Born in New Jersey and hailing from Sacramento, CA, Watts began singing at the age of six. Her powerhouse vocals and warm bravado have captured the hearts of millions of fans, when she won the American Idol-esque show. Influenced by legends CeCe Winans, Natalie Grant and Shirley Caesar, Melinda shares a love of music and her church.

PEOPLE GET READY is a bright and dynamic album that showcases Watts’ vibrant vocals along with strong contemporary production. The celebratory first single, “So Good,” has already made waves at Gospel radio and is upbeat pop track that absolutely defies you to get up and dance.

Slick grooves, hopeful lyrics, and an exuberant vibe are interwoven throughout PEOPLE GET READY, which recalls other leading ladies of urban gospel like Mary Mary and Kierra Sheard. From the explosive, dance-friendly tracks of “Say Yes,” and “Happy” to intimate worship songs like “Available To You,” a duet with J. Moss, and wonderful rendition of “Faith,” there is no doubt as to why Watts won over judges and audiences alike.

Watts will be set out on a promotional tour this summer in support of the release with stops in New York, Atlanta, Chicago and Philadelphia. She’s already been chosen to tape an upcoming episode BET’s “LIFT EVERY VOICE,” and will be a part of the Gospel Music Channel’s Gospel Dream 2009 season set to start airing in June.

“I’ve always had a love of music and I have been singing in church my whole life,” Watts explains. “God’s grace brought me here. A lot of faith in God and remembering that it’s okay to dream even when you feel you can’t.”

Watts, a former high school English teacher and active member of her Sacramento community, started the nonprofit organizations Project Sunday and Heaven’s House to address the great need for mentoring and ministering to young women in her community.

SOURCE: CMCentral.com

Season Premiere Set For June 6

Gospel Music Channel announced today it will once again invite performers to audition to compete for the chance to win a record & music video deal, among other prizes, in nine audition cities, for a fourth season of Gospel Dream.

The cities and dates scheduled for Gospel Dream auditions are:

Seattle – Northwest University Chapel – 5520 108th Ave. NE Kirkland, WA 98033 April 1
Minneapolis – 3 Degrees – 113 N. 5th St Minneapolis, MN 55403 April 8
Dallas – Open Door City Church – 8421 Boulevard 26 N. Richland Hills, TX 76180 April 10
Los Angeles – Dream Center Angeles Temple – 1100 Glendale Blvd L.A. CA 90026 April 14
Oakland – Shiloh Church – 3295 School St. Oakland, CA 90026 April 15
Nashville – Marathon Village – 1305 Clinton St. Nashville TN 37203 April 25
Orlando – Northland Church – 530 Dog Track Road Longwood, FL 32750 May 1
Atlanta – Wagon Works – 1514 East Cleveland Ave., 2nd Floor, East Point, GA 30344 May 2
Detroit – Wayne State University Student Center Room 29 – 5221 Gullen Mall Detroit MI 48202 May 4

Locate accommodation options near audition events

Specific times, locations, and official rules and required forms for the auditions will be provided shortly. Stay tuned to gospelmusicchannel.com/gospeldream for the latest information.

Singers from all Gospel/Christian styles, including traditional, rock, pop, country and soul are invited to audition for Gospel Dream 2009. Solo artists age 16 to 40 are eligible. Between 30 and 35 contestants from the audition cities will be selected to compete for the crown in Nashville.

Gospel Dream will been seen Saturday nights at 9 PM ET on Gospel Music Channel beginning June 6, culminating with the grand finale coronation of the new Gospel Dream winner on July 11.

“Gospel Dream is the original music reality competition on television that celebrates aspiring artists who desire to inspire, as well as to entertain,” commented Charles Humbard, founder and president, Gospel Music Channel. “The show connected with our viewers in the first three seasons and season four competition promises to be even more compelling and will be seen by even more viewers thanks to our tremendous growth in distribution.”

Elvin Ross is the creator, executive producer and musical director of the Gospel Dream series.

Gospel Music Channel is the fastest-growing network in television and can be seen in more than 42 million homes on various cable systems around the country and on DIRECTV on channel 338.

Go to GospelMusicChannel.com For Entry Process

Melinda Watts, a 29-year-old leader of two foundations that help support troubled young girls and their families from Fair Oaks, California, was crowned the winner of the American Idol®-inspired talent search series Gospel Dream 2008 last night on the Gospel Music Channel television network.

Watts shared the stage of the Gospel Dream 2008 finals with Kymm Lowery of Beach Park, Ill. and John McKoy, Jr. of Monroe, N.C. in the dramatic season finale of GMC’s American Idol®-inspired talent search series, with all three performers offering outstanding and uplifting performances. Yet it was Watts who receives the grand prizes of Gospel Dream 2008 – a record and music video deal and a Royal Caribbean Cruise – and the potential for a career that she has dreamed since she began singing at the age of six.

“Every ten years or so you have an anointed superstar artist who graces us with the word of God in song, as CeCe Winans and Yolanda Adams have done. Now we have Melinda Watts,” said Alvin Williams, Senior Director of Music Development for the Gospel Music Channel.

Watts’ personal story is as compelling as her singing ability. She and her husband William are new parents to six-month old Lyric and live in the Sacramento area where Watts has been pursuing her other dream – that of helping teens and young women.

An English teacher by vocation, she has established a foundation called Project Sunday because of the great need for mentoring and ministering to young women in her community. She has also set-up Heaven’s House for Girls, created to provide research-based solutions for troubled teen girls and their families. Watts’ hope for both foundations is to develop the self-reliant attitude among girls and young women that manifests in their ambitions, assertiveness and individualism, she says.

Winning her Gospel Dream should only help to elevate both charities. A singer and songwriter, Watts hopes to write a substantial amount on her upcoming CD to be released through Gospel Music Channel in early 2009, and hopes people will feel compelled to the heart of God.

“I want people to listen to my music and want to draw closer to God,” she says. “I also want them to want to grow in the grace of God and to be bold in their faith, like a revival through music.”

Watts, who grew a large fan base as the series went on, was crowned as the new Gospel Dream winner by Gospel/Christian music’s version of Simon, Paula and Randy: GRAMMY award-winning record producer/songwriter Big Jim Wright, Dove and Stellar award-winning cross-cultural worship music artist/songwriter Martha Munizzi and one of Gospel music’s most prolific talents and part of one of music’s hottest production companies (PJAM) J Moss. They were equally impressed by Watts’ vocal talents and passion all through the competition but especially with her final performances of the contemporary praise song “You are Good” and the traditional hymn “Tis So Sweet.” “Tis So Sweet” is Melinda’s first single and has already been serviced to radio stations across the country. It can be heard at http://www.gospelmusicchannel.com/shows/gospeldream.

Watts’ Gospel Dream 2008 journey began nearly five months ago in Los Angeles when she tried out during the first round of auditions. She was chosen from among thousands of singing hopefuls all Gospel/Christian styles including rock, pop, country and soul at auditions in Los Angeles, Chicago, Phoenix, Miami and Atlanta. 16 contestants were selected and invited to Nashville, Tenn. to perform in five rounds of televised competitions.

Gospel Dream 2008 was hosted by popular artist/songwriter Matthew West with backstage reporting by GMC Insider’s Kelly Sutton. Celebrity musical mentors who coached the contestants throughout the series included PAJAM, Myron Butler, Bernie Herms, Lesley Moore and Darlene McCoy. The Gospel Dream series was created by Executive Producer Elvin Ross who is also the series’ executive producer and musical director.

The Gospel Dream 2008 series can be seen again Thursday nights at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT beginning July 31.

Gospel Music Channel is the nation’s first and only 24/7 television network devoted to the uplifting, inspiring and diverse music that is Gospel/Christian music. Gospel Music Channel is the fastest-growing network in television today and can be seen in nearly 40 million homes on various cable systems around the country and on DIRECTV channel 338.