I don't believe anyone should criticize the darker side of secular music if they cannot appreciate the basic goodness of Buddy Holly and/or the Beatles.
Easily the most talented person who was marketed as a Christian singer was Amy Grant and she got disowned when she started doing secular music.
Johnny Cash was never marketed as a "Christian singer" but his occasional Gospel songs were among the best of the 20th century.
This is so well said. Growing up, we believed Christian music was safer; it was marketed to us that way. But as you highlight, the safety was often an illusion, built on branding rather than integrity.
Worse still, the label “Christian” allowed much of the art to escape moral and creative scrutiny. Artists didn’t always need to meet the same artistic standards as their secular peers because audiences were taught to value purity over quality. That trade-off created space not just for mediocrity, but for manipulation.
Thank you for writing this. Truth is sacred, even when it’s uncomfortable.
The entire spectacle of most organized religions is spectacle in one form or another. From the catholic church of old, with music and choirs and incense and priests dressed in robes. The pageants for Christmas and Easter. Mega churches and the laying on of hands, talking in tongues. And certainly the Christian broadcasting network are all performances.
I personally find Jelly Roll on the country radio stations to sing about way more spiritually compelling themes than anything I've heard on the Christian stations. "Need A Favor" absolutely shattered me at a time when I had recently learned the phrases "vending machine prayer" and "Santa Claus in the sky" spirituality.
This is purely anecdotal... don't know the actual names or even the band name of people involved... Just a story I heard from someone I've since lost touch with... But I had a musician friend that signed on as a hired hand backing musician on Christian music tour back in that era, playing to 5,000 people a night, and found a couple permanent members of the band shooting up before shows... he was not impressed. Said it felt horrible to be a part of. It was all show business... just another product to deliver. But people are people, addictions are addictions, and when you have to get up and play and deliver the experience the crowd, and the venue, and the promoter, and yes, even what everyone's concept of God was demanding, sometimes people do what they have to do. Have mercy... as they say.
CCM was always primarily about money. Many Christian artists are employed by subsidiaries of major music corporations. Now some like Derek Webb have turned this to their advantage and sang music they believe should be heard. And I think as time goes on we will see more of this.
I don't believe anyone should criticize the darker side of secular music if they cannot appreciate the basic goodness of Buddy Holly and/or the Beatles.
Easily the most talented person who was marketed as a Christian singer was Amy Grant and she got disowned when she started doing secular music.
Johnny Cash was never marketed as a "Christian singer" but his occasional Gospel songs were among the best of the 20th century.
Amy Grant is truly a beautiful soul. I believe her words are said with honesty and a deep devotion to love people.
This is so well said. Growing up, we believed Christian music was safer; it was marketed to us that way. But as you highlight, the safety was often an illusion, built on branding rather than integrity.
Worse still, the label “Christian” allowed much of the art to escape moral and creative scrutiny. Artists didn’t always need to meet the same artistic standards as their secular peers because audiences were taught to value purity over quality. That trade-off created space not just for mediocrity, but for manipulation.
Thank you for writing this. Truth is sacred, even when it’s uncomfortable.
The entire spectacle of most organized religions is spectacle in one form or another. From the catholic church of old, with music and choirs and incense and priests dressed in robes. The pageants for Christmas and Easter. Mega churches and the laying on of hands, talking in tongues. And certainly the Christian broadcasting network are all performances.
CCM had no problem driving out Mike Knott and marginalizing Michael Roe, amongst so many others. Meanwhile, Nash-Vegas exists.
Thank you for this
I personally find Jelly Roll on the country radio stations to sing about way more spiritually compelling themes than anything I've heard on the Christian stations. "Need A Favor" absolutely shattered me at a time when I had recently learned the phrases "vending machine prayer" and "Santa Claus in the sky" spirituality.
Christian deconstruction and religious trauma are new music genres
This is purely anecdotal... don't know the actual names or even the band name of people involved... Just a story I heard from someone I've since lost touch with... But I had a musician friend that signed on as a hired hand backing musician on Christian music tour back in that era, playing to 5,000 people a night, and found a couple permanent members of the band shooting up before shows... he was not impressed. Said it felt horrible to be a part of. It was all show business... just another product to deliver. But people are people, addictions are addictions, and when you have to get up and play and deliver the experience the crowd, and the venue, and the promoter, and yes, even what everyone's concept of God was demanding, sometimes people do what they have to do. Have mercy... as they say.
CCM was always primarily about money. Many Christian artists are employed by subsidiaries of major music corporations. Now some like Derek Webb have turned this to their advantage and sang music they believe should be heard. And I think as time goes on we will see more of this.
When people say god told me to do it, they are literally taking the lords name in vain.