Southern Gospel

Southern Gospel is a style of Christian/Gospel music performed and promoted by touring groups, recorded on gospel albums, and presented on various media outlets including radio, television, and streaming. The style has long been characterized by an emphasis on vocal harmony and gospel-centric lyrics that, from song to song, may explore any aspect of the Christian experience.

The birth of Southern Gospel as a professional industry is generally considered to be 1910. That was the year James D Vaughan began sending out quartets to promote the sale of songbooks published by his company. Other companies soon followed Vaughan's model. The most notable of these was Stamps Baxter Music (established in 1926) which had dozens of associated groups selling their songbooks in the decades that followed. Early groups were typically male quartets using a guitar or piano for accompaniment.

The actual term "Southern Gospel" did not come to be widely associated with the genre until the 1970s and 1980s when a more specific term was needed to distinguish the style from the emerging Christian pop/rock groups as well as traditional Black Gospel. In more recent years, criticism of the word "Southern" in the name of the genre has generally stemmed from the view that it limits the genre to the southeast region of the United States.

Southern Gospel was dominated by all-male and mixed male/female groups for many years. Groups made up of closely related family members were also common in the genre's formative years. Solo and duo acts became more common at major Southern Gospel events, particularly in the 1990s and 2000s, but trios and quartets remained the most common two formats. The popularity of the Gaither Gospel Series exposed Southern Gospel to an international audience along with related Gospel styles originating from North America. The advent of satellite radio also opened new doors. Closely related styles including Christian Country and Bluegrass Gospel also came to be welcomed under the Southern Gospel umbrella.

Modern Southern Gospel encompasses a variety of related sub-styles. A common denominator that remains is song lyrics with a clear Christian/Gospel focus.