Contemporary gospel icon is among all-time most-streamed artists
WASHINGTON, April 22, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Contemporary gospel icon Kirk Franklin has earned a SoundExchange Hall of Fame Award, recognizing him as one of the most-streamed artists in the organization’s 20-plus year history of administering digital performance royalties.
“Kirk Franklin’s music has inspired generations, and his voice continues to elevate spiritual music around the world,” said Michael Huppe, President and CEO of SoundExchange. “We’re honored to recognize Kirk with a SoundExchange Hall of Fame Award and to celebrate a trailblazing career that has expanded the reach and influence of inspirational music across music and culture.”
“I’m truly grateful for this honor,” said Kirk Franklin. “I’m humbled to be included in the Hall of Fame, and I share this moment with everyone who’s supported gospel music and kept the message moving forward. Thank you to SoundExchange for the work you do every day to advocate for artists and make sure creators are paid for their music.”
Kirk Franklin is among the nearly 600,000 members who entrust SoundExchange to collect worldwide neighboring rights royalties on their behalf through more than 90 agreements with international organizations, covering 91% of the available global neighboring rights market.
Franklin’s most recent album, Father’s Day, was nominated earlier this year for a Best Gospel Album GRAMMY Award. He took part in the inaugural Rise and Rhythm Cruise in February and will take part in Keith Lee’s FamiLee Day, May 16 in New Orleans and has plans to headline the August 2 Gospel Garden event in London.
About Kirk Franklin
Kirk Franklin is a 20-time Grammy Award-winning artist, songwriter, and producer. After more than 30 years of countless hits and success at bridging Gospel, R&B, Hip-Hop and Pop music together, Franklin continuously creates a sonic compass for everyday culture and curates a moment whenever and however he can to keep the message of the Gospel moving forward. With epic collaborations with artists including Mariah Carey, Khalid, Lil’ Baby, Chance the Rapper, Kanye West, Justin Timberlake, Justin Bieber, Demi Lovato, Michael Jackson and Wyclef Jean, Franklin’s impact doesn’t just stop at the charts. He works to promote the growth and development of young artists by hosting a summer camp for aspiring artists and musicians called Camp Lotus. And he supports non-profit organizations including, Compassion International and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. While Franklin is committed to helping the community, he is also passionate about making sure that Gospel music continues to reach new heights and larger audiences. In March 2023, Franklin made history by spending 100 weeks at #1 on Billboard’s Gospel Songwriters chart and becoming the first artist to reach the 100-week milestone on any Billboard songwriters chart. In addition to music, Franklin has his own channel, Kirk Franklin’s Praise, on SiriusXM and has executive produced several film and television projects including Kingdom Business on BET and Kirk Franklin’s A Gospel Christmas and Kirk Franklin’s The Night Before Christmas on Lifetime.
About SoundExchange
SoundExchange is the largest global neighboring rights organization in the world, redefining how creators in the music industry get paid. By turning data into fast, accurate revenue for artists and rights owners, we have collected and distributed more than $13 billion in digital performance royalties to date on behalf of more than 800,000 music creators. As the sole organization designated by the U.S. government to administer the Section 114 sound recording license, SoundExchange seamlessly collects and distributes digital performance royalties from platforms like Pandora, SiriusXM, iHeartRadio, and thousands more, as well as all available international performance royalties through a strong global partnership network. For more information, visit soundexchange.com.
View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/kirk-franklin-honored-with-soundexchange-hall-of-fame-award-302750470.html
SOURCE SoundExchange
