For legendary artists and siblings CeCe and BeBe Winans, gospel music is a calling marked by conviction, discipline and an unshakable foundation in Scripture.
“You navigate biblical truth by continuing to spend time in the Bible. It’s a contagion,” CeCe, who has won 17 Grammy Awards over her impressive gospel music career, told The Christian Post. “You never arrive. You just continue to learn about Jesus and allow Him to mold you and shape you so that we can look like Him.”
This ongoing intimacy with Christ, the 60-year-old “That’s My King” singer said, is the key to staying the course, even when musical success opens doors far beyond the Church.
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“It’s an ongoing relationship with Christ that keeps you focused, helps you not to grow weary in doing well, and to make sure that your life pleases Him. Then your music will follow.”
That grounded perspective has sustained both CeCe and BeBe Winans for over four decades of ministry and music.
Originating from Detroit, Michigan, the Winans are gospel music pioneers, a legacy being honored this year at the 40th annual Stellar Gospel Music Awards — the most prestigious ceremony in gospel music — where the duo will serve as hosts. CeCe is also nominated for eight awards, including Artist of the Year and Song of the Year.
“I’m humbled by it, but the Stellar Awards … gave us a chance,” she told CP. “Years and years ago, they opened up doors for us. So to be back and to be recognized by our peers is an honor.”
Held this year at the Schermerhorn Symphony Center in Nashville on Aug. 16, the event marks a return to Music City after several years in Atlanta and Las Vegas. According to showrunners, the 40th anniversary signals four decades of honoring the artists, voices and visionaries who have shaped gospel music’s sound and spiritual influence.
BeBe, reflecting on the show’s 40-year history, described the occasion, dubbed “Gospel Music’s Greatest Night,” as a spiritual milestone.
“I think with time comes not only appreciation, but understanding of what you’ve been called to do,” he said. “You come into a maturity, such a place in your life, where you understand the importance of what you do, and that God has a plan for you for the rest of your life. And you just learn how to say ‘yes’ and follow.”
This year’s show features standout nominees like Pastor Mike Jr., Jason Nelson, and Tamela Mann, all of whom are up for Artist of the Year, and performances from Adia, Donnie McClurkin, Dottie Peoples, Jekalyn Carr, Jason Nelson, Lisa Page Brooks, MAJOR., Melvin Crispell III, Pastor Mike Jr., Pastor Mike Todd & Transformation Worship, Tasha Cobbs Leonard, Tasha Page-Lockhart, Tramaine Hawkins and William Murphy.
As gospel music sees increasing visibility in mainstream media, the Winans siblings, who were among the first gospel artists to experience crossover success, stressed that the genre’s future must remain tethered to its spiritual roots.
“Our prayer, and I’m sure I can speak for BeBe, is the same as it’s always been,” CeCe said. “That gospel music will continue to spread and to reach those who are outside of the church, to bring them in. That’s the whole goal: to reach people for Christ, to reach them with the love of God, the peace of God.”
Within the Church, she added, worship should be a force for unity: “If we continue to unify and give God praise, then the world will see who He is through us. … Even if you’re not a believer, you can enjoy gospel music. We just want that to continue.”
BeBe echoed that hope: “Our music and gospel music is an invitation to the world to come in. At the same time, it is an encouragement for those who are there to continue to believe, continue to trust and continue to love God, and then go out and do the same.”
BeBe, now 63, likened his spiritual growth to the health journey he began at 33: “When I was 33, I started a wellness journey, exercise and learning, and that never stops. So it’s the same thing with what CeCe says. The biblical instructions that we have. It is important that you read them and then you apply them.”
He quipped, “Now, if you have a trainer and he tells you, ‘Don’t lay down after you eat,’ and you lay down anyway … you get the fruit.”
“You’ve got to listen to what the Scripture says and apply it,” CeCe added.
The 2025 Stellar nominations spotlight an emerging generation of gospel artists, including nine-time nominee Pastor Mike Jr., and genre innovators like Micah Lee and Chandler Moore.
As the Winans siblings prepare to host a milestone celebration for gospel music, they said they’re both excited and inspired by what they see in the next generation of artists.
“Man, they’re just so talented,” CeCe said. “I thought about Jonathan McReynolds. He’s just incredible. Their writing is awesome, and they’re starting to do new things that those who went before them haven’t done.”
BeBe added: “We knew when God was opening doors for us, it wasn’t just for us. It was for those who were coming behind us, just like others opened the door for us. … It’s always important that we encourage those who are coming to believe God for even more than what we believed Him for.”
In a time when the world is marked by hardship and uncertainty, both artists said gospel music plays an essential role in emotional and spiritual formation.
“There’s power in music when it’s negative and when it’s positive,” CeCe said. “That’s why it’s so important when we sing the gospel. … It’s in those darkest moments that it matters most.”
“People being encouraged, people understanding that even though things didn’t turn out the way you thought they would, God loves you, and He’s in the midst of the fire with you. He’s in the midst of the flood with you,” she added.
BeBe also shared lyrics from a gospel song, “Goodness, Mercy and Grace,” written by the duo’s brother, Marvin.
“‘Another day I could not face/ without your goodness, your mercy and your grace.’ …When you’re going through, and when others are going through, our music can tell them you’re not alone. His grace is sufficient, and it will bring you through the hardest times,” he said.
While the Stellar Awards are known for honoring artistic excellence — with major categories like Artist of the Year, Song of the Year, and Album of the Year — the Winans’ stressed to the next generation of artists that the true reward is spiritual.
“Dream big, and all things are possible,” CeCe said.
BeBe added, “We didn’t know. We knew there was a call on our lives and that there were possibilities, yes, but we had no idea we’d be talking to you 40 years into the Stellar Awards.”
“There is no limit to what God can do,” CeCe continued. “So go for it. Give everything you have and watch Him do what He does. Little becomes much. You never have to compare. For those who win awards, for those who don’t win — you’re still enough. And there’s a reward that we’re looking to receive that no one can take from you.”
Tickets for the 40th Stellar Gospel Music Awards are available now at StellarAwards.com.
Leah M. Klett is a reporter for The Christian Post. She can be reached at: leah.klett@christianpost.com
