Karen Peck never really considered herself a rare female headliner in a male-dominated industry.

After all, the business that she’s in is gospel music. Everyone is family.

“I never thought about that, because I grew up with the people in these groups,” said Peck in a recent phone interview. “It’s pretty much a family industry.”

In gospel, there’s all-male groups, all-female groups, mixed groups such as Karen Peck & New River and family groups. All kinds will be represented this weekend at the fifth annual Glorybound Gospel Jubilee, held today through Sunday at the Blue Hill Fair Grounds.

Peck, who performs with New River tonight, has come every year to the Jubilee, her lone trip to Maine annually. The members of Hampden-based Glorybound, Rick and Retta Kelley and their daughter, Dawn, first met Peck when New River played at the Bangor State Fair about seven years ago. They catch up each summer at the Greens Jubilee in North Carolina and the National Quartet Convention in Atlanta.

“They’re sweet people,” Peck said of the Kelleys. “We love those people. We make a special trip up for their jubilee.”

New River, which also features Peck’s sister Susan and Jason Jackson, plays many outdoor concerts, fairs and festivals each summer, appearing at churches on Sunday as well. Her trio plays about 180 dates a year in the United States and Canada.

The crowds at New River concerts generally range in age from 25 to 60.

“The fans are very loyal, very faithful,” Peck said. “They’ll stick with you through thick and thin.”

Gospel is in Peck’s blood. Her parents would take Karen, Susan and their sister Sandra to all-night sings in Atlanta, and they vowed to one day start their own music ministry.

For a decade, Peck performed with the Nelons, a well-established gospel group whose shows she had attended while growing up. When she started her own trio 12 years ago, Peck figured it would be a little weekend sideline.

“I had no idea I’d be full time,” she recalled from her home in the north Georgia town of Dablonega (where gold was first discovered in the United States). “I had no idea that I’d made so many friends in the industry. This is a dream come true for me.”

Being thrust into the frontwoman’s role wasn’t something with which Peck was immediately comfortable.

“I didn’t do a lot of the talking because I didn’t think people would take me seriously,” she said. “I mean, I was this blonde with a high-C voice. I wasn’t used to talking on stage, and I didn’t do it much until after my father died. In time, it got a lot better.”

New River just went around another bend, as the Peck sisters had to find a replacement for John Darin Rowsey, who had been with them for three years and wanted to get off the road to spend more time with his family.

The sisters poured through hundreds of e-mails and videotapes from vocal candidates.

“We’d find a great singer whose voice didn’t blend [with theirs] or whose personality wouldn’t fit in,” Peck said. “Change is always difficult. You have to trust in the Lord, who always seems to find the right person.”

In this case, that person was Jackson, 21, formerly of the group Truth.

“When Jason came, we knew he was the one,” Peck said. “He blends like he’s part of the family. Usually, it takes six months to find that blend, but it was a lot shorter with Jason. He’s added a spark to New River.”

The trio is now working on its first album together, “For His Glory,” which will be out in August.

Peck said that the biggest different between now and when she started is that gospel music is less competitive now.

“People are settled in more,” she said. “We’re in Christian music, so there’s only one star – Jesus Christ. We’re all focused more on Christ.”

Glorybound Jubilee schedule: 7 p.m. Thursday, Karen Peck and New River; The Gaudets, Rochester, N.H.; The Wilburns, Hendersonville, Tenn; Glorybound, Hampden; 7 p.m. Friday, The Dixie Melody Boys, Kinston, N.C.; Golden Harmony, Back Bay, New Brunswick; The Wilburns, Glorybound; 6 p.m., Brian Free and Assurance, Georgia; Kevin Spencer and Friends, Shelby, Ohio; The Freemans, Hendersonville, Tenn.; Glorybound. Tickets are $15 per concert night, and are sold at the gate. For more information, call 862-4258.