The past few days, I’ve been haunted by the image of Julian King. I still can’t believe anyone could actually pick up a gun and shoot a seven-year-old child.

My prayers go out to Jennifer Hudson and her family.

Mandisa’s Little Drummer Boy is an excellent reworking of the children’s classic! I totally love it. The gospel choir near the end, the clapping, the party atmosphere, everything about it works!

Before this, my favorite Little Drummer Boy version was by Carnie and Wendy Wilson, but Mandisa’s Little Drummer Boy may very well best it. It’s really really good!

It’s Christmas, Mandisa’s full-length Christmas album now in stores. Get your copy!

Okay, I have a confession to make.

I don’t know where this blog is headed.

I’ve had so much fun over at Future Thin Guy, and in between doses of maintaining my Hyundai Getz website and my Multiply website, the raison d’etre for GannsDeen.com has gotten a little diluted. Of course, it also doesn’t help that Google did some fancy mumbo jumbo and suddenly my blog posts don’t show up on the SERPs anymore.

But it’s still a PR4, so I don’t want to kill it naman, kasi sayang. I just don’t know how many people actually still visit here.

So this is just another post to tell y’all to check out the other three websites I mentioned, while I try to figure out and make sense of this latest identity crisis for the website that actually bears my name.

Archie Castillo and I have collaborated on a new song titled Easy to Love You. I’m really excited about this track because it’s horizontal in nature - it sings directly to God - but it does it from a first-person perspective. I think that first-timers to church will find Easy to Love You easy to sing because the lyrics aren’t so scary, and the melody is really anthemic.

If we’re going for a song that’s like a love song to God, this is one of my most introspective ones, I think. It’s gonna be awesome!

God, I hope this is her next single! If This Isn’t Love is HOT! Jennifer Hudson is HOT!!

I was one of the 68 bloggers chosen by NuffNang Philippines for their first contest. Thank you, NuffNang, it’s a privilege and an honor. It’s a great way to start our relationship, that’s for sure. *grin*

Click after the jump to see the complete list of winners. Congratulations to the other 67, and here’s to one more blog adding to your linkbacks!

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I stumbled into the Free Christian Music blog this morning, and just had to tell you all about it. The person who maintains this site pops regular updates on legally free downloads from many popular Christian artists. Part of the list that he’s posted was the link to 100 Places to Find Free Christian Music Online. So if you’re looking for great Christian music for free, there are a lot of places you can go.

I hope y’all still bookmark me, though. *grin*

Jennifer Hudson’s self-titled debut album is now out in Manila for only PHP395!

Jennifer Hudson features the Ne-Yo produced Spotlight, the hit carrier single, as well as And I Am Telling You (I’m Not Going) (from Dreamgirls, the movie in which Jennifer Hudson won an Academy Award for ‘Best Supporting Actress’), and Pocketbook, produced by Timbaland.

Jennifer Hudson is HOT! Spotlight is HOT! According to Billboard, “Next week’s Billboard 200 will also greet handsome entries from Jennifer Hudson’s self-titled debut (Arista) and Robin Thicke’s “Something Else” (Star Trak/Interscope), both of which are looking good for top five debuts.”

TOP 5 in the USA next week! Bili na! (woot)

The Katinas’ Lifestyle is one of Contemporary Christian Music’s finest worship albums. I can’t wait for them to get here!

Jennifer Hudson has claimed a number one hit! Woot! Spotlight has moved one notch from #2 to #1 on the Billboard Hot Adult R&B Airplay, bumping Eric Benet’s You’re the Only One down to #2.

On the Billboard Hot R&B/HipHop Songs chart, Hudson’s Spotlight rebounds 4-3, matching its previous peak. The same chart trajectory for Spotlight follows on the Billboard Hot R&B/HipHop Airplay chart; Spotlight is the highest-placed female vocal on the chart, third only to T.I.’s Whatever You Like and T-Pain’s Can’t Believe It. T-Pain guests on Hudson’s self-titled debut album, now out in stores.

On the big chart, the Billboard Hot 100, Spotlight finally enters the Top 40, moving up five generous notches to #36 from #41. On the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart, Spotlight falls to #22 from #19. Jennifer Hudson’s debut single peaked at #8 on this chart (still a Top 10 hit, not bad at all for a debut single!).

Fred Bronson also writes about Jennifer Hudson this week in Chart Beat. (He also ever so briefly mentions Mandisa!) He says:

‘SPOTLIGHT’ SHINES: Speaking of “American Idol” finalists, Jennifer Hudson gives the franchise its 203rd No. 1, counting all national, domestic charts compiled by Billboard. Hudson’s “Spotlight” (Arista) captures first place on the Adult R&B survey.

From the time the popular TV series had its first Billboard No. 1 (Kelly Clarkson’s “A Moment Like This” topped the Hot 100 the week of Oct. 5, 2002), it took almost four years to amass 100 No. 1s. The 100th “Idol” No. 1 also belonged to Clarkson; her single “Walk Away” topped the Hot 100 Recurrents chart the week of Aug. 12, 2006. It has taken just over two additional years for those 100 “Idol” No. 1s to double and pass the 200 mark.

“Spotlight” is Hudson’s third chart entry on Adult R&B and her first No. 1. In March 2007, her version of “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going” from the “Dreamgirls” soundtrack peaked at No. 3. In July 2007, “Leaving Tonight,” credited to Ne-Yo featuring Jennifer Hudson, went to No. 26.

Here’s how the 203 No. 1s by “Idol” contestants are distributed among seven seasons worth of vocalists:

Kelly Clarkson 45
Carrie Underwood 33
Chris Daughtry (Daughtry) 24
Fantasia 21
Ruben Studdard 15
Clay Aiken 11
Kimberley Locke 8
Josh Gracin 7
Mandisa 6
Jordin Sparks 6
David Cook 4
Taylor Hicks 3
Jennifer Hudson 3
Elliott Yamin 3
American Idol Finalists 2
David Archuleta 2
Bo Bice 2
Kellie Pickler 2
Paris Bennett 1
Bucky Covington 1
Diana DeGarmo 1
Tamyra Gray 1
Chris Sligh 1
William Hung 1