QUICK TAKES - April 25, 2009

Veteran Christian artist Steven Curtis Chapman capped an emotional year in which he lost his 5-year-old daughter by winning artist of the year during the Gospel Music Assn.’s Dove Awards.

Chapman won Thursday night’s top honor for the seventh time in his career

Chapman’s 5-year-old daughter, Maria Sue, was killed last May when she was accidentally hit by a vehicle driven by her older brother in the driveway of the family’s home.

Other big winners were Brandon Heath, who won male vocalist and song of the year, and Natalie Grant, who won the female vocalist trophy for the fourth year in a row.