BMI honored the best in Christian music Tuesday night at the 2026 BMI Christian Awards, held at the organization's Nashville office on Music Row, recognizing the songwriters and publishers behind the year's 25 most-performed Christian songs. Here's a full breakdown of who took home the night's top honors.
Song of the Year
"Made For More" - written by Jessie Early, Jonathan Smith, and Blake Wiggins, performed by Josh Baldwin. The song has generated more than 95 million global streams and gave Baldwin his first No. 1 on Billboard's Christian AC Airplay chart.
Songwriter of the Year
Steven Furtick - honored for writing three of the year's 25 most-performed songs: "Another One," "Goodbye Yesterday," and "Lion." Furtick is a primary songwriter for both Elevation Worship and Elevation Rhythm and has now earned six No. 1s through those collectives, including past hits "Praise," "Graves Into Gardens," and "Talking to Jesus."
Publisher of the Year
Capitol CMG Publishing - representing 19 of the year's 25 most-performed songs, including "Made For More," "Altar," "Grave Robber," "My God Can," and "Somebody Prayed."
Other Most-Performed Songs Honored
- "Altar" - Forrest Frank, Lasanna "Ace" Harris, Steve Rice, Willie Scott Jr.
- "Nothin' Sweeter" - TobyMac, Jordan Mohilowski
- "Running Back To You" - Seph Schlueter
- "Thank You Jesus for the Blood" - Charity Gayle, Steven Musso
- "Unsung Hero" - Luke Smallbone
First-Time Award Winners
BMI celebrated 18 first-time honorees this year, including Leanna Crawford, Megan Woods, Patrick Mayberry, Frankie Holleman, and Zachary Kale.
Performances of the Night
The evening opened with a prayer from 2018 BMI Compass Award recipient Elwyn Raymer, followed by live performances throughout the night - including Belle Frantz's rendition of "Amazing Grace," Drew Parker performing "Blame Jesus" with an introduction from 2022 BMI Icon Steven Curtis Chapman, and a closing set from Jamie MacDonald.
