Dr. Bobby Jones (born September 18, 1939 in

Henry, Tennessee Henry is a town in Henry County, Tennessee. The population was 520 at the 2000 census and 464 at the 2010 census, showing decline of 56. Gospel singer Bobby Jones was born here. Geography Henry is located in southwestern Henry County at (36.202 ...

, United States) is an American

Gospel music Gospel music is a traditional genre of Christian music, and a cornerstone of Christian media. The creation, performance, significance, and even the definition of gospel music varies according to culture and social context. Gospel music is com ...

singer television host, and radio broadcaster from

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...

and the host and executive producer of several

cable television Cable television is a system of delivering television programming to consumers via radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted through coaxial cables, or in more recent systems, light pulses through fibre-optic cables. This contrasts with broa ...

gospel music programs including the former ''

Bobby Jones Gospel ''Bobby Jones Gospel'' (sometimes called ''The Bobby Jones Gospel Hour'') is a program on Black Entertainment Television hosted by Dr. Bobby Jones. The series premiered on Sunday, January 27, 1980, two days after the network's January 25 launch. ...

''. Dr. Jones is referred to as the

Ed Sullivan Edward Vincent Sullivan (September 28, 1901 – October 13, 1974) was an American television personality, impresario, sports and entertainment reporter, and syndicated columnist for the ''New York Daily News'' and the Chicago Tribune New York ...

of gospel music. He has given numerous gospel stars a platform to showcase their talents and has many trophies racked up at his Nashville home for his contributions to

music Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspect ...

. ''

'' was canceled and went off the air in 2015. On radio, he is the host of ''The Bobby Jones Radio Show'', a daily one-hour music program distributed by

American Urban Radio Networks American Urban Radio Networks (AURN) is the only African-American owned and operated Nielsen RADAR-rated radio network in the United States. Privately held for the last three years with new ownership, AURN reaches an estimated 25 million listen ...

. Previously, he hosted the weekly ''Bobby Jones Gospel Countdown'' which ran for more than a decade via AURN.

Career

Jones began his television career in 1976, when Nashville station WSM-TV (now WSMV) gave him a slot on the Sunday morning schedule with ''Nashville Gospel.'' That show continued for some 25 years, with a number of hosts. Jones launched his variety program, ''Bobby Jones Gospel,'' on

BET Black Entertainment Television (acronym BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting African-American audiences. It is owned by the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global via BET Networks and has offices in New York City, Los A ...

in 1980. His shows figure prominently in the channel's Sunday lineup, consistently ranking in the Top 5 of overall BET weekly programming. In addition to his work for BET, Jones produced and hosted a similar half-hour program for WDCN-TV (now WNPT), Nashville's

public television Public broadcasting involves radio, television and other electronic media outlets whose primary mission is public service. Public broadcasters receive funding from diverse sources including license fees, individual contributions, public financing ...

outlet, during the early 1980s. The show was seen early Saturday evenings. ''

'' lays claim to offering the first prime exposure to several Gospel music solo artists and groups including

Kirk Franklin Kirk Dewayne Franklin (born January 26, 1970) is an American songwriter, choir director, gospel singer, and rapper. He is best known for leading urban contemporary gospel ensembles such as The Family, God's Property, and One Nation Crew (1NC) a ...

Mary Mary Mary Mary is a female American urban contemporary gospel duo composed of sisters Erica Atkins-Campbell (born April 29, 1972) and Trecina Atkins-Campbell (born May 1, 1974). Formed in 1998, Mary Mary was launched into mainstream recognition fo ...

Yolanda Adams Yolanda Yvette Adams (born August 27, 1961) is an American gospel singer, actress, and host of her own nationally syndicated morning gospel show. She is one of the best-selling gospel artists of all time, having sold over 10 million album ...

, and

Smokie Norful Rev. W.R. "Smokie" Norful, Jr. is an American gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message (" the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be d ...

. Other artists featured have included

Albertina Walker Albertina Walker ( – ) was an American gospel singer, songwriter, actress, and humanitarian. Early years Walker was born in Chicago, Illinois, to Ruben and Camilla Coleman Walker. Her mother was born in Houston County, Georgia, and ...

Patti LaBelle Patricia Louise Holte (born May 24, 1944), known professionally as Patti LaBelle, is an American R&B singer, actress and businesswoman. LaBelle is referred to as the " Godmother of Soul". She began her career in the early 1960s as lead singe ...

Dorothy Norwood Dorothy Norwood (born May 29, 1935) is an American gospel singer and songwriter. She began touring with her family at the age of eight, and in 1956, began singing with Mahalia Jackson. In the early 1960s she was a member of The Caravans, and in 19 ...

, and

Helen Baylor Helen LaRue Lowe (born January 8, 1954), known professionally as Helen Baylor, is an American singer–songwriter. Early life Born Helen LaRue Lowe in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Baylor is the oldest of seven, she has five brothers and one sister. Baylor ...

. Jones also hosts shows for other television networks including ''Bobby Jones' Next Generation'' on the

Gospel Music Channel UP TV (stylized as UPtv; formerly GMC TV and originally Gospel Music Channel) is an American basic cable television network that was founded to have a focus on gospel music. It has expanded into family-friendly original movies, series, and special ...

and ''Bobby Jones Presents'' for

The Word Network The Word Network, also known as The Word, is a religious broadcasting network. The Word is the largest African-American religious network in the world. It was founded in February 2000 by Kevin Adell who also owns WFDF, a local urban-talk radio st ...

. On radio, he hosts ''The Bobby Jones Radio Show'', a daily one-hour music program distributed by

. Dr. Jones previously hosted the weekly ''The Bobby Jones Gospel Countdown'' which ran for more than a decade on AURN. Jones also oversees the Nashville Super Choir. The choral ensemble boasts prominent soloists and serves as the vocal collective for his BET series. Jones hosts a bi-annual International Gospel Industry Retreat in

Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

and

Hollywood, Florida Hollywood is a city in southern Broward County, Florida, United States, located between Fort Lauderdale and Miami. As of July 1, 2019, Hollywood had a population of 154,817. Founded in 1925, the city grew rapidly in the 1950s and 1960s, and is now ...

. He also helped spearhead an initiative for the Gospel Complex for Education & Preservation in

Fort Lauderdale, Florida Fort Lauderdale () is a coastal city located in the U.S. state of Florida, north of Miami along the Atlantic Ocean. It is the county seat of and largest city in Broward County with a population of 182,760 at the 2020 census, making it the tenth ...

, a museum that will host Gospel music artifacts and serve as an information center for the history of urban contemporary Gospel music. In 1984, he won a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

for the Best Soul Gospel Performance By A Duo Or Group with

Barbara Mandrell Barbara Ann Mandrell (born December 25, 1948) is an American country music singer and musician. She is also credited as an actress and author. During the late 1970s and early 1980s, she was considered among country's most successful music artist ...

for "I'm So Glad I'm Standing Here Today.""Grammy Winners Search"
Grammy.com, Past Winners Search Jones is also the recipient of a

Dove Award 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 are presented annually. Formerly held in Nashville, Tennessee, the Dove Awards ...

,"Bobby Jones Bio"
Bobby Jones Bio - BET.COM three

Stellar Award A Stellar Award is an award presented by SAGMA to recognize achievements in the gospel music industry.Sagma
The Stell ...

s, and a presidential commendation from

President George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

."White House Archives"
President Bush Recognizes Black Music Month
- Bobby Jones one of 5 artists honored by President George W. Bush at White House in 2001"Church Chat"
- Dr. Bobby Jones Talk Show to return on BETJ, Bvbuzz.com Jones has authored two books. In 2000, his memoir, ''Make A Joyful Noise'' (St. Martins Press) included chapters about his tiff with the

Winans family The Winans family is a U.S. family of gospel music artists from Detroit, Detroit, Michigan. Family members * Pop Winans, David "Pop" Winans Sr. (father; b. April 20, 1934 – d. April 8, 2009) * Delores "Mom" Winans (mother; b. September 22, ...

and his personal conversations with the Rev. James Cleveland. Both topics were controversial and caused some friction with Gospel's first family and Cleveland's music organization, the

Gospel Music Workshop of America Gospel Music Workshop of America is an international music convention founded by Rev. James Cleveland. GMWA membership Active GMWA Membership ranges from professional and amateur Gospel vocalists to instrumentalists, composers, arrangers, directo ...

. In 1999, Jones released ''Touched By God'' (Simon & Schuster), a collection of inspirational stories by top Gospel artists about how God has changed their lives. Dr. Bobby Jones, leader of The Nashville Super Choir, has now opened his own production studio, Visions, located in Nashville.

Personal life

Jones has a wife, Ethel, and they have a daughter, Sonnetta. He graduated with a B.S. in elementary education from

Tennessee State University Tennessee State University (Tennessee State, Tenn State, or TSU) is a public historically black land-grant university in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1912, it is the only state-funded historically black university in Tenness ...

, an Ed.D. degree from

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and rail magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided the school its initial $1-million ...

and a Th.D. from Payne's Theological Seminary. Dr. Jones is a member of

Phi Beta Sigma Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. () is a historically African American fraternity. It was founded at Howard University in Washington, D.C. on January 9, 1914, by three young African-American male students with nine other Howard students as char ...

fraternity.

References

7. ^https://www.vibe.com/2018/03/bobby-jones-why-bobby-jones-gospel-was-cancelled/

External links

*
The Bobby Jones Radio Show
', o
AURN.com
an
AURNInspirational.comBobby Jones Gospel Countdown
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Bobby Living people 1939 births African-American Christians American gospel singers Singers from Nashville, Tennessee People from Henry County, Tennessee Grammy Award winners African-American television personalities 20th-century African-American male singers Television producers from Tennessee