Gospel fans rejoice! Kean University’s Gospel Choir (KGC) has been selected as a finalist in McDonald’s GospelFest 2016. GospelFest is an annual competition sponsored by McDonald’s and features several famous performers as well as a multi-category competition.

This year, GospelFest will be taking place at the Prudential Center in Newark, and is titled “Honor Thy Mother.” The competition will be held on Saturday, May 7, 2016, and is expected to attract approximately 16,000 attendees.

“The choir is extremely proud to have the opportunity to represent Kean University on such a large stage. There are a lot of amazing things happening here, and we want to make the community aware of that,” says Danielle Thomas, President of KGC.

Previously, KGC has participated in multiple events on campus, such as the Catholic Newman’s Tree Lighting Ceremony, the ceremony honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr’s visit to the campus in 1961 and the Black Love Affair hosted by PASU, among other events.

KGC was re-founded in 2011 by Salaam Thomas, the current Manager of KGC, after years of inactivity. Due to the choir being a relatively new presence on campus again, the journey to GospelFest has been a long and treacherous road.

“Restarting the choir was very hard. It took a lot of dedication and overcoming adversity,” said Cassandra Alston, Director of Public Relations for the KGC.

Humbled by the vision of victory, the KGC has powered through the adversity that has faced the choir as a whole. KGC has the spotlight trained on this competition particularly hard, considering what was overcome in order to stand on the stage of the Prudential Center come this May. KGC wishes to gain recognition and appreciation of Gospel music not only on Kean University’s campus, but on a national level.

“[Winning GospelFest] would allow us the opportunity to become even more recognized on a more renowned scale, as the competition brings about several trailblazers in the gospel industry, as well as gospel performers in the Tri-State area,” said Alston.

KGC is elated to be able to perform on such a prestigious and widely recognized stage. It provides a stellar opportunity to gain recognition and experience in many different aspects.

KGC is open to new members from all walks of life and faith! Anybody is welcome to join rehearsals, which take place on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. in room 308 of Vaughn-Eames Hall. For more information on potentially joining the choir, upcoming events or other knowledge concerning KGC, feel free to visit the choir’s Cougar Link page.