A Dove Award is an accolade by the Gospel Music Association (GMA) of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the Christian music industry. The awards ceremonies presented annually and have been held in Nashville, Tennessee except in 2011 and 2012 when they were held in Atlanta, Georgia. The ceremonies feature live musical performances and are broadcast on TBN.
The awards were established in 1969 and represent a variety of musical styles including rock, pop, hip hop, country, and urban.
History
The Dove Awards were originally conceptualized by Gospel singer and songwriter Bill Gaither at a Gospel Music Association board meeting in 1968. The idea of the award being represented by a dove is credited to Gaither and the design for the award itself is credited to gospel singer Les Beasley and designer Bob McConnell. The first GMA Dove Awards were held at the Peabody Hotel in Memphis, Tennessee in October 1969. In 1971, the awards moved to Nashville.
The 3rd GMA Dove Awards of 1971 were deemed invalid due to apparent ballot stuffing by the southern gospel group the Blackwood Brothers and that year is still not considered an official awards year by the Gospel Music Association. There were no awards held in 1979 due to a decision by the Gospel Music Association to move the awards from autumn to spring. Every ceremony since then has been held in the spring. The first televised ceremony was the 15th GMA Dove Awards of 1984 which aired on the Christian Broadcasting Network.
The awards were held in Nashville until 2011 before being presented at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia in 2012. They returned to Nashville in 2013, and were held at the Allen Arena on the campus of Lipscomb University until 2024. In 2025, the Bridgestone Arena was chosen as the new home.
Categories
Because of the large number of award categories (42 in 2012), and the desire to feature several performances by various artists, only the ones with the most popular interest are presented directly at the televised version of the award ceremony.
General
The "General Field" includes seven awards which are not restricted by genre:
Song of the Year is awarded to the songwriter and the publisher.
Dove Award for Songwriter of the Year (since 2015 two awards have been given in this category: one for a songwriter who is an artist, and one who is a non-artist)
Male Vocalist of the Year
Female Vocalist of the Year
Group of the Year
Artist of the Year
New Artist of the Year
Producer of the Year
Other awards are given for performances in specific genres as well as for other contributions such as artwork and video. As of the 43rd Dove Awards, these include:
Inspirational
Inspirational Recorded Song of the Year
Inspirational Album of the Year
Pop
Pop/Contemporary Recorded Song of the Year
Pop/Contemporary Album of the Year
Southern Gospel
Southern Gospel Recorded Song of the Year
Southern Gospel Album of the Year
Gospel (soul/black)
Traditional Gospel Recorded Song of the Year
Traditional Gospel Album of the Year
Contemporary Gospel Recorded Song of the Year
Contemporary Gospel Album of the Year
Musicals
Musical of the Year
Youth/Children's Musical of the Year
Praise & Worship
Worship Song of the Year
Worship-Recorded Song of the Year
Worship Album of the Year
Country & Bluegrass
Country Recorded Song of the Year
Country Album of the Year
Bluegrass Recorded Song of the Year
Bluegrass Album of the Year
Rock
Rock Recorded Song of the Year
Rock/Contemporary Recorded Song of the Year
Rock Album of the Year
Rock/Contemporary Album of the Year
Rap/Hip Hop & Urban
Rap/Hip Hop Recorded Song of the Year
Rap/Hip Hop Album of the Year
Urban Recorded Song of the Year
Miscellaneous
Instrumental Album of the Year
Children's Music Album of the Year
Spanish Language Album of the Year
Special Event Album of the Year
Christmas Album of the Year