After the pandemic, many local events and choirs lost momentum, but the Arsht Center is reigniting the spirit.
On June 20-22, South Florida will come alive with Gospel Fest Miami, a three-day celebration of soul-stirring music and cultural heritage. The festival features a powerhouse lineup of Grammy-winning headliners, including Tye Tribbett, Michelle Williams, and Hezekiah Walker.
In addition to live performances, the event will offer panel discussions with gospel legends and free film screenings that explore the rich history and lasting impact of gospel music. Whether you're a music lover or a history buff, there's something here for everyone. Many of the events are free and open to the public, making it an accessible and inclusive experience.
“This program started as a once-per-quarter free gospel concert for about 15 years as our Free Gospel Sunday Series,” said Zaylin Yates, engagement manager at the Arsht for Gospel Fest. “We wanted to restructure the format and update it a little bit more and instead of having four stand-alone concerts, to have it more festival-style and have one weekend of impactful gospel music.”
ROOTS WITH REACH
Gospel music is endemic to our society and culture, serving not only as a spiritual expression. but also as a foundational influence on nearly every major American music genre, from blues and jazz to soul, rhythm and blues, rock, and hip-hop.
“One of the reasons we are so big on promoting gospel music is because it’s so rooted in mainstream music,” said Yates. “It pretty much sets the base for other genres. How many celebrities say that they started in their local church singing? That’s where they learned to play the piano or harmonize those chords – in the gospel choirs.”
Rooted in the African-American church experience, gospel has shaped the emotional intensity, vocal style, and communal spirit of popular music. And gospel’s messages of hope, strength, and redemption resonate deeply in social movements, cultural identity, and personal narratives, making it a vital thread in the fabric of American artistic and cultural life. Well-known artists citing gospel music and church choir experiences as a major influence in their careers include Elvis Presley, Aretha Franklin, Whitney Houston, Marvin Gaye, John Legend, Jennifer Hudson, and Kanye West.
“We started last January with our gospel choir invitational, which is also going to be an annual event,” said Yates. “We had a great turnout. I always see it as a success when I see how diverse the audience is. When I see different cultures and families and demographics all in the room, then in my mind that’s a success because it reached the entire community, not just one specific demographic. This event brought everybody to it.”
The Arsht has brought the music to local communities, including Little Haiti and downtown Miami parks with Gospel on the Road, a monthly event February through May.
“We went out to the community and had concerts promoting local gospel artists all leading up to Gospel Fest Miami in June,” said Yates. “This is the culminating event of a six month-long celebration of gospel music.”
THE GOSPEL TRAIN
Gospel Fest begins with a screening of the PBS movie, “The Gospel Train,” followed by a panel discussion with Dr. Bobby Jones, whom Yates describes as the godfather of modern-day gospel. Jones’ gospel TV show aired for more than 35 years.
“I remember watching it when I was in elementary and middle school,” said Yates. “Having him on that panel discussion raises the bar because he’s the reason we know and love so many gospel artists, like Kirk Franklin and CeCe Winans.”
Each concert will have a pre-show conversation about the genre’s impact on culture and civil rights. Yates anticipates that both panel discussions will be robust. Saturday night brings headliner and Destiny’s Child alum and Grammy winner Michelle Williams. She’ll be joined by another headliner, Hezekiah Walker.
Gamaliel Fleurantin and Community Sounds Choir, who were the winners of the Arsht’s first invitational, will perform along with Williams. The festival closes Sunday with gospel star Tye Tribbett, along with local performers Geo Wire, Sincere, and Daniel Davis & The Revolution.
A VIEW FROM THE CHOIR
Fleurantin and his Caribbean-based choir Community Sounds are thrilled to be opening for headliner Williams for the Saturday show. Fleurantin’s choir has been together since 2016, but now they’re getting a chance to step into the spotlight, reaching larger audiences.
The choir is a 30-member group based in the community and not affiliated with a particular church. It is a nondenominational mixture of several faiths and ethnicities.
“We are Haitian-American, and we have a couple of Jamaicans,” said Fleurantin. “We sing in Creole, we sing in French, and we also sing in English. We have members within both Dade and Broward Counties meeting in Hollywood at the Holy Nation Church.”
Fleurantin is surprised and delighted by the recent attention the group has gotten and believes their years of commitment are paying off. He said the choir was awestruck to be invited to sing at the How Sweet the Sound Gospel Competition in May in Washington, where they won third place.
“Going to D.C. shows what equal opportunity looks like – overcoming the stereotypes, the negativity, unnecessary finger pointing, overcoming the obstacles,” said Fleurantin. “It’s a blessing for us, a moment in history when we’re showing you what resilience looks like. If you pay attention to what’s going on in our news, the Haitian people were one of the groups that was ridiculed the most as far as false narratives, saying that we’re eating cats and dogs, not really giving us the opportunity just to be seen as decent citizens.”
Fleurantin pointed out that Community Sounds is comprised of first-generation Haitians who graduated with their high school diplomas, bachelor’s, and master’s degrees. One member recently earned his doctorate.
“We’re talking about resilience and just high praise to God, because if it wasn’t for God we wouldn’t be where we are,” said Fleurantin.
Community Sounds’ growing visibility gives them a chance to set the record straight, and to uplift their communities.
“Gospel is a part of American culture,” he said. “When you’re thinking about spirituals and what helped keep our ancestors alive and being able to go through the struggles that they went through, it was the gospel music, the spirituals that kept them resilient in the midst of all of that. I love this exposure. Hopefully it will help us get the resources that we need so we can continue to be a blessing and support to the community: to send students to school with scholarships, continue to have workshops to help bring back choirs, and music programs in churches, even in some of the schools.”
Fleurantin is out to literally spread the gospel.
“We’re making sure that we have the presence, the essence, to showcase that gospel music is for everybody, not for one particular culture or a subculture within a culture,” he said. “It’s for everybody.”
IF YOU GO
Gospel Fest runs June 20-22 at the Arsht Center, 1400 Biscayne Blvd., Miami. For more info, visit ArshtCenter.org