Around a year ago I released my predictive list of who I reckon would have been recognised at the 2017 Dove Awards. While many predictions were spot on, others were wayward, but like with any prediction, figuring out what are the biggest songs, albums and everything else within the year can be a big feat. And its obvious nominations will always favour some artists and bypass others. That’s just the nature of it. And so, you can see the official nominations and the winners of the 2017 Dove Awards on the official website. And right now, what is the time again? Yes, around this time last year we posted Dove Award 2017 predictions (not for every category, but for a handful), and so around this time in March 2018, we unveil a handful of Dove Award 2018 predictions. Yes, I’m sure some predictions of ours will be wide of the mark, but I’m sure others will be spot on…just not sure which will be which.

If anyone doesn’t really know about the Dove Awards, lemme give you a crash course on it. The Dove Awards are an annual ceremony honouring Christian music, recognising the outstanding achievements of songwriters, producers and songs within a window of time (usually a year). Established in 1969, the Dove Awards encompasses awards presented across a myriad of musical styles- from pop and rock, to worship and rap/hip hop. While my predicted list of nominees doesn’t show us all the full 40-something categories, I have decided to state my two cents worth on a fair few categories myself. Feel free to comment below, about which albums/songs etc you think could be nominated for certain categories in the upcoming Dove Awards, hosted in October 2018. Enjoy reading below and happy predicting!

Song of the Year:

• “Bleed the Same” (feat. TobyMac) (Mandisa)
• “Broken Things” (Matthew West)
• “Changed” (Sanctus Real)
• “God Help Me” (Plumb)
• “Higher” (For All Seasons)
• “Hills and Valleys” (Tauren Wells)
• “Honestly” (The City Harmonic)
• “If I Don’t Have You” (Love & The Outcome)
• “I Won’t Let You Go” (feat. Lauren Daigle) (Switchfoot)
• “Love Won’t Let Me Down” (Hillsong Y&F)
• “No One Like Our God” (Lincoln Brewster)
• “Old Church Choir” (Zach Williams)
• “The Cross Has the Final Word” (Cody Carnes)
• “Witness” (Jordan Feliz)

Songwriter of the Year

• TobyMac
• Matthew West
• Andrew Peterson
• Nichole Nordeman
• Alisa Turner
• Plumb

Songwriter of the Year (Non-Artist)

• Bernie Herms
• David Garcia
• Ben Shive
• Jonathan Smith
• Jennie Lee Riddle
• Michael Farren
• Seth Mosley

New Artist of the Year:

• Aaron Cole
• Riley Clemmons
• The Young Escape
• MDSN
• Cody Carnes
• Mallary Hope
• Joshua Micah
• For All Seasons

Rock/Contemporary Song of the Year:

• “The Other Side” (Colton Dixon)
• “I Just Need U.” (TobyMac)
• “He Still Does (Miracles)” (Hawk Nelson)
• “Prove It” (feat. KB) (Crowder)
• “Walking On Water” (needtobreathe)
• “Still Alive (Looking For a Reason)” (RED)

Pop/Contemporary Song of the Year:

• “Fear Is A Liar” (Zach Williams)
• “Control (Somehow You Want Me)” (Tenth Avenue North)
• “When We Pray” (Tauren Wells)
• “Let There Be Light” (Third Day)
• “Real Love” (Blanca)
• “Now” (Mallary Hope)

Inspirational Song of the Year:

• “Your Love Defends Me” (Matt Maher)
• “So Will I (100 Billion X)” (UNITED)
• “Nowhere” (Sarah Reeves)
• “Gracefully Broken (feat. Tasha Cobbs Leonard)” (Matt Redman)
• “Masterpiece” (Danny Gokey)
• “God of All My Days” (Casting Crowns)

Worship Song of the Year:

• “Wonder” (UNITED)
• “Resurrection Power” (Chris Tomlin)
• “Rescuer (Good News)” (Rend Collective)
• “Do It Again” (Elevation Worship)
• “Reckless Love” (Cory Asbury)
• “Praise the King” (Cory Voss)

Rap/Hip Hop Song of the Year:

• I’ll Find You (feat. Tori Kelly) [Lecrae]
• Walls (feat. Urban Rescue) [Derek Minor]
• War Cry (feat. Tauren Wells) [Social Club Misfits]
• Red And Yellow, Black And White (feat. GabeReal) [Carmen Justice]
• Let You Down [NF]
• Right On Time (feat. TobyMac) [Aaron Cole]
• All Good (feat. Hollyn) [Capital Kings]

Rock/Contemporary Album of the Year:

• Wildfires [Stephen Christian]
• Found [Seventh Day Slumber]
• Let the Light In [Ashes Remain]
• Revival [Third Day]
• The Darker the Night / The Brighter the Morning [Cody Carnes]
• Heartland [John Tibbs]

Pop/Contemporary Album of the Year:

• Out of the Dark [Mandisa]
• Faith Hope Love Repeat [Brandon Heath]
• Hills and Valleys [Tauren Wells]
• LIBERATED [ZEALAND]
• Clarity [For All Seasons]
• All In [Matthew West]
• Trial and Triumph [I AM THEY]

Inspirational Album of the Year:

• The Answer [Jeremy Camp]
• More [Jeremy Riddle]
• Matt Hammitt [Matt Hammitt]
• Every Mile Mattered [Nichole Nordeman]
• Resurrection Letters Vol. 1 [Andrew Peterson]
• Abide With Me [Sara Groves]
• Be Held [Christy Nockels]

Worship Album of the Year:

• Glory Song [Matt Redman]
• Echoes [Matt Maher]
• Where His Light Was [Kristine DiMarco]
• Wonder [UNITED]
• Good News [Rend Collective]
• Reckless Love [Cory Asbury]
• Whole Heart (Live) [Passion]

Rap/Hip Hop Album of the Year:

• Crooked [Propaganda]
• Today We Rebel [KB]
• All Things Work Together [Lecrae]
• Stones [Manafest]
• Into the Night [Social Club Misfits]
• Perception [NF]
• High Above [Derek Minor]

Christmas Album of the Year:

• Decade the Halls [Tenth Avenue North]
• For Unto Us: Christmas Worship Live from London [Paul Baloche]
• Receive Our King [Meredith Andrews]
• The Peace Project [Hillsong Worship]
• Light of Christmas [TobyMac]
• It’s Finally Christmas [Casting Crowns]
• Emmanuel [Hannah Kerr]

Music Video of the Year:

• Broken Prayers [Riley Clemmons]
• Confidence [Sanctus Real]
• I’ll Find You (feat. Tori Kelly) [Lecrae]
• I Can Only Imagine (Movie Session) [MercyMe]
• Bulletproof [Citizen Way]
• Prove It (feat. KB) [Crowder]

Inspirational Film of the Year:

• Samson
• I Can Only Imagine
• God’s Not Dead 3
• Paul, The Apostle of Christ
• Mary Magdalene

There it is: my predictions of some of the categories of the Dove Awards, to be presented in October 2018. What are your predictions of the Dove Award categories for this year? Let us know in the comments. Til then, predict away!