Around Hear

Exodus 16, Verse 32: “And Moses said, ‘This is the thing which the Lord commandeth. Fill an omer of manna to be kept for your generations, that they may see the bread wherewith I have fed you in the wilderness, when I brought you forth from the land of Egypt.”

As scripture goes, this isn’t the most captivating passage, unless your name happens to be Omer. Omer Coleman Jr. shares his name with an ancient Hebrew unit of dry capacity, a coincidence he came across one day while reading the Bible. “The Spirit led me to that verse,” Coleman claims. Well, The Spirit and the glossary — Coleman admits he’d already looked up “omer” in the back of the book. But the verse’s reference to passing something heaven-sent down from generation to generation remains relevant. Coleman recorded the hip-hop-flavored album Aairborn Chapter 1 with his son, Omer III, earlier this year and released it on his own Remo Records.

And the divinely inspired words of Exodus 16 now appear at the base of a 13-inch glass tower that’s also decorated with an etching of Coleman’s face. In this context, an Omer isn’t a measurement but a trophy awarded to the area’s finest gospel performers and personalities. Coleman drew up rough plans for an awards presentation about a year and a half ago (roughly the time he stumbled upon his name in the Book). Now, finally, it’s about to become a reality. On Saturday, November 3, at the Gem Theatre, Coleman presents the first annual Omer Awards, a black-tie affair that starts at 7 p.m.

Despite the prominence of his name, Coleman didn’t pick the nominees and winners himself, à la heavy-metal maven Jim Kilroy‘s Banzai! awards. Instead, he invited input from performers, producers, radio personalities and record-label workers. This panel of fifty voted on categories (best CD, male singer and female singer) split into contemporary and traditional subdivisions. The Omers also recognize radio personalities — which, in addition to honoring some worthy DJs, will undoubtedly earn on-air plugs. Other than that, Coleman has been counting on nominated performers to spread the word, something they’re certainly used to doing, at the churches and concert halls where they regularly perform.

Coleman created a few special Omers to celebrate civic-minded nonmusicians such as the Reverend Emanuel Cleaver (the Visionary Award), City Councilman Alvin Brooks (the I Have a Dream Award), and Edmund Howard and J. W. Scott (the Howard/Scott Award). “There’s a special focus on keeping the city safe and the overall growth of the city,” Coleman explains. “These gentlemen do so much for the youth in the community, which isn’t directly associated with music but which is very meaningful to the growth of the gospel industry.”

Coleman has plenty of practice handing out awards. For almost a year, he has issued Youth of the Month trophies on his radio program Da Nu Hip-Hop Gospel Show, which airs from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. Saturdays on KGGN 890. (The October recipient, twelve-year-old Alysha Porchia, earned her gold-colored figurine by sending Remo Records a painting inspired by Airborn.) However, he’s not quite as experienced at receiving them, which will add an extra air of excitement when it comes time for Coleman, in his role as the master of ceremonies, to announce the categories in which he’s nominated: Best Gospel Hip-Hop CD and Best Gospel Producer. “It’s going to be a very busy night for me, and a very exciting evening,” Coleman says.

The night could have been even more hectic had he elected to perform in addition to his other duties. “That would’ve been too much,” he says. “I wanted to do this for the Kansas City artists, and I didn’t want to be too overbearing or take up too much of the limelight.” Instead, he enlisted artists such as The 3, The Mechanical Men, Set Apart, Kami Johnson, Minister James Madrey, Jr., Tamara Jordan, Nylia Webster, Starlight Spiritual Choir and A Joyful Noise community choir. Coleman says dozens of other acts volunteered their services, but knowing that the burden of keeping an awards show at a bearable length falls on the producer, he had to inform them there was no room at the Gem.

The final lineup ranges from rappers to choirs. Coleman says this will give older gospel fans an opportunity to appreciate a different groove. “There’s some resistance, but people are slowly but surely starting to become receptive to rap and hip-hop gospel music,” he says. “That’s what the younger generation understands, and that’s the way they want to express themselves.”

The nominated artists range from teenage hip-hop acts to 81-year-old Best Gospel CD-nominee Dell Merriweather, whose This Is My Testimony marks her first-ever full-length release. “She’s an inspiration,” Coleman raves. “It’s never too late.”

“I wrote my first songs back in the ’60s,” Merriweather says. “Through the years, I’ve written about thirty to fifty songs. I didn’t know I had a gift, so I’ve never paid much attention to it. I didn’t start thinking about recording until 1997. I just kept the songs in my mind.”

Merriweather sings at church, but she has never performed as a soloist, though she says she’d be open to doing so if she were invited. Because she didn’t consider herself a practicing musician, she searched for other vocalists to perform salvation-themed tunes such as “Jesus Is the Rock” and “Thank God for Jesus.” “I tried to find somebody to sing my songs because I wasn’t a professional, and I couldn’t find anyone,” she says. “The Lord impressed it on my mind that He wants these songs recorded, so I said, ‘I’ll sing them myself.'”

After releasing This Is My Testimony in 2000, Merriweather brought it to several area book stores to sell on consignment, after which she learned some would-be listeners have yet to become familiar with the commandment “Thou shalt not steal.” Five copies of the disc disappeared from Jesus Christ Loves You bookstore, which graciously reimbursed Merriweather for the expense. “I guess it means somebody likes it,” Merriweather says, laughing. Inspired by more orthodox signs of support, such as her Omer Award nomination and praise from neighbors and friends, she continues to write and says she plans to release another recording within the next year.

With the attention Coleman is lavishing upon the gospel scene, a few more unproven artists might feel inspired to give performing or recording a try. “There’s some great gospel talent here,” Coleman says. “Just as great as in any other city in the country. I wanted to bring attention to that fact. There’s national award shows, but it’s time for Kansas City to recognize our own people, to stand up and be counted rather than waiting.” Amen.