BuzzWord: Amy Grant, Fernando Ortega, Downhere, Point of Grace...

Amy Grant is currently putting the finishing touches on her upcoming Legacy - Hymns and Faith release. Longtime producer friend Brown Bannister and husband and fellow artist Vince Gill have been there every step of the way on this collection of classic hymns due out May 21.

Last October, Fernando Ortega was invited to take part in Billy Graham's Central Valley Crusade. The week of March 4, two television specials of the crusade will air nationally. Fernando's performance of "This Good Day" will be aired during the second of the two broadcasts. Here's a link so you check out the air date and time for your area: www.billygraham.org/newsevents/tvspecial.asp#. Fernando's latest offering, Storm, hit the streets on February 5. Last week the album broke into the top ten on Billboard Magazine's Heatseekers chart at #9. The release debuted on the chart the previous week at #11.

Jaci Velasquez has been presented with countless exciting opportunities throughout the past year. The latest was the opportunity to perform at Madison Square Gardens for the "Concierto Del Amor" on February 16. Jaci shared the stage with artists such as Enrique Iglesias, MDO, Charlie Zaa, and Gisselle.

Last weekend Downhere took its music back to where it began at Briercrest Bible College in Caronport, Saskatchewan, Canada for the Youth Quake 2002 conference. Around 2,000 students in the 10-12th grades flooded the college town to hear Downhere and fellow artists Skillet and Superchick along with main speaker Phil Cann and special guest Michael Skupin from CBS's Survivor.

Don't forget to root for Jaci, Nicole C. Mullen, and Shirley Caesar during the Grammy Awards Wednesday evening. These lovely ladies were nominated in the following categories: Shirley for Traditional Soul Gospel Album of the Year for Hymns, Jaci for Latin Pop Album of the Year for Mi Corazon, and Nicole for Pop/Contemporary Gospel Album of the Year for Talk About It.

In celebration of Point of Grace Day in Nashville, TN, on February 20, K-LOVE radio personalities and Point of Grace friends, Jon & Sherri Rivers, traveled from their home in Texas to present the group with a special plaque displaying all 24 of Point of Grace's consecutive #1 singles. Pictured above at the presentation (l-r) are Sherri & Jon Rivers, Heather Payne, Terry Jones, Shelley Breen, and Denise Jones, Point of Grace.

After a perfect run of radio singles and top selling albums, Point of Grace added another golden award to the group's collection. During their #1 party at the Frist Center on Point of Grace Day in Nashville, the girls also celebrated the RIAA gold certification of their seasonal album A Christmas Story. Pictured below with the new plaques from left to right are Terry Jones, Heather Payne, Denise Jones, and Shelley Breen.