THE 2025 BMI CHRISTIAN AWARDS TO CELEBRATE THE GENRE’S TOP SONGWRITERS AND MUSIC PUBLISHERS ON JUNE 17
Influential Gospel Visionary and Leader Jackie Patillo to Receive the
BMI “Spotlight Award” as a Special Tribute During the Invitation-Only Celebration
NEWS SOURCE: BMI
May 20, 2025
NASHVILLE, TN --May 20, 2025 -- BMI today announced that the 2025 BMI Christian Awards will be held on June 17 at the organization’s Nashville office. Jackie Patillo, Gospel Music Association President, will be honored with the BMI Spotlight Award for her unwavering dedication to the genre and illustrious career as an advocate for all Christian and Gospel music creators. In addition, BMI’s Christian Songwriter of the Year, Song of the Year, Publisher of the Year and the 25 most-performed Christian songs of the previous year will be announced. The private event will be hosted by BMI’s AVP of Creative, Nashville, Leslie Roberts and BMI’s President & CEO, Mike O’Neill.
“Through Jackie’s dynamic leadership, innovative vision, and unwavering love for Christian and Gospel music, she’s been able to bring both genres together through a message that unifies all while reaching a new generation of music lovers,” said Roberts. “The work that she’s done over her illustrious career is inspiring, and we’re thrilled to be presenting Jackie with the BMI Spotlight Award. We’re also looking forward to celebrating all our award-winning songwriters and producers, highlighting their achievements through community, worship and music.”
The Spotlight Award salutes Patillo’s rich history of championing Gospel music creators and the genre’s legacy throughout her career spanning over three decades. As a veteran music executive with posts at Star Song, Benson, Integrity, and Verity Records, she has helped shape the careers of numerous iconic artists, including Natalie Grant, Stephen Hurd, Lisa McClendon, Donnie McClurkin, Joe Pace, Israel & New Breed, Marvin Sapp, Alvin Slaughter and many more. As the President of the Gospel Music Association and GMA Foundation, where she has led the organization since 2010, Patillo has taken her commitment to advocating for all Christian and Gospel music makers to a new level. Under her leadership, the GMA has expanded its reach, unified the genre’s diverse voices, and strengthened its mission to expose, promote, and celebrate Gospel music across all styles and generations.
In addition to her day-to-day work, Patillo also serves as the Co-Executive Producer of the GMA Dove Awards, Gospel music’s biggest night, viewed by over 3 million people annually on TBN. She was inducted into the Stellar Gospel Music Hall of Fame in 2019, the SOURCE Hall of Fame in 2023, and was honored on her 10th anniversary with the Jackie Patillo Leadership Dove Award, now presented annually to an outstanding industry leader.
In receiving the BMI Spotlight Award, Patillo joins an exclusive group of honorees including Dottie Leonard Miller, Randy Edelman and Frank Gari.
For more information on the BMI Christian Awards, visit
https://www.bmi.com/genres/christian, and use the hashtag #BMIChristianAwards to follow the conversation on social media.
A post event press release, photos and video will be serviced after the event.
ABOUT BMI:Celebrating over 80 years of service to songwriters, composers, music publishers and businesses, BMI® is a global leader in music rights management, serving as an advocate for the value of music. BMI represents the public performance rights in over 22.4 million musical works created and owned by more than 1.4 million songwriters, composers, and music publishers. The Company negotiates music license agreements and distributes the fees it generates as royalties to its affiliated writers and publishers when their songs are performed in public. In 1939, BMI created a groundbreaking open-door policy becoming the only performing rights organization to welcome and represent the creators of blues, jazz, country, and American roots music. Today, the musical compositions in BMI’s repertoire, from chart toppers to perennial favorites, span all genres of music and are consistently among the most-performed hits of the year. For additional information and the latest BMI news, visit
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ABOUT JACKIE PATILLO:Jackie Patillo is the President and Executive Director of the Gospel Music Association and GMA Foundation, where she has led the organization since 2010, advocating for Christian and Gospel music makers and celebrating the genre’s legacy and future. She is Co-Executive Producer of the GMA Dove Awards, Gospel music’s biggest night, viewed by over 3 million people annually on TBN. A veteran music executive with a career spanning Star Song, Benson, Integrity, and Verity Records, she has helped shape the careers of numerous iconic artists. She was inducted into the Stellar Gospel Music Hall of Fame in 2019, the SOURCE Hall of Fame in 2023, and was honored on her 10th anniversary with the Jackie Patillo Leadership Dove Award, now presented annually to an outstanding industry leader.
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