Events|May 06, 2014 11:16 EDT
Amy Grant, Michael W. Smith, Matthew West Honored at ASCAP Christian Music Awards Ceremony for Top Songs (PHOTOS)
The historic movie house, the Franklin Theatre, hosted the 36th annual ASCAP Christian Music Awards on Monday night. Christian pioneers Michael W. Smith and Amy Grant were in attendance along with Contemporary artists Matthew West, MercyMe, and others.
The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) acknowledged songwriters and publishers of the year's most-performed Christian music songs at the ceremony.
Matthew West took home two of the top honors of the night. West was named songwriter of the year, for his song "Hello My Name Is" that topped the Christian charts for 17 weeks. "Hello," was written by the Nashville resident and was also named ASCAP's song of the year.
West's popular song was inspired by a letter he received from a fan who was a recovering drug addict and then learned he was who God said he was and not the negative labels he once carried.
"I got to give a No. 1 plaque to this young man who told me his story, and the fact that he can see how many people that his story has touched, it comes with a really special sense of gratification. Tonight's really a celebration of the power of a true story, and how when we tell our story, we can impact somebody else's life," West said during his thank you speech, according to The Tennessean.
West performed "Hello" during the award show. Other performances and tributes came from Michael W. Smith, Ashley Cleveland, MercyMe and PawnShop Kings.
Capitol CMG Publishing earned 11 awards for publisher of the year, and for having the most-performed songs by the artist they represent.
In celebration of ASCAP's 100th anniversary, this year stars Amy Grant and Smith received special career awards from the show's host, ASCAP Chairman and President, Paul Williams.
"You always think that somebody that gets this award should be like 80 years old or something," he said. "But, you know what? I'm grateful, and I think it's kind of cool that it's not only me, but it's Amy Grant, and there's so much history there with us. We didn't know we were blazing a trail. We were just doing what we loved to do, and it connected," Smith said.
