Not all Christian Rap is created equal. A lot of artists are just regurgitating, and reverse engineering, rap they heard out in the World that isn’t any good.
Now I do understand that a lot of thugs who would be out on the streets selling drugs have put down their guns and are now rapping for Jesus. That is a wonderful thing. But too often we end up with the same old tired concepts.
Christian Swag
To be fair, swag a huge deal back in 2008. Swag has reached its apex, is about to become commercialized, just like bling was, and is going to become its own joke shortly. I mean in this day and age your grandmother has swag; it just does not have the same effect.
We should be representing Christ, not trying to be cool. Swag started back when Jay-Z talked about brushing the dust off of your shoulders. Just at that time no one had even thought to call it swag, but that is what he was describing. We want to be taken seriously as Christians, not the 21st century post- Superfly blaxploitation incarnation of Bible thumping, “honk if you love Jesus” caricatures of ourselves.
Christian Trap Music
A lot of this music sounds like stuff Young Jeezy was on before he hooked up with Def Jam, or some really bad music by Gucci Mane. It is very sad, because your average Christian artist cannot afford to clear those expensive samples, so it just sounds like a cheap imitation.
I want to know that you are talking about Christ. Too often I listen to the music and get accused of listening to some super-hard rap music, when I’m not. A lot of these artists have great things to say, but their message is often obscured by the music.
Christian Backpackers
There is some good Christian music out there, but it really should have come out somewhere in the mid-nineties. Like where were you when Leaders of the New School and De La Soul had us wrapped up in New Age concepts? Allow some of the newer secular groups to continue to reinvent that old sound, and find a new sound of your own.
It isn’t just Christian rap that is suffering, but Christian music in general. Sometimes you hear something that is truly new and innovative, but a lot of times you do not. Christian artists are continually challenged to find new sounds that are innovative and can make people move, but do not send people right back into the same World they came out of. It isn’t easy, but a lot of artists have done it, and created a unique sound for themselves. It is like, how do you get out of the club, but maintain that same club feeling, for Jesus?