Gospel musicians are set to be given their due as the maiden edition of the Ghana Gospel Industry Awards (GGIA) comes off at the National Theatre on Saturday 9th July. The event organised and powered by Adom 106.3 FM is designed to award excellence in the gospel music industry in Ghana, an industry many believe plays second fiddle to the hip life and high life genres in the country. The award ceremony is borne out of the clamour for an award scheme that appreciates the volume of work done by gospel musicians across the country. Lawrence Tamakloe, Events and Promotions executive at Adom FM, says the ceremony seeks to encourage excellence in the gospel music industry. He said the event is designed to “acknowledge the artistes and to bring professionalism and discipline into the industry so that they can favorably compete in the international arena.” He said everything is ready for the grand ceremony as the organizers put finishing touches to the National Theatre where expectant patrons will be treated to the best of Ghanaian music as the awards are dished out. There will be an array of both old and new artistes who will be lined up to render hits after hits of gospel music. Some of the artistes on the bill are the ever-inspiring Tagoe Sisters, the suave Amy Newman, the forever young Stella Aba Seal, Phillipa Baafi, No Tribe, Cecelia Marfo, Ernest Opoku, Gifty Osei et al. Lawrence Tamakloe said organizing the event has been hectic but the satisfaction of awarding people who have excelled in the less appreciated industry is extraordinary. He said the GGIA will be used as a platform to correct some of the deficiencies in the sector. The gospel music which contributes between 70 to 75 percent of the Ghanaian music industry annually is plagued with a number of challenges that must be addressed vigorously if the industry will get the needed attention on the continent. According to Lawrence Tamakloe, the GGIA Academy had difficulties tracing some of the producers and other relevant data in relation to the songs. He said some artistes do not have adequate information about their works and the GGIA will help reshape the focus of the industry so that artistes can effectively manage their talents. Tickets for the event are already available at the Joy FM and Adom FM. Alternatively, patrons can buy the ticket at the National Theatre.