Christian music industry
Encyclopedia
The Christian music industry is a small part of the larger music industry, that focuses on traditional Gospel music
, Southern Gospel music
, Contemporary Christian music
, and alternative Christian music. It is sometimes called the gospel music industry, although this designation is not a limitation on the musical styles represented. The industry has roots in Jesus Music
, although in order to commercialize and gain a wide appeal, the music had to largely move away from the form of that movement.
Christian artists generally use secular styles, pairing them with lyrics that display faith and spirituality to varying degrees. Generally speaking, the industry is influenced by mainstream culture. Musical trends, for instance, follow those of the secular scene, though usually a few years behind. The Christian music industry carries the distinction of being the only music subculture whose content is labeled by its lyrical dimension rather than its music. Still, music within the industry is sold by its musical style rather than lyrical content.
Christian music's critics point to the divergent interests of commercialization and ministry, which have, according to some, polar opposite
goals. Aspects of Christian music have long struggled to gain general acceptance, even within the Christian community. What some see as secularization and a lacking of direct theology, others see as artistic ministry. This opens up questions of the definition of "Christian music" that have lingered over the industry since its inception.
The Christian music industry experienced explosive growth in the 1990s. Christian music sales grew to exceed those for classical, jazz, and new age music. Even so, the Christian music industry has experienced the same issues as the general market in recent years.
and its Jesus Music
artists. The Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Music points out three reasons that the Christian music industry developed as a parallel structure to the general music industry. First, the Jesus movement produced a large number of bands in a very short period, which the general market was unable and/or unwilling to absorb. This was in part due to a lack of appreciation for the ideology expressed by such artists. Finally, Jesus music artists tended toward mistrust of secular corporations. According to another critic, the industry in this period was defined by four characteristics: lack of audience acceptance for styles, inferior production, inefficient distribution, and lack of wide radio exposure. Petra
, for instance, struggled to find an audience for their hard rock sound, partially due to limited distribution to Christian bookstores.
Even so, the 1970s saw large corporations become involved in the Christian music market. Word Records
, founded in 1951, was bought in 1976 by ABC
. Other music industry giants also got involved, CBS
started a short-lived Christian label, Priority Records, and MCA
also fielded a label for a time.
While the Jesus movement had ended by the 1980s, the Christian music industry was maturing and transforming into a multi-million dollar enterprise. The early 1980s saw an increase Christian booksellers taking product, and an increase in sales followed, despite the recession. As a percentage of gross sales, Christian music rose from 9% in 1976 to 23% in 1985. By her 1982 release
Amy Grant
had saturated the Christian marketplace and made significant inroads into the general market. Sandi Patti and Michael W. Smith
also gained influence within Christian music, each playing significant roles in the development of the industry.
Harder forms of Christian music, such as heavy metal, also began to gain acceptance. This is largely credited to Stryper
, who had begun making inroads into the general market by 1985. Still, rock and alternative
acts faced a longer battle for acceptance than contemporary
acts, as the form was opposed by prominent religious leaders such as Jimmy Swaggart
and others on the Christian right
. While in 1981 total gospel music industry revenues were approximately $180 million, only ten years later they would total $680 million, according to CCM Magazine.
According to RIAA data, market share for sales of Christian music albums more than doubled between 1993 and 1997. In the 1990s the Christian music industry became the fastest growing segment of the music industry. This was due to several factors, including consolidation of record labels, and independent Christian bookstores into chains.
The Christian music industry began adopting SoundScan in 1995, although implementation was spotty even into the millennium. Even so, the adoption caused the visibility of Christian artists to increase significantly, and brought credibility to the industry as Christian albums became integrated into all Billboard charts
.
In 1985, 90% of Christian music sales originated at Christian bookstores. By 1995, that number had dropped to 64%, with general retailers taking 21%, and the remainder accountable through other methods, such as direct mail. At that same time, the industry was estimated to gross $750 million, with $381 million in album sales. In the late 1990s, general market retailers, especially big box stores such as Best Buy
, Wal-Mart
, Target
, and Blockbuster began carrying a wider selection of Christian music products. By 2000 those stores had surpassed Christian retail in terms of the number of Christian albums sold, according to Soundscan numbers. This phenomenon was partially responsible for crossover successes. P.O.D.
, for example, sold 1.4 million albums in 2001, although sales at Christian retail outlets accounted for only 10%.
The new millennium has brought challenges for the record industry as a whole, and these have affected the Christian music industry as well. Contemporary worship music, a long time staple of the industry, began to gain significant market share
in about the year 2000. By focusing on marketing worship music to youth culture, this genre became a growth driver despite the downturn in the general music industry.
Growth continued until about 2003, but has generally followed the trends of the larger music industry since that point. In 2009 a The New York Times
op-ed
placed the entire music industry on a "deathwatch," pointing out that new forms of media, piracy, and new pricing options are driving gross sales down. In another example of parallelism, the Christian music industry has experienced largely the same phenomenon. In the Christian marketplace, music consumption has risen by as much as 30% since 2005, but overall album sales have dropped to about half of their 1999 levels. However, some critics point out that the current downturn may have long term positive effects for the industry. John J. Thompson told Christianity Today
that "The lack of monetary benefit has filtered out some of the people who should not have been doing this in the first place. If the people who are in it for the money are gone, it leaves more turf for those who had something a little bit loftier in mind."
, including radio, magazines, and book stores. For many this is a conscious choice, however others, not content to stay in an isolated industry segment, attempt to "cross over" and gain acceptance in the general market. For many artists, being called Christian becomes a stigma.
A 1997 study revealed that a self-identified audience of "Christian music listeners" had what was considered a lacking recognition of Christian artists. The survey was commissioned by the Christian Music Trade Association and Z Music Television
. The study looked at several artists including Amy Grant
, BeBe
and CeCe Winans
, Carman
, Steven Curtis Chapman
, dc Talk
, Sandi Patty
, and Michael W. Smith
. At the time of the survey, each of these artists was active in Christian music and had been so for at least nine years, was a multiple Dove Award and/or Grammy Award
winner, and had albums certified
Gold or higher.
Even so, the survey found that the Christian music audience was no more familiar with artists in the field than they were with Hootie & The Blowfish
, a popular act at that time. The study concluded that the word "Christian" was the problem, causing a stigma. "It's the label, not the music, that dissuades," one Christian music executive was quoted as saying, agreeing with the survey.
Another aspect of the "ghetto" is that some artists have trouble gaining audience with Christians due to their non-conservative image. Stryper
is a well known example. Stryper received large amounts of criticism from groups on the Christian right, who argue (among other things) that their image as rock stars contradict their espoused faith. One critic wrote that the marriage of secular and religious elements in "Christian music" "violates all that God has commanded in the Bible about separation
."
The "ghetto" has several effects, critics point out that the audience of such artists are often already Christians, thus limiting the impact of any supposed "evangelism." Another is that artists sometimes have trouble appealing to and maintaining both secular and religious audiences. For example:
The problem, as summed by one critic, was that the music was too religious for secular audience, while simultaneously too aggressive for religious audiences. One critic describes the situation, stating that for a band "to be taken seriously outside the Christian scene, a band must stay far, far away from that scene."
Mutemath, for instance sued their record label with the goal of removing their product from the Christian market. Their first release sold almost 30,000 copies, with "bulk of sales coming from the Christian market," according to Billboard. The band had been placed in the Christian market by their record label largely because their lead singer, Paul Meany
, was previously with the band Earthsuit
, whose only major label release
was released on a Christian label
.
This caused the band to not get taken seriously by music critics, and by the release of their full length album the band began expressing discontent with their situation. Meany told Tucson Weekly "...we began to see ourselves getting pigeonholed into this particular world that we weren't necessarily proud to be associated with... We're not trying to preach through our music; we don't have some kind of evangelistic agenda with what we're doing... You know, you don't want to be ashamed of your faith and your beliefs, but you don't want to be marketed by that, either."
On the other hand, some artists operate solely within the "ghetto" of Christian music, and find great success in doing so.
) reported in 1978 that it was their goal to produce crossover artists, but they were limited by lack of distribution to the secular marketplace. Both problems affected Christian labels into the 1990s. "Since people don't understand [the term] 'the Blood of Jesus
,'" stated a manager for Lion & Lamb, "...music that communicates must approach it another way. We've got to present a subtle but sensitive Christian message." Lyrics with subdued religious content have become commonplace in the industry; One critic points out that the secular hit "Spirit in the Sky
" "has more explicit religious references than do many recent Christian radio hits."
Some critics have alleged that CCM often uses "minimal direct theology," and promotes a "Jesus is my boyfriend" image of God. Using downplayed religious content in lyrics has allowed some artists to "cross over" and make significant impact into the general market. Some Christian bands are able to do this while maintaining their identity in the Christian market. For example, MercyMe
, whose double platinum album Almost There
produced the Christian and secular chart hit "I Can Only Imagine
." However, the lyrics of the single, while Christian in nature, contain what one critic calls "rather vacuous theology."
Sometimes "crossing over" creates ambiguity over whether an artist is Christian (a "Christian band"), or the artist is composed of Christians and produces music that appeals to Christian music fans but doesn't cater to the Christian market ("Christians in a band"). Such artists are:
in mind, however, the images can lead to an ambiguous impression of the portrayal.
In 1981 MTV featured two videos, "Constantly Changing" and "It's Mad", made by the Swedish Christian rock band Jerusalem to support their 1981 release Warrior. DeGarmo and Key
was the first Christian band in the US whose video appeared on MTV, made a video for their single "Six, Six, Six" off their 1984 release Communication. While the video was shown on MTV for a short time, it was subsequently pulled for a scene which depicted the Antichrist
engulfed in flames, which MTV described as "senseless violence." Eventually the video was re-edited for MTV—however, the unedited version continued to play in Christian bookstores and on Christian television networks, like Trinity Broadcasting
. The video received a Dove award in a category created specially for it, "Gospel Music Visual Song" in 1985.
Another artist, Brian Welch
, whose solo debut
was released to Christian markets, found their album pulled from some Christian bookstores after the music video for "Flush" was released. The video is an interpretation of the authors personal experience with methamphetamine
, before his religious conversion. At the time the album was pulled, Brian Welsh released a statement about the visual content of the video, relating its symbolism to his personal experiences of addiction and redemption. He also issued the following statement: "The video for 'Flush' is about crystal meth
addiction and the crazy things anyone addicted to meth will do while they're high or to get their fix. Everything the models were doing in the video is what I was wrapped up in while I was addicted to meth... I believe I would be dead right now if I continued using meth, but instead, I chose to surrender my life to Christ and die to myself so He could share His resurrection with me... There is a huge message of hope on my CD and I believe those retailers that are pulling the CD from their shelves are robbing someone spiritually by taking it off of the shelves."
A study of visual elements of Christian music videos on Z Music Television
, a now defunct MTV-like channel for Christian music, found that almost one third of the channel's videos could be described as "Ambiguously Religious" at best (red area, right). The conclusion was that the channel's programming was designed to make its Christian nature "apparent only to those willing to listen for it."
s like Viacom
and Time Warner
). Others see the industry as taking on the roles traditionally reserved for the church. Concerts are the equivalent of religious services, and commodities symbols of faith. Under these conditions "evangelism
becomes rhetoric—justifying the propaganda value of the industry's work – not spiritual reality." One critic comments that "perhaps the 'ghettoization' and parallel institutionalism of CCM manifests itself nowhere more apparently than at numerous Christian rock festivals."
Other
Gospel music
Gospel music is music that is written to express either personal, spiritual or a communal belief regarding Christian life, as well as to give a Christian alternative to mainstream secular music....
, Southern Gospel music
Southern Gospel
Southern Gospel music—at one time also known as "quartet music"—is music whose lyrics are written to express either personal or a communal faith regarding biblical teachings and Christian life, as well as to give a Christian alternative to mainstream secular music...
, Contemporary Christian music
Contemporary Christian music
Contemporary Christian music is a genre of modern popular music which is lyrically focused on matters concerned with the Christian faith...
, and alternative Christian music. It is sometimes called the gospel music industry, although this designation is not a limitation on the musical styles represented. The industry has roots in Jesus Music
Jesus music
Jesus music, known as gospel beat music in the United Kingdom, is a style of Christian music which originated on the West Coast of the United States in the late 1960s and early 1970s. This musical genre developed in parallel to the Jesus movement...
, although in order to commercialize and gain a wide appeal, the music had to largely move away from the form of that movement.
Christian artists generally use secular styles, pairing them with lyrics that display faith and spirituality to varying degrees. Generally speaking, the industry is influenced by mainstream culture. Musical trends, for instance, follow those of the secular scene, though usually a few years behind. The Christian music industry carries the distinction of being the only music subculture whose content is labeled by its lyrical dimension rather than its music. Still, music within the industry is sold by its musical style rather than lyrical content.
Christian music's critics point to the divergent interests of commercialization and ministry, which have, according to some, polar opposite
Polar Opposite
-Personnel:* Shimon Moore – lead vocals, lead guitar* Emma Anzai – bass, backing vocals* Mark Goodwin – drums...
goals. Aspects of Christian music have long struggled to gain general acceptance, even within the Christian community. What some see as secularization and a lacking of direct theology, others see as artistic ministry. This opens up questions of the definition of "Christian music" that have lingered over the industry since its inception.
The Christian music industry experienced explosive growth in the 1990s. Christian music sales grew to exceed those for classical, jazz, and new age music. Even so, the Christian music industry has experienced the same issues as the general market in recent years.
History
The Christian music industry has roots in the late 1960s and early 1970s Jesus MovementJesus movement
The Jesus movement was a movement in Christianity beginning on the West Coast of the United States in the late 1960s and early 1970s and spreading primarily through North America and Europe, before dying out by the early 1980s. It was the major Christian element within the hippie counterculture,...
and its Jesus Music
Jesus music
Jesus music, known as gospel beat music in the United Kingdom, is a style of Christian music which originated on the West Coast of the United States in the late 1960s and early 1970s. This musical genre developed in parallel to the Jesus movement...
artists. The Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Music points out three reasons that the Christian music industry developed as a parallel structure to the general music industry. First, the Jesus movement produced a large number of bands in a very short period, which the general market was unable and/or unwilling to absorb. This was in part due to a lack of appreciation for the ideology expressed by such artists. Finally, Jesus music artists tended toward mistrust of secular corporations. According to another critic, the industry in this period was defined by four characteristics: lack of audience acceptance for styles, inferior production, inefficient distribution, and lack of wide radio exposure. Petra
Petra (band)
Petra is a music group regarded as a pioneer of the Christian rock and contemporary Christian music genres. Formed in 1972, the band took its name from the Greek word for "rock"...
, for instance, struggled to find an audience for their hard rock sound, partially due to limited distribution to Christian bookstores.
Even so, the 1970s saw large corporations become involved in the Christian music market. Word Records
Word Records
Word Records is a Christian record label based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a division of Word Entertainment , which, itself is co-owned by Warner Music Group and Curb Records...
, founded in 1951, was bought in 1976 by ABC
ABC Records
ABC Records was an American record label, founded in New York City in 1955 as ABC-Paramount Records. It originated as the main popular music label operated the Am-Par Record Corporation, the music subsidiary of the American Broadcasting Company . ABC-Paramount Records' first president was Samuel H....
. Other music industry giants also got involved, CBS
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
started a short-lived Christian label, Priority Records, and MCA
MCA Records
MCA Records was an American-based record company owned by MCA Inc., which later gave way to the larger MCA Music Entertainment Group , of which MCA Records was still part. MCA Records was absorbed by Geffen Records in 2003...
also fielded a label for a time.
While the Jesus movement had ended by the 1980s, the Christian music industry was maturing and transforming into a multi-million dollar enterprise. The early 1980s saw an increase Christian booksellers taking product, and an increase in sales followed, despite the recession. As a percentage of gross sales, Christian music rose from 9% in 1976 to 23% in 1985. By her 1982 release
Age to Age
Age to Age is the sixth album by Christian music singer Amy Grant, released in 1982 on Myrrh Records.Age to Age was Amy Grant's breakthrough album, finally earning her serious recognition within the burgeoning Contemporary Christian music community as it ushered her into stardom, and also...
Amy Grant
Amy Grant
Amy Lee Grant is an American singer-songwriter, musician, author, media personality and actress, best known for her Christian music. She has been referred to as "The Queen of Christian Pop"...
had saturated the Christian marketplace and made significant inroads into the general market. Sandi Patti and Michael W. Smith
Michael W. Smith
Michael Whitaker Smith is a Billboard top ten Billboard Hot 100 recording artist and Grammy Award-winning American singer-songwriter, composer, and actor. He is one of the best-selling and most influential artists in Contemporary Christian music. Smith also has achieved a considerable amount of...
also gained influence within Christian music, each playing significant roles in the development of the industry.
Harder forms of Christian music, such as heavy metal, also began to gain acceptance. This is largely credited to Stryper
Stryper
Stryper is a Christian glam metal band from Orange County, California. The group's lineup consists of Michael Sweet , Oz Fox , Tim Gaines , and Robert Sweet...
, who had begun making inroads into the general market by 1985. Still, rock and alternative
Christian alternative rock
Christian alternative rock is a form of alternative rock music that is lyrically grounded in a Christian worldview. Some critics have suggested that unlike CCM and older Christian rock, Christian alternative rock generally emphasizes musical style over lyrical content as a defining genre...
acts faced a longer battle for acceptance than contemporary
Contemporary Christian music
Contemporary Christian music is a genre of modern popular music which is lyrically focused on matters concerned with the Christian faith...
acts, as the form was opposed by prominent religious leaders such as Jimmy Swaggart
Jimmy Swaggart
Jimmy Lee Swaggart is a Pentecostal American pastor, teacher, musician, television host, and televangelist. He has preached to crowds around the world through his weekly telecast...
and others on the Christian right
Christian right
Christian right is a term used predominantly in the United States to describe "right-wing" Christian political groups that are characterized by their strong support of socially conservative policies...
. While in 1981 total gospel music industry revenues were approximately $180 million, only ten years later they would total $680 million, according to CCM Magazine.
| Year | % | $ | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 3.1 | 381 | |
| 1996 | 4.3 | 538 | |
| 1997 | 4.5 | 549 | |
| 1998 | 6.3 | 836 | |
| 1999 | 5.1 | 744 | |
| 2000 | 4.8 | 688 | |
| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" style="float:top; width:100%;"> | |||
| Notes | |||
|
According to RIAA data, market share for sales of Christian music albums more than doubled between 1993 and 1997. In the 1990s the Christian music industry became the fastest growing segment of the music industry. This was due to several factors, including consolidation of record labels, and independent Christian bookstores into chains.
The Christian music industry began adopting SoundScan in 1995, although implementation was spotty even into the millennium. Even so, the adoption caused the visibility of Christian artists to increase significantly, and brought credibility to the industry as Christian albums became integrated into all Billboard charts
Billboard charts
The Billboard charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs or albums in the United States. The results are published in Billboard magazine...
.
In 1985, 90% of Christian music sales originated at Christian bookstores. By 1995, that number had dropped to 64%, with general retailers taking 21%, and the remainder accountable through other methods, such as direct mail. At that same time, the industry was estimated to gross $750 million, with $381 million in album sales. In the late 1990s, general market retailers, especially big box stores such as Best Buy
Best Buy
Best Buy Co., Inc. is an American specialty retailer of consumer electronics in the United States, accounting for 19% of the market. It also operates in Mexico, Canada & China. The company's subsidiaries include Geek Squad, CinemaNow, Magnolia Audio Video, Pacific Sales, and, in Canada operates...
, Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. , branded as Walmart since 2008 and Wal-Mart before then, is an American public multinational corporation that runs chains of large discount department stores and warehouse stores. The company is the world's 18th largest public corporation, according to the Forbes Global 2000...
, Target
Target Corporation
Target Corporation, doing business as Target, is an American retailing company headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It is the second-largest discount retailer in the United States, behind Walmart. The company is ranked at number 33 on the Fortune 500 and is a component of the Standard & Poor's...
, and Blockbuster began carrying a wider selection of Christian music products. By 2000 those stores had surpassed Christian retail in terms of the number of Christian albums sold, according to Soundscan numbers. This phenomenon was partially responsible for crossover successes. P.O.D.
P.O.D.
Payable on Death is an American Christian metal band formed in 1992. The band's line-up consists of vocalist Sonny Sandoval, drummer Wuv Bernardo, guitarist Marcos Curiel, and bassist Traa Daniels. Their Christian faith is an important part of their music.They have released seven studio albums and...
, for example, sold 1.4 million albums in 2001, although sales at Christian retail outlets accounted for only 10%.
The new millennium has brought challenges for the record industry as a whole, and these have affected the Christian music industry as well. Contemporary worship music, a long time staple of the industry, began to gain significant market share
Market share
Market share is the percentage of a market accounted for by a specific entity. In a survey of nearly 200 senior marketing managers, 67 percent responded that they found the "dollar market share" metric very useful, while 61% found "unit market share" very useful.Marketers need to be able to...
in about the year 2000. By focusing on marketing worship music to youth culture, this genre became a growth driver despite the downturn in the general music industry.
Growth continued until about 2003, but has generally followed the trends of the larger music industry since that point. In 2009 a The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
op-ed
Op-ed
An op-ed, abbreviated from opposite the editorial page , is a newspaper article that expresses the opinions of a named writer who is usually unaffiliated with the newspaper's editorial board...
placed the entire music industry on a "deathwatch," pointing out that new forms of media, piracy, and new pricing options are driving gross sales down. In another example of parallelism, the Christian music industry has experienced largely the same phenomenon. In the Christian marketplace, music consumption has risen by as much as 30% since 2005, but overall album sales have dropped to about half of their 1999 levels. However, some critics point out that the current downturn may have long term positive effects for the industry. John J. Thompson told Christianity Today
Christianity Today
Christianity Today is an Evangelical Christian periodical based in Carol Stream, Illinois. It is the flagship publication of its parent company Christianity Today International, claiming circulation figures of 140,000 and readership of 290,000...
that "The lack of monetary benefit has filtered out some of the people who should not have been doing this in the first place. If the people who are in it for the money are gone, it leaves more turf for those who had something a little bit loftier in mind."
"Ghetto" assertion
Christian music is sometimes cited as a "ghetto," meaning that the majority of artists in the industry are pigeonholed to operate solely in it. These artists are isolated from the mainstream public, to Christian mediaChristian media
Christian media can either refer to Christians who work in secular media, or media that is Christian. Refers to various aspects of mass media which is primarily targeting the Christian demographic...
, including radio, magazines, and book stores. For many this is a conscious choice, however others, not content to stay in an isolated industry segment, attempt to "cross over" and gain acceptance in the general market. For many artists, being called Christian becomes a stigma.
A 1997 study revealed that a self-identified audience of "Christian music listeners" had what was considered a lacking recognition of Christian artists. The survey was commissioned by the Christian Music Trade Association and Z Music Television
Z Music Television
Z Music sought to place itself in a market segment that would be visible, even inviting, to non Christians while maintaining a direct appeal to Christians. For instance in advertising the network would downplay the word "Christianity;" sometimes the word would not appear...
. The study looked at several artists including Amy Grant
Amy Grant
Amy Lee Grant is an American singer-songwriter, musician, author, media personality and actress, best known for her Christian music. She has been referred to as "The Queen of Christian Pop"...
, BeBe
BeBe Winans
Benjamin "BeBe" Winans is a gospel and R&B singer. He is a member of the noted Winans family, most members of which are also gospel artists.-The PTL Club:...
and CeCe Winans
CeCe Winans
Priscilla "CeCe" Marie Winans Love is an American Gospel singer, who has won numerous Grammy and Stellar Awards.-Early life:CeCe Winans was born in Detroit, Michigan, to David and Delores Winans, on October 8, 1964...
, Carman
Carman (singer)
Carmelo Domenic Licciardello known by his stage name, Carman, is a contemporary Christian music artist and evangelist.-Biography:...
, Steven Curtis Chapman
Steven Curtis Chapman
Steven Curtis Chapman is an American musician, songwriter, record producer, actor, author, and social activist.After starting his career in the late 1980s as a singer/songwriter of contemporary Christian music, Chapman has since been recognized as one of the most prolific singers in the genre,...
, dc Talk
Dc Talk
DC Talk , is a Grammy-winning Christian rock music trio. The group was formed in Lynchburg, Virginia in 1987 by Toby McKeehan, Michael Tait, and Kevin Max Smith. They have released five major studio albums together: DC Talk , Nu Thang , Free at Last , Jesus Freak , and Supernatural...
, Sandi Patty
Sandi Patty
Sandra Faye "Sandi" Patty is an American Christian music singer. For many years she was known as Sandi Patti. She has been dubbed "The Voice" by critics, because of her wide range and flexibility.-Early life:...
, and Michael W. Smith
Michael W. Smith
Michael Whitaker Smith is a Billboard top ten Billboard Hot 100 recording artist and Grammy Award-winning American singer-songwriter, composer, and actor. He is one of the best-selling and most influential artists in Contemporary Christian music. Smith also has achieved a considerable amount of...
. At the time of the survey, each of these artists was active in Christian music and had been so for at least nine years, was a multiple Dove Award and/or Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
winner, and had albums certified
RIAA certification
In the United States, the Recording Industry Association of America awards certification based on the number of albums and singles sold through retail and other ancillary markets. Other countries have similar awards...
Gold or higher.
Even so, the survey found that the Christian music audience was no more familiar with artists in the field than they were with Hootie & The Blowfish
Hootie & the Blowfish
Hootie & the Blowfish is an American rock band that enjoyed popularity in the second half of the 1990s. They were originally formed in 1986 at the University of South Carolina by Darius Rucker, Dean Felber, Jim Sonefeld, and Mark Bryan. The band has recorded five studio albums to date, and has...
, a popular act at that time. The study concluded that the word "Christian" was the problem, causing a stigma. "It's the label, not the music, that dissuades," one Christian music executive was quoted as saying, agreeing with the survey.
Another aspect of the "ghetto" is that some artists have trouble gaining audience with Christians due to their non-conservative image. Stryper
Stryper
Stryper is a Christian glam metal band from Orange County, California. The group's lineup consists of Michael Sweet , Oz Fox , Tim Gaines , and Robert Sweet...
is a well known example. Stryper received large amounts of criticism from groups on the Christian right, who argue (among other things) that their image as rock stars contradict their espoused faith. One critic wrote that the marriage of secular and religious elements in "Christian music" "violates all that God has commanded in the Bible about separation
Doctrine of separation
The doctrine of separation, also known as the doctrine of non-fellowship, is a belief among some Protestant religious groups that the members of a church should be separate from "the world" and not have association with those who are "of the world". There are many scriptures in both the Old...
."
The "ghetto" has several effects, critics point out that the audience of such artists are often already Christians, thus limiting the impact of any supposed "evangelism." Another is that artists sometimes have trouble appealing to and maintaining both secular and religious audiences. For example:
- One Jesus musicJesus musicJesus music, known as gospel beat music in the United Kingdom, is a style of Christian music which originated on the West Coast of the United States in the late 1960s and early 1970s. This musical genre developed in parallel to the Jesus movement...
artist, Randy MatthewsRandy MatthewsRandy Matthews is a Christian singer-songwriter, guitarist, and pioneer of Jesus music. He was born into a family with at least five ordained ministers, including his father, Monty, a founding member of the Jordanaires. When Randy was in high school in Lamar, Mo., he sang in a quartet called The...
, ran into trouble at an early Christian music festival after announcing an upcoming tour with Lynyrd SkynyrdLynyrd SkynyrdLynyrd Skynyrd is an American rock band prominent in spreading Southern Rock during the 1970s.Originally formed as the "Noble Five" in Jacksonville, Florida, in 1964, the band rose to worldwide recognition on the basis of its driving live performances and signature tune, Freebird...
and ZZ TopZZ TopZZ Top is an American rock band, sometimes referred to as "That Little Ol' Band from Texas". Their style, which is rooted in blues-based boogie rock, has come to incorporate elements of arena, southern, and boogie rock. The band, from Houston Texas, formed in 1969...
. The crowd, also reacting to his electric musical style, chased him off the stage, pronouncing him to be demonDemonic possessionDemonic possession is held by many belief systems to be the control of an individual by a malevolent supernatural being. Descriptions of demonic possessions often include erased memories or personalities, convulsions, “fits” and fainting as if one were dying...
or drugDrug abuseSubstance abuse, also known as drug abuse, refers to a maladaptive pattern of use of a substance that is not considered dependent. The term "drug abuse" does not exclude dependency, but is otherwise used in a similar manner in nonmedical contexts...
possessed. Matthews was later dropped from the tour.
- After Bob DylanBob DylanBob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
announced his conversion to Christianity in 1979, he released three albums widely cited as being based on his newfound faith. Dylan spent several years touring and preaching from stage, though he never became a part of the "Christian music subculture." The result, as one critic bluntly puts it, was that "It didn't work. Christian music fans were characteristically suspicious of Dylan's failure to leave the world behind and become a part of their little ghetto, and the world at large tired quickly of paying money to hear him sing about religion." By 1981, Dylan had dropped the explicit religious references; both critics and audiences returned his music to acclaim.
- While commonly cited as the father of Christian rock, Larry NormanLarry NormanLarry David Norman was an American Christian musician, singer, songwriter, record label owner, and record producer, who worked with Christian rock music...
struggled to gain acceptance from the Christian music industry, and was largely estranged from it for his career. His 1969 solo debut has been described by secular observers as "perhaps the first truly accomplished and relevant Christian rock testimony ever recorded," and 1972's Only Visiting This PlanetOnly Visiting This PlanetOnly Visiting This Planet is the title of an album recorded by Larry Norman in 1972. The album was selected as the second album in 's The 100 Greatest Albums in Christian Music.-History:...
became one of the most revered albums of all time in Christian music. Even so, Norman became, according to CCM "so far outside the mainstream that most of today's Christian music fans have no idea who Larry Norman is."
The problem, as summed by one critic, was that the music was too religious for secular audience, while simultaneously too aggressive for religious audiences. One critic describes the situation, stating that for a band "to be taken seriously outside the Christian scene, a band must stay far, far away from that scene."
Mutemath, for instance sued their record label with the goal of removing their product from the Christian market. Their first release sold almost 30,000 copies, with "bulk of sales coming from the Christian market," according to Billboard. The band had been placed in the Christian market by their record label largely because their lead singer, Paul Meany
Paul Meany
Paul Meany is the lead singer and keyboardist for the band Mutemath. He is also one of the co-founders of Franklin, TN based independent label Teleprompt Records...
, was previously with the band Earthsuit
Earthsuit
Earthsuit was a short-lived New Orleans-based Christian rock band formed in 1995. The band consisted of guitarist Dave Rumsey, keyboardist/vocalist Paul Meany, bassist Roy Mitchell, drummer David "Hutch" Hutchison, and vocalist Adam LaClave...
, whose only major label release
Kaleidoscope Superior
Kaleidoscope Superior is the major label debut by Earthsuit. The album features updated versions of select songs from the band's two independent releases, as well as other new songs. "One Time" was the first single serviced to radio from the album...
was released on a Christian label
Sparrow Records
-Background:Sparrow Records was founded in 1976 by Billy Ray Hearn, then A&R director at Myrrh Records. Purchased by EMI in 1992, it is now part of the EMI Christian Music Group, and has been named by Billboard Magazine as "America's Best Christian Music Record Label"...
.
This caused the band to not get taken seriously by music critics, and by the release of their full length album the band began expressing discontent with their situation. Meany told Tucson Weekly "...we began to see ourselves getting pigeonholed into this particular world that we weren't necessarily proud to be associated with... We're not trying to preach through our music; we don't have some kind of evangelistic agenda with what we're doing... You know, you don't want to be ashamed of your faith and your beliefs, but you don't want to be marketed by that, either."
On the other hand, some artists operate solely within the "ghetto" of Christian music, and find great success in doing so.
Downplayed religious content
An early Christian record label, Lion & Lamb Records (founded by Pat BoonePat Boone
Charles Eugene "Pat" Boone is an American singer, actor and writer who has been a successful pop singer in the United States during the 1950s and early 1960s. He covered black artists' songs and sold more copies than his black counterparts...
) reported in 1978 that it was their goal to produce crossover artists, but they were limited by lack of distribution to the secular marketplace. Both problems affected Christian labels into the 1990s. "Since people don't understand [the term] 'the Blood of Jesus
Blood of Christ
The Blood of Christ in Christian theology refers to the physical blood actually shed by Jesus Christ on the Cross, and the salvation which Christianity teaches was accomplished thereby; and the sacramental blood present in the Eucharist, which is considered by Catholic, Orthodox, Anglican, and...
,'" stated a manager for Lion & Lamb, "...music that communicates must approach it another way. We've got to present a subtle but sensitive Christian message." Lyrics with subdued religious content have become commonplace in the industry; One critic points out that the secular hit "Spirit in the Sky
Spirit in the Sky
"Spirit in the Sky" is a song written and originally recorded by Norman Greenbaum and released in 1969. The single sold two million copies in 1969 and 1970 and reached number three in the U.S. Billboard chart, as well as number one on the UK, Australian and Canadian charts in 1970. Rolling Stone...
" "has more explicit religious references than do many recent Christian radio hits."
Some critics have alleged that CCM often uses "minimal direct theology," and promotes a "Jesus is my boyfriend" image of God. Using downplayed religious content in lyrics has allowed some artists to "cross over" and make significant impact into the general market. Some Christian bands are able to do this while maintaining their identity in the Christian market. For example, MercyMe
MercyMe
MercyMe is an American Christian rock band founded in Greenville, Texas. The band consists of vocalist Bart Millard, keyboardist James Bryson, percussionist Robby Shaffer, bassist Nathan Cochran and guitarists Michael Scheuchzer and Barry Graul....
, whose double platinum album Almost There
Almost There (MercyMe album)
Almost There is the first major-label studio album from Contemporary Christian band MercyMe. Released on August 14, 2001, the album met to positive critical response and spawned the single "I Can Only Imagine", which achieved crossover success on mainstream radio.-Critical reception:Almost There...
produced the Christian and secular chart hit "I Can Only Imagine
I Can Only Imagine
"I Can Only Imagine" is a single recorded by contemporary Christian and Christian rock band MercyMe. Written and composed by Bart Millard, the song, based around a main piano track, was inspired by the death of Millard's father and considers what it would be like in Heaven and to be standing...
." However, the lyrics of the single, while Christian in nature, contain what one critic calls "rather vacuous theology."
Sometimes "crossing over" creates ambiguity over whether an artist is Christian (a "Christian band"), or the artist is composed of Christians and produces music that appeals to Christian music fans but doesn't cater to the Christian market ("Christians in a band"). Such artists are:
- ChevelleChevelleChevelle is an American alternative metal trio that formed in 1995 in Grayslake, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. The band was originally composed of two brothers and a local friend: Pete Loeffler , Sam Loeffler , and Matt Scott . Matt was later replaced by brother Joe Loeffler...
, whose debut albumPoint No. 1-Credits:* Buddy Jackson - Art Direction* Chevelle - Main Performer* Hank Williams - Mastering* Joe Loeffler - Bass* Mark Smalling - Photography* Pete Loeffler - Guitar, Vocals* Sally Carns - Back Cover, Design* Sam Loeffler - Drums...
was released to Christian music markets, received three Dove awards. However, the band is not generally considered to be a "Christian band" today. On that topic the band states "We originally signed with a record companySquint EntertainmentSquint Entertainment was a record label owned by Word Entertainment, started in 1997 and run by musician and songwriter Steve Taylor. Squint pushed Sixpence None the Richer to mainstream success with their single "Kiss Me"....
that was backed by WordWord RecordsWord Records is a Christian record label based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a division of Word Entertainment , which, itself is co-owned by Warner Music Group and Curb Records...
(a Christian label housing John TeshJohn TeshJohn Frank Tesh is an American pianist and composer of pop music, as well as a radio host and television presenter. His 10-year-old 'Intelligence for Your Life Radio Show' reaches 14.2 Million listeners/week, and is syndicated by Teshmedia on 400 stations in US, Canada, and the UK...
and Amy GrantAmy GrantAmy Lee Grant is an American singer-songwriter, musician, author, media personality and actress, best known for her Christian music. She has been referred to as "The Queen of Christian Pop"...
), so the record was in Christian bookstores. It was really an accidental thing."
- Project 86Project 86Project 86 is an American Christian rock band from Orange County, California, formed in 1996. The line-up consists of bassist Steven Dail, vocalist and songwriter Andrew Schwab, and guitarist Randy Torres. The band has released seven studio albums, which have collectively sold over 500,000 units...
has sometimes been labeled a "Christian band", although the band itself eschewed the label. The band considers it's art to be the best conveyance of their message. Frontman Andrew Schwab has offered several statements on the topic. "We're not going to go in there and say 'Hey we're the Christian band. We're going to carry ourselves like a normal band. Hopefully people will like our music and investigate into the band [...] and they will learn our beliefs." "If we're playing at OzzfestOzzfestOzzfest is an annual festival tour of the United States featuring performances by many heavy metal and hard rock musical groups. It was founded by Ozzy Osbourne and his wife Sharon Osbourne, both of whom also organize each yearly tour with their son Jack Osbourne...
or on Family ValuesFamily Values TourThe Family Values Tour was created by the band Korn in 1998 to be an annual rock & rap tour.The tour began in 1998 and would take the year off in 2000, due to heavy competition from other tours, such as the Anger Management Tour and the Summer Sanitarium Tour. After a four year hiatus, the Family...
...," the band told 7ball7ball7ball was a Christian music magazine, first published in 1995, founded and created by Frank Chimento. They focused on rock, hip-hop, and other "alternative" forms of Christian music. The magazine was initially published by the Royal Magazine Group alongside Release magazine and others...
after the release of their second albumDrawing Black Lines-Personnel:*Andrew Schwab – vocals*Randy Torres – guitar, vocals, piano*Stephen Dail – bass, guitar*Alex Albert – drums*GGGarth – producer, additional engineer*Brandon Ebel - executive producer*Andre Wahl - engineer, mixing...
, "there is a greater level of tact necessary in order to reach that sort of audience." In a 2007 interview, Schwab further opined "We always tell people that the goal has been to just write music that we love, and write music hopefully that is challenging and inspiring to people and doesn't sound like everything else out there."
- SwitchfootSwitchfootSwitchfoot is an American rock band from San Diego, California. The band's members are Jon Foreman , Tim Foreman , Chad Butler , Jerome Fontamillas , and Drew Shirley .After early successes in the Christian rock scene, Switchfoot first gained mainstream...
is often referred to as a "Christian band", mostly due to their involvement with the Christian rock scene in their early days. But the band has always shunned this label: "For us, it's a faith, not a genre,..." says Jon Foreman. "...these songs are for everyone. Calling us 'Christian rock' tends to be a box that closes some people out and excludes them. And that's not what we're trying to do. Music has always opened my mind—and that's what we want". Duly, Foreman's lyrics steer clear of preachiness, exclusive declarations of faith, or even any mention of Jesus ChristJesusJesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
, instead questioning the status quoSocial commentarySocial commentary is the act of rebelling against an individual, or a group of people by rhetorical means, or commentary on social issues or society...
, probing existentialExistentialismExistentialism is a term applied to a school of 19th- and 20th-century philosophers who, despite profound doctrinal differences, shared the belief that philosophical thinking begins with the human subject—not merely the thinking subject, but the acting, feeling, living human individual...
issues through "Socratic dialogueSocratic dialogueSocratic dialogue is a genre of prose literary works developed in Greece at the turn of the fourth century BC, preserved today in the dialogues of Plato and the Socratic works of Xenophon - either dramatic or narrative - in which characters discuss moral and philosophical problems, illustrating a...
" in which he answers questions with more questions, exploring frustrations, or simply being inspirational. Even so, this position has not alienated their Christian fans. As in their indieIndie (music)In music, independent music, often shortened to indie music or "indie" is a term used to describe independence from major commercial record labels or their subsidiaries, and an autonomous, Do-It-Yourself approach to recording and publishing....
days, they are still distributed to Christian retail outlets through Sparrow RecordsSparrow Records-Background:Sparrow Records was founded in 1976 by Billy Ray Hearn, then A&R director at Myrrh Records. Purchased by EMI in 1992, it is now part of the EMI Christian Music Group, and has been named by Billboard Magazine as "America's Best Christian Music Record Label"...
, featured on Christian radio and charts, and presented Dove AwardsGMA Music AwardsThe Gospel Music Association Dove Awards are presented annually by the Gospel Music Association for outstanding achievements in the Christian music industry. The awards are usually presented during a ceremony in Nashville, Tennessee, that features performances by a number of the industry's newest...
, even after having been signed to the mainstream Columbia RecordsColumbia RecordsColumbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
. SpinSpin (magazine)Spin is a music magazine founded in 1985 by publisher Bob Guccione Jr.-History:In its early years, the magazine was noted for its broad music coverage with an emphasis on college-oriented rock music and on the ongoing emergence of hip-hop. The magazine was eclectic and bold, if sometimes haphazard...
writer Andrew Beaujon takes the view that "their lyrics often have two different meanings, one meaning for a Christian audience and one meaning for the rest of us. They try to relate to two different groups of people at once".
In video
The trend continues when examining religious videos. Many Christian bands produce videos with rotation on MTVMTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
in mind, however, the images can lead to an ambiguous impression of the portrayal.
In 1981 MTV featured two videos, "Constantly Changing" and "It's Mad", made by the Swedish Christian rock band Jerusalem to support their 1981 release Warrior. DeGarmo and Key
DeGarmo and Key
DeGarmo & Key was a Christian Rock group that started professionally in 1978. The primary members were Eddie DeGarmo and Dana Key. Eddie played keyboards and sang background vocals , while Dana played lead guitar and did the majority of the lead vocals. Other members included Tommy Cathey on bass...
was the first Christian band in the US whose video appeared on MTV, made a video for their single "Six, Six, Six" off their 1984 release Communication. While the video was shown on MTV for a short time, it was subsequently pulled for a scene which depicted the Antichrist
Antichrist
The term or title antichrist, in Christian theology, refers to a leader who fulfills Biblical prophecies concerning an adversary of Christ, while resembling him in a deceptive manner...
engulfed in flames, which MTV described as "senseless violence." Eventually the video was re-edited for MTV—however, the unedited version continued to play in Christian bookstores and on Christian television networks, like Trinity Broadcasting
Trinity Broadcasting Network
The Trinity Broadcasting Network is a major American Christian television network. TBN is based in Costa Mesa, California, with auxiliary studio facilities in Irving, Texas; Hendersonville, Tennessee; Gadsden, Alabama; Decatur, Georgia; Miami, Florida; Tulsa, Oklahoma; Orlando, Florida; and New...
. The video received a Dove award in a category created specially for it, "Gospel Music Visual Song" in 1985.
Another artist, Brian Welch
Brian Welch
Brian Phillip Welch , better known as Head, is an American musician best known as the former guitarist and co-founder of the nu metal band Korn...
, whose solo debut
Save Me from Myself (album)
Save Me from Myself is the debut studio album by American rock musician Brian "Head" Welch. After failing to meet a July 2007 release, the album was released on September 9, 2008 by Driven Music Group...
was released to Christian markets, found their album pulled from some Christian bookstores after the music video for "Flush" was released. The video is an interpretation of the authors personal experience with methamphetamine
Methamphetamine
Methamphetamine is a psychostimulant of the phenethylamine and amphetamine class of psychoactive drugs...
, before his religious conversion. At the time the album was pulled, Brian Welsh released a statement about the visual content of the video, relating its symbolism to his personal experiences of addiction and redemption. He also issued the following statement: "The video for 'Flush' is about crystal meth
Methamphetamine
Methamphetamine is a psychostimulant of the phenethylamine and amphetamine class of psychoactive drugs...
addiction and the crazy things anyone addicted to meth will do while they're high or to get their fix. Everything the models were doing in the video is what I was wrapped up in while I was addicted to meth... I believe I would be dead right now if I continued using meth, but instead, I chose to surrender my life to Christ and die to myself so He could share His resurrection with me... There is a huge message of hope on my CD and I believe those retailers that are pulling the CD from their shelves are robbing someone spiritually by taking it off of the shelves."
Z Music Television
Z Music sought to place itself in a market segment that would be visible, even inviting, to non Christians while maintaining a direct appeal to Christians. For instance in advertising the network would downplay the word "Christianity;" sometimes the word would not appear...
, a now defunct MTV-like channel for Christian music, found that almost one third of the channel's videos could be described as "Ambiguously Religious" at best (red area, right). The conclusion was that the channel's programming was designed to make its Christian nature "apparent only to those willing to listen for it."
Other arguments
Some critics describe the Christian music industry as being committed "to the goals and strategies of the commercial marketplace - industrial growth, increased market share, and greater profits." This became more apparent in the 1980s and 1990s as the largest Christian record labels became subsidiaries of the "mainstream" labels (who are themselves owned by huge media conglomerateMedia conglomerate
A media conglomerate, media group or media institution is a company that owns large numbers of companies in various mass media such as television, radio, publishing, movies, and the Internet...
s like Viacom
Viacom
Viacom Inc. , short for "Video & Audio Communications", is an American media conglomerate with interests primarily in, but not limited to, cinema and cable television...
and Time Warner
Time Warner
Time Warner is one of the world's largest media companies, headquartered in the Time Warner Center in New York City. Formerly two separate companies, Warner Communications, Inc...
). Others see the industry as taking on the roles traditionally reserved for the church. Concerts are the equivalent of religious services, and commodities symbols of faith. Under these conditions "evangelism
Evangelism
Evangelism refers to the practice of relaying information about a particular set of beliefs to others who do not hold those beliefs. The term is often used in reference to Christianity....
becomes rhetoric—justifying the propaganda value of the industry's work – not spiritual reality." One critic comments that "perhaps the 'ghettoization' and parallel institutionalism of CCM manifests itself nowhere more apparently than at numerous Christian rock festivals."
See also
- List of Christian media organizations
- Christian Copyright Licensing InternationalChristian Copyright Licensing InternationalCCLI is a privately owned company that was founded in the US in 1988 by Howard Rachinski, who is the President/CEO. CCLI was launched after being developed by Howard for 3½ years while he was a Music Minister at a large church in Portland, Oregon. This prototype was called Starpraise Ministries,...
- Gospel Music AssociationGospel Music AssociationThe Gospel Music Association was founded in 1964 for the purpose of supporting and promoting the development of all forms of Gospel music. There are currently about 4,000 members worldwide...
- List of albums censored by Christian bookstores
External links
Industry organizationsOther