*The Stellar Gospel Music Awards is moving to correct one of the most talked-about omissions from its 2026 broadcast: the absence of a main-show tribute to late gospel icon Richard Smallwood.
Stellar Awards founder and executive producer Don Jackson announced that Smallwood will be honored during the 2027 Stellar Awards main telecast, following criticism from fans, Smallwood’s family and others in the gospel community.
But the controversy has exposed a larger question: Should the Stellar Awards establish a regular In Memoriam segment on its main broadcast?
Smallwood Was Honored — But Not on the Main Show
Smallwood, who died Dec. 30, 2025, at 77, was not completely overlooked during Stellar Awards weekend.
A tribute featuring “Total Praise” was presented during the pre-show, which producer Dr. Teresa Hairston Jackson had promoted before the event. But that tribute didn’t make the nationally televised 41st Annual Stellar Gospel Music Awards broadcast on BET. That distinction became the heart of the controversy.
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Smallwood’s family and The Small Rich Foundation publicly expressed disappointment that his legacy wasn’t acknowledged during the main show. Teresa Jackson subsequently apologized, and Don Jackson announced plans for a tribute during next year’s main telecast.
For an artist whose compositions include gospel standards “Total Praise,” “Center of My Joy” and “I Love the Lord,” the omission was particularly striking. Smallwood earned eight Grammy nominations along with Stellar and Dove Awards during his career.
The Bigger Question
Smallwood wasn’t the only significant loss to gospel music. Among the notable figures who died in 2025 were singer and minister Norman Hutchins, gospel pioneer Sara Jordan Powell, musician Jesse Lee Prather Jr. and Stellar Award-winning songwriter and choir leader Isaiah D. Thomas.
The losses continued in 2026 with internationally known praise-and-worship leader Ron Kenoly, who died Feb. 3 at 81.
Recent Stellar Awards telecasts have not included a regular In Memoriam segment comparable to those presented by several other major awards broadcasts.
The 2026 Stellar pre-show did feature an In Memoriam presentation, making it a notable step toward broader recognition — but again, outside the primary televised ceremony.
That leaves an opportunity.
A regular In Memoriam segment on the main broadcast could give gospel music a consistent place to recognize the singers, musicians, songwriters, executives and other contributors the industry loses each year.
The Stellar Awards already has a four-decade history devoted to celebrating gospel music and the people who shaped it. Remembering those people could become part of that mission.
A Richard Smallwood tribute can address his specific omission.
But the controversy surrounding his absence has raised a bigger question: Who else might be forgotten if there isn’t a permanent place to remember them?
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