SoGospelNews.com
AbsolutelyGospel.com, originally SoGospelNews.com, is the Internet’s largest Southern Gospel e-zine. It was started by Deon and Susan Unthank from Southaven, Mississippi, growing from an email discussion group after Singing News shut down its list. It began as a simple page listing artists and supporters, then published Southern Gospel news and reviewed new recordings from signed and independent artists. It became the most-viewed Southern Gospel site online, with millions of hits each month. The Unthank family runs the site with several staff writers, and it is based in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.
In April 2010, the site changed its name to AbsolutelyGospel.com to cover not only Southern Gospel but also Country Gospel, Inspirational, and Black Gospel. On January 5, 2011, Susan Unthank passed away, and control passed to Deon, their son Chris, and daughter Amy.
AbsolutelyGospel.com features the largest Southern Gospel message board, regular feature articles and interviews, album and DVD reviews, opinion pieces, devotions, youth articles, a free chat room, and staff blogs, along with daily news. Its weekly chart blends fan voting and radio airplay and is respected in the industry.
Each April, the site hosts two events: the AGM Music Awards Celebration and the Absolutely Gospel Music Fan Festival. The Fan Festival is a free, week-long (now five days) series of Southern Gospel concerts held the last week of July, featuring many popular artists. The AGM Music Awards began in 2002; nominations come from the site staff, with winners often chosen by fans and readers. The awards ceremony started in 2005, and a statue contest in 2006 led to the statue being named “Ovation,” awarded on the third Tuesday in April each year.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 08:49 (CET).