was. I guess I was wrong. The fans passed up quality pages from groups like Gold City, Crabb Family, Brian Free & Assurance and the Perrys over some truly bad sites. I only predicted Legacy Five correctly.)
Who am I voting for?: Ernie Haase & Signature Sound. Head and shoulders above the other 4.
Who will win:? I don't know? Greater Vision?

Album: Ernie Haase & Signature Sound (Ernie Haase & Signature Sound), From the Smokies (Inspirations), My Favorite Place (Greater Vision), Remembering the Happy Goodmans (Perrys), Triumphant Quartet (Triumphant Quartet)
Correctly predicted: 3/5 (I missed albums by the Inspirations and Triumphant Quartet over extremely popular albums from the Crabb Family and Brian Free & Assurance.)
Who am I voting for?: Ernie Haase & Signature Sound (Ernie Haase & Signature Sound). The best of the five.
Who will win?: Greater Vision. They could do nothing but scream an album and still win this.

Favorite Song: Do You Want To Be Forgiven (Ernie Haase & Signature Sound), Don't Let The Sandals Fool Ya (Triumphant Quartet), He Saw It All (Booth Brothers), Healed (Brian Free & Assurance), His Name Was John (Perrys), I'm Not Ashamed (Inspirations), New Day Dawning (Whisnants), Out Of My Darkness (Legacy Five), Paid In Full Through Jesus, Amen (Greater Vision), Shepherd's Call (Crabb Family)
Who am I voting for?: "He Saw It All" - Booth Brothers. It's made the biggest impact this past year.
Who will win?: "Out of My Darkness" - Legacy Five. I'm going out on a limb here and saying they win this one over favorites like Greater Vision or Inspirations. This song has really resonated with listeners this year.

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