Christians and rap

Today as I was running an errand I flipped on the radio to listen to the lunch time rap show on one of the Philly stations and then I got back to the office and was looking at an old Relevant (do I see a trend here) and noticed ads for new hip-hop albums from the Grits and others. These two situations reminded me of my struggle. When I was younger I loved rap, but as I was listening to the radio today I remembered how derogatory the lyrics were in all that rap I listened to when I was in high school and younger. But I'm equally aware of and I'm sorry to say this, but how bad much of Christian hip-hop or rap is. What comes to mind with this subject are words from Derek Webb to Christian artists reminding them that musicians are artists and some Christian musicians are only concerned with getting their message out and forget that there is music, and in rap a beat that accompanies those words. It is an art form and this is where most Christian rap drops the ball. They bring a strong message with a weak beat. You see this is what made Pete Rock and CL Smooth (a rap group from the 80's and 90's) so good. While I don't agree with religious views (being nominal Muslims) what made the rap good was a strong message from conviction with an amazing dj droppin' some funkay beats under those vocals. It is that match that makes a hit in my opinion. And Christians have the greatest message to share, about us moving from dark to light, from death to life. Man, if Christian rappers could spend the time on the music that they spend on the message, the hits would flow.
Now, to be fair I must say that on the other end of the spectrum is popular rap of the day that are only focused on the beat and evidently not the lyrics. Here is just a small list of hits in heavy rotation on the Philly rap stations

1. Put Some D's... (where I'm sorry most of the song I don't know what they are saying)
2. This is why I'm Hot (where the chorus is, "This is why I'm hot (3x) This is why you not, you ain't cause you not." Are you serious?)
3. Walk it Out (Where the chorus is Walk It Out again and again and again, it drives me nuts)

So, my conclusion is not to abandon the message because there is no message with those "hits" and yet they stick in my head because of the beat. Ah, and there it is, if Christian rappers could craft the sick, dope, funky (whichever word you want to use)beats, then think of the power of that, because clear lyrics about the gospel would then be boppin' in people's heads. What a match that would be!

That's my two cents, Audi 5000-G

Amen

I was reading an old Relevant Magazine yesterday and came across this quote

"The great Christian revolutions come not by the discovery of something that was not known before. They happen when somebody takes radically something that was always there.”

The magazine credits Philip Yancey but it originally came from H. Richard Niebuhr who Yancey quoted in one of my favorite books, "What's So Amazing about Grace?" If you have not read that book, GO AND READ IT!

That quote is as true today as when Niebuhr said it in the 50's. Many theologians today are out to discover some new truth, some new way of explaining or understanding God, but Yancey and others and really God are pleading with us not to set out to discover new things, but instead to re-discover old things. This is where revolution happens because when we radically re-discover the old, old story and it's implications on our lives, it is then that we have access to the greatest power the world has ever seen.

Here's to re-discovery, Cheers.