It wouldn’t be much of a party without a few guests. We invited several friends of the blog to share their thoughts on MusicScribe Blog’s 20 years.

Daniel Britt writes:
When I think back to the early days of what David brought to Gospel Music (through a term I never thought would have lasted this long: “a blog”) was more than just one man’s opinion. For sure, he had the vision and the drive and saw it to become an aggregate of various voices and sources of happenings in and around the world of Gospel Music. There were others out there, some opinionated, some anonymous, some strictly dedicated to news and press releases — but the dynamic and multi-layered approach to delivering interesting articles, analysis, and reaction from both an industry-leader point of view as well as the fan’s perspective gave us a place to foster our love of Gospel music between singings, services, and concerts. I was happy to join forces and contribute anything I was able, being a radio guy with audio or sometimes a different perspective from a neighboring industry — I loved how we could add some of our various voices that show how the making and feeding of Gospel Music came from all around the country. For those of us who could hardly wait until the next event coming to town, a daily refresh and visit to MusicScribe was up there with reading email, refreshing the Drudge Report, and checking the weather forecast. When I think back to 2004 – personally: I celebrated my first-year wedding anniversary, we bought our first house, I changed radio stations, and it was also the year Homecoming Radio launched. A lot has changed since then. Before social media (but more corralled than the old message boards and chat rooms) there was MusicScribe – a place for civility with a shared love of this message and style. Happy 20th!

Terry Snyder writes:
When I got online in 2000, I missed the previous ways fans communicated (such as what the Singing News and Harold Timmons had). By then message boards were in vogue, and eventually blogs. Sadly some great ones are gone without a trace. Others fortunately still have archived content up for reference and enjoyment, even if they get no updates. Then there’s MusicScribe left still standing, adding various new content. About a year prior to MusicScribe’s birth, was MySpace’s. MySpace is pretty much on life support, whereas MusicScribe is thriving. Congratulations to David and his contributors. Here’s hoping that MusicScribe and SGHistory continue for decades to come.

Brian Fuson writes:
When I was first inspired to start writing about Southern Gospel 14 years ago, there were two blogs that were instrumental in that decision. Daniel Mount’s Southern Gospel Blog and MusicScribe. Throughout the years, David, Kyle, and all the contributors of MusicScribe have consistently been the standard that many of us have strived to be in our own writing, keeping fans informed of the latest news, publishing album reviews and commentary that are both honest and thought provoking, as well as encouraging posts and devotions that have blessed many readers through the years. I am deeply appreciative of their dedication & determination to keep their standards high and for the excellence they continue to provide fans like myself. God bless you guys and may MusicScribe to continue to be instrumental in inspiring new voices in the Southern Gospel scene in the years to come.

Wes Burke writes: 
Congratulations MusicScribe on your 20th anniversary! I have so many fond memories of us all getting to drag this genre into the internet age kicking and screaming. Change is hard. From news stories, to album reviews, especially the mega reviews where all of us bloggers collaborated, concert reviews, and everything in between, MusicScribe has led the way with class and integrity. I’m honored to have contributed alongside you guys for those years, and you continue to set the standard for news and honest critique. Congrats again and keep up the good work!

Daniel Mount writes:
Few blogs make it one year. Very few make it 5. It’s practically unheard of for a blog to make it twenty years. This is an incredible milestone. Congratulations to David on this incredible accomplishment! The work David has done on MusicScribe and its parallel website, SGHistory.com, has made an incalculable impact on this genre. SGHistory now preserves decades of information that would otherwise likely have been lost to history. Here’s my hot take: He might be to this threshold or merely on the way, but either way, David Bruce Murray needs to end up in the Southern Gospel Hall of Fame.

Aaron Swain writes:
When I first discovered this genre of music back in 2005, I immediately went to the Internet to start absorbing any information I could find about Southern Gospel, its history, and current events. You could hardly click a link on the first page of Google results without seeing David Bruce Murray’s name, whether from a post on a message board or on the MusicScribe blog. When I started a blog of my own in 2007, DBM could have easily dismissed me as a snot-nosed kid newcomer, but instead, he actively encouraged my writing and even cited and linked to posts of mine from time to time. Eventually, he even invited me to take part in things like “mega-reviews” of projects along with other bloggers I read and respected. I was never treated as anything less than a peer from day one until Swain’s Musings faded away in 2015. I fully believe God has honored that spirit of encouragement with the success, growth, and longevity of both SGHistory and this blog. Congrats on 20 years!