Seventeen of the 24 Night of Joy acts were nominated for Dove Awards in 2004, and six acts – topped by Jeremy Camp – were winners at the ceremonies April 28 in Nashville.
There were three recorded-song-of-the-year winners: Modern Rock to downhere for Breaking Me Down, Inspirational to Avalon for Everything To Me and Contemporary Gospel to CeCe Winans for Hallelujah Praise.
Album-of-the-year winners included Third Day for Offerings II – All I Have to Give (Praise and Worship category) and Salvador for Con Poder (Spanish Language category).
A full third of this year’s Night of Joy lineup is new to the event – headed by Jeremy Camp. Others playing the Magic Kingdom for the first time are Across the Sky, Mark Schultz, FFH, Skillet, SONICFLOOd, Warren Barfield and 12 Stones. On the other side of that coin, Michael W. Smith is making his ninth appearance (equaling Petra for most Night of Joy appearances).
A total of 96 different acts have been showcased at Night of Joy since the event’s inception in 1983. A hallmark of the event has been the musical diversity, and 2004 is no exception with Rock, Pop, Alternative, Gospel, Urban and Latin styles showcased. A combined audience of nearly 800,000 people has enjoyed the musical variety over the years.
