Dear Christian Hip-Hop
(The subheadings are titles of some of my favorite albums)
Moment of Truth: N.F.L. (New Found Love)
First let me tell you how my love affair with hip-hop began. Growing up in the Cayman Islands like most, if not all of the Caribbean, Hip-Hop was not at the top of the music genre list if nationally poled. Yet, now with television, radio, and the internet, Hip-Hop if not monopolizing, is as favored with the popular genres of choice.
Anyway it was '96', I was in Primary School heading into Secondary School (the US equivalent of Junior High). Cable Boxes were being made available to all on Island for the first time (I know...) and I quickly became familiar with a minority owned cable station with a rather bold, unmistakable name, that struck a chord of familiarity (particularly due to my hue) B.E.T. Black Entertainment Television. Though it was not my first time hearing Rap Music, there was a certain euphoria felt when I first heard and now saw "One More Chance" by a Brooklyn hailed overweight wordsmith, by the name of Biggie Smalls/Notorious B.I.G. Instantly I became a part of that statistic I mentioned earlier. I dove in, both feet; I was enthralled with the music and culture.
At the age of eighteen God called me to himself through the Gospel of His son Jesus Christ and everything changed, though music for me took a while. At the time Christian Hip-Hop for me, was well, corny. I can only think of one group that epitomized that feeling, Grits. Though now with mature eyes and ears, my feelings have properly realigned. I was introduced to Da T.R.U.T.H. as well, "Moment of Truth" which is a classic, but at the time, yep, corny, me a hardened Jay-Z fan, like I said, “mature eyes and ears.” I’m now one of the biggest fans of Christian Rap. The once beloved and prominent message exalting the “lust of the eyes; lust of the flesh; and pride in processions”, was replaced with a greater love for the retelling of the life giving, redeeming, substitutionary sacrificial exploits of the Lord Jesus Christ told over that “boom bap.”
Praise God!
Turn My Life Up
Remember that “corny” comment? Well, Christian Hip-Hop has come a long way. Production has been refined. Beats now rival those in the secular world. And we’ve seen the Lords kindness in blessing the talents of our beloved heralds of the gospel in song, punch lines, and rhymes. Particularly we stand thankful that the Lord nurtured in their hearts a passion to communicate accurate, God glorifying, truths, and communicate them creatively and unabashedly. Always on their 116 you may call it. He then further pressed into these brothers and sisters by surrounding and leading them with/to sober-minded, biblically sound teachers and leaders, of old and of the present. Shedding the caricatures’ and culturally marred versions of Jesus and Christianity so rampantly popular to the urban/minority population that most these artists represent. Becoming, “Urban Theologians”, of sorts. With a new “Young, Restless and Reformed” movement, to borrow the phrase (thank you Mr. DeYoung), the artist of such labels as Crossmovement, ReachRecords, Lapmode, Clearsight Music and others, have provided and become the music for the movement. With songs like rhythmic drum cadence, helping to order our march, reminding us of the gospel of Christ, especially in those music listening down times.
Soap Box
As I and others prayerfully watch, follow, and support, praying for the Lords protection, and continued blessing of these men/women as they become known across spiritual lines. We praise God in the answering of those prayers, as Christian Hip-Hop gains traction and airtime in secular arenas. For we know of those who desire to have “beautiful feet” the evangelistic landscape is laden with spiritual land mines.
Such a “land mine” that has been a live issue of late is that of “engaging the culture”, something that Christian Hip-Hoppers (as all Christians) are constantly doing, though the platforms and number of eye balls that witness, vary. In the “engaging the culture” discussion, always at the forefront is the question of “how much of the culture do we immerse ourselves in as to be relatable? While the opposing question counters “are we compromising, in our efforts to be relatable?” Good questions that should be asked, but even more so, wisely/Biblically answered. I'm of the understanding as expressed by Voddie Baucham on engaging the culture here.
I will not attempt to communicate to you that I know with absolute certainty, what is occurring in the lives of Christian Rappers, spiritually or otherwise, who fit these categories I’m about to discuss. This is not a diatribe to garner supporters of my critique, but if your observations are akin, should lead you to pray for our brothers and sisters. So it is with humble heart and a thoroughly “plank in eye” inspection that I relay my observations.
Between Two Worlds
The desire to see the Kingdom walls extended is commendable, a desire that we should all be before the Lord in constant supplication for Him to increase in our hearts. However I and others question this methodology of “bait and switch”: let me dial down the message (gospel) so as to be accepted by the masses. And when I have garnered enough acclaim and I’ve made a name for myself, there will be more ears on me to hear the gospel.
Before the “L word” (Legalism) rears its head, as it has been used as a scapegoat to justify certain methodology before, lets agree on a couple of things:
Life by Stereo
In this climate where to engage the culture means to not only learn but also adopt, look like, talk like, in order to become, so as to impact. That line in the sand of "being in the world and not of it" continues to be blurred as this new initiative, powered by the (in terms of those saved) quantity of souls at the cost of quality of message, continues to gain popularity among evangelicals. Orthodoxy seems no longer popular. The temptation to measure ones success in the proclamation of the Gospel by the number of warm bodies gathered to hear can be an unfaithful and unreliable measuring stick. Indeed, faithfulness to the "close watch on yourself and on the teaching" is a surer method benefiting "proclaimer and hearer" (1 Tim. 4:16). To my brothers and sisters in Christian Rap a few things:
Your brother in Christ; and number one fan,
Shane Ebanks
First let me tell you how my love affair with hip-hop began. Growing up in the Cayman Islands like most, if not all of the Caribbean, Hip-Hop was not at the top of the music genre list if nationally poled. Yet, now with television, radio, and the internet, Hip-Hop if not monopolizing, is as favored with the popular genres of choice.
Anyway it was '96', I was in Primary School heading into Secondary School (the US equivalent of Junior High). Cable Boxes were being made available to all on Island for the first time (I know...) and I quickly became familiar with a minority owned cable station with a rather bold, unmistakable name, that struck a chord of familiarity (particularly due to my hue) B.E.T. Black Entertainment Television. Though it was not my first time hearing Rap Music, there was a certain euphoria felt when I first heard and now saw "One More Chance" by a Brooklyn hailed overweight wordsmith, by the name of Biggie Smalls/Notorious B.I.G. Instantly I became a part of that statistic I mentioned earlier. I dove in, both feet; I was enthralled with the music and culture.
At the age of eighteen God called me to himself through the Gospel of His son Jesus Christ and everything changed, though music for me took a while. At the time Christian Hip-Hop for me, was well, corny. I can only think of one group that epitomized that feeling, Grits. Though now with mature eyes and ears, my feelings have properly realigned. I was introduced to Da T.R.U.T.H. as well, "Moment of Truth" which is a classic, but at the time, yep, corny, me a hardened Jay-Z fan, like I said, “mature eyes and ears.” I’m now one of the biggest fans of Christian Rap. The once beloved and prominent message exalting the “lust of the eyes; lust of the flesh; and pride in processions”, was replaced with a greater love for the retelling of the life giving, redeeming, substitutionary sacrificial exploits of the Lord Jesus Christ told over that “boom bap.”
Praise God!
Turn My Life Up
Remember that “corny” comment? Well, Christian Hip-Hop has come a long way. Production has been refined. Beats now rival those in the secular world. And we’ve seen the Lords kindness in blessing the talents of our beloved heralds of the gospel in song, punch lines, and rhymes. Particularly we stand thankful that the Lord nurtured in their hearts a passion to communicate accurate, God glorifying, truths, and communicate them creatively and unabashedly. Always on their 116 you may call it. He then further pressed into these brothers and sisters by surrounding and leading them with/to sober-minded, biblically sound teachers and leaders, of old and of the present. Shedding the caricatures’ and culturally marred versions of Jesus and Christianity so rampantly popular to the urban/minority population that most these artists represent. Becoming, “Urban Theologians”, of sorts. With a new “Young, Restless and Reformed” movement, to borrow the phrase (thank you Mr. DeYoung), the artist of such labels as Crossmovement, ReachRecords, Lapmode, Clearsight Music and others, have provided and become the music for the movement. With songs like rhythmic drum cadence, helping to order our march, reminding us of the gospel of Christ, especially in those music listening down times.
Soap Box
As I and others prayerfully watch, follow, and support, praying for the Lords protection, and continued blessing of these men/women as they become known across spiritual lines. We praise God in the answering of those prayers, as Christian Hip-Hop gains traction and airtime in secular arenas. For we know of those who desire to have “beautiful feet” the evangelistic landscape is laden with spiritual land mines.
Such a “land mine” that has been a live issue of late is that of “engaging the culture”, something that Christian Hip-Hoppers (as all Christians) are constantly doing, though the platforms and number of eye balls that witness, vary. In the “engaging the culture” discussion, always at the forefront is the question of “how much of the culture do we immerse ourselves in as to be relatable? While the opposing question counters “are we compromising, in our efforts to be relatable?” Good questions that should be asked, but even more so, wisely/Biblically answered. I'm of the understanding as expressed by Voddie Baucham on engaging the culture here.
Identity Crisis (Artist first: Christian second)
I can recall the cringe shared by myself and my brothers in the faith when a beloved Christian Artist utters the words, something to the effect of “I want to reach a wider audience.” If life had a soundtrack that would be a “dom dom dom” moment. Though most times well intentioned and pure in heart, this has historically meant that the music produced post statement, would be unrecognizable in content to that that was explicitly God and gospel centered, before it. Added to the “wider audience” stance is now:
- The lament of artistic imprisonment felt in prior projects.
- Also the argument that the labels of Christian Rap/Christian Rapper should no longer be attributed to the artist or genre. Instead, a type of parceling should be undertaken, “I’m not a Christian Rapper; I’m a Rapper who’s Christian” or “We are Christians who make Hip-Hop music; not Christian Hip-Hop.” As one Christian Rapper put it “we don’t call Lupe Fiasco’s music, Muslim Hip-Hop.” My response, we don’t call Islam “the way; the truth; and the life” either.
- Some artists have waged a preemptive strike, a stiff-arm (if you will) to those who would be led to question evangelistic methodology on the heels of noticing the dilution of the gospel message in the music. Some have dedicated songs, some verses, as their artistic justification.
Between Two Worlds
The desire to see the Kingdom walls extended is commendable, a desire that we should all be before the Lord in constant supplication for Him to increase in our hearts. However I and others question this methodology of “bait and switch”: let me dial down the message (gospel) so as to be accepted by the masses. And when I have garnered enough acclaim and I’ve made a name for myself, there will be more ears on me to hear the gospel.
Before the “L word” (Legalism) rears its head, as it has been used as a scapegoat to justify certain methodology before, lets agree on a couple of things:
- Legalism is best defined as “seeking to be accepted before God: forgiven by God: through obedience to God.” This is not the same thing.
- Christian Rappers (at least the ones I and others) listen to have communicated in song and otherwise that music is the ministry by which (though not solely) they would communicate the gospel through, a God given platform to do nothing less than. Which begs the question, what happened?
Life by Stereo
In this climate where to engage the culture means to not only learn but also adopt, look like, talk like, in order to become, so as to impact. That line in the sand of "being in the world and not of it" continues to be blurred as this new initiative, powered by the (in terms of those saved) quantity of souls at the cost of quality of message, continues to gain popularity among evangelicals. Orthodoxy seems no longer popular. The temptation to measure ones success in the proclamation of the Gospel by the number of warm bodies gathered to hear can be an unfaithful and unreliable measuring stick. Indeed, faithfulness to the "close watch on yourself and on the teaching" is a surer method benefiting "proclaimer and hearer" (1 Tim. 4:16). To my brothers and sisters in Christian Rap a few things:
- Be mindful of the presence of sin, still in our bodies (Rom. 7), which make us prone to wander. This risk increases the more we entertain worldly things, even with godly intentions (Eph. 5:8-11).
- Always be suspicious (sober minded) of large numbers. There is to be a friction between us and the world (Jn. 15:19-20). This does not mean that there is no room in the Great Commission for engagement that is informed, winsome and loving.
- The Gospel is the power of God onto salvation (Rom. 1:16), y'all know that.
- There is no artistic ineptitude in the clear proclamation of Gospel, as has been done in your earlier projects. It's as if with Christian rap, you’re holding the gospel like a diamond in sun twisting and turning it, allowing the sun to refract, showing its many colors and facets and cultural piercing applications. That is high art!
Your brother in Christ; and number one fan,
Shane Ebanks
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