Christian hip hop
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| Christian music | |
| Stylistic origins |
A variety of genres evolving from Jesus music.
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|---|---|
| Cultural origins |
1960s United States
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| Typical instruments | |
| Mainstream popularity | Continuous from 1990s |
| Subgenres | |
| Christian alternative rock · Christian bubblegum pop · Christian electronic music · Christian hardcore · Christian hip hop · Christian metal · Unblack metal · Christian punk · Christian rock · Christian soft rock | |
| Other topics | |
| Christian entertainment industry · Contemporary worship music | |
Christian hip hop (originally Gospel rap, also known as holy hip hop or Christ hop) is a form of hip hop music which uses Christian themes to express the songwriter's faith. Only during the 1990s did the term "Christian hip hop" become descriptive of this type of music. While the audience is typically Christian, the music is also used in (Christian) missions work for the purpose of evangelization. Christian rap and hip hop artists are often professed Christians who often use their background to spread the religion's beliefs.
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[edit] History
The first commercially released and distributed Gospel rap album was Stephen Wiley's 1985 album Bible Break, distributed by Benson Music Group.[1][2][3] Reverend DeWayne GoLightly (aka Rev. Rap') was the first Christian hip-hop artist without a commercially released Gospel rap cassette. More commercially successful was the crew known as P.I.D. (short for Preachas In Disguise) who released two popular, funky Gospel rap recordings ("Here We Are" and "Back to Back", along with some later albums).
In the late 1980s, other crews emerged, including dc Talk and S.F.C (Soldiers For Christ). S.F.C was led by Californian African-American Chris Cooper who originally rapped as Super C (short for Super Chris / Super Christian) and later became Sup the Chemist and then finally Soup the Chemist. Chris Cooper & S.F.C. were instrumental in bringing up and exposing newer Gospel groups such as T-Bone.[citation needed]. Christian emcee Danny "D-Boy" Rodriguez was another well known early Gospel rap artist but was murdered in 1990 in Texas.[4]
The 1990s saw the continuing trend of funky rap artists blending faith and rap, such as D.O.C. (Disciples of Christ) who emerged out of Oklahoma as well as the Gospel Gangstaz from Compton and South Central Los Angeles, California. Additional artists made a considerable impact on the Christian hip-hop scene. Such artists that contributed were Dynamic Twins, Freedom of Soul, IDOL King, Apocalypse. S.F.C.'s (Sup, QP, DJ Dove) 1992 album Phase III is considered to be a turning point in Christian rap.[citation needed] Phase III was DJed and produced by DJ Dove, whose credits also include the Gang Affiliated, Gospel Gangstas' 1993 debut album.
Around the same time as Phase III, Dynamic Twins (Robbie and Noel) came out with their 1993 album No Room To Breathe. This album had a more hardcore "street" feel to it than other albums at the time.[citation needed] Freedom Of Soul (MC Peace, DJ Cartoon) followed with their second album, The Second Coming, (Caught in a land of time was their first) also their last album as a group. Freedom of Soul had a jazzier feel; MC Peace (later known as Peace 586) was known for his smooth flow and delivery.[citation needed] P.I.D. around this time re-invented themselves as the group Preachas, although their only album under that name was Violent Playgrounds.[citation needed]
One of the major influences in the genre came with the formation of Gotee Records in 1994, cofounded by DC Talk member Toby McKeehan, making it the first record label marketed explicitly for Christian Hip-hop and R&B that was backed by a major label. The label was among the first to market the Contemporary Christian Music market through distribution at Christian bookstores and playing on Christian radio. This Trend continued with other labels such as Tooth & Nail's Uprok Records and others which gave an outlet to hip-hop artists who identified themselves as Christian and wanted a broader market. However, much of the sales of these Christian record labels was purchased by people brought up in the church and 70-80% of them being white.[5] Recently, a number of artists and labels such as Cross Movement Records, Gotee Records,LifeLite Records Media Group, Syntax Records and Deepspace5 Records have purposely tried to market more to people who did not grow up in church as well as more to urban markets.[6]
In addition, many major Gospel stars were getting in on the hip-hop & rap genre. Kirk Franklin joined with the 1 Nation Crew in the album Kirk Franklin presents 1NC. Gospel legend Pastor Shirley Caesar recorded a stunning duet "I Know The Truth" with Tonex in which she raps.
[edit] Artists and style
See also: Performers of Christian hip hop music
There has been a segmentation of the musical artists in the genre. Some see themselves as preachers or ministers who proselytize to "non-believers"" or try to preach a positive message using hip-hop as a medium. While others choose to be simply hip-hop artists who are expressing themselves and since they are Christian, their music would contain expression of their faith (some of these artists include Manafest, Lecrae, Skribbal, and T Bone.) This also relates to the argument similar in Christian rock and other Christian music genres where some artists welcome being called Christian artists while others would not want to be labeled as "Christian" so to not tie them down to the Christian music market. Others see themselves somewhere in the middle, who may constantly acknowledge their faith in songs but are not typically considered Christian hip hop artists and see themselves as both preachers and entertainers and welcome acceptance in both the Christian music market as well as crossing over into secular markets.[7]
While many notable studios and artists share influence in Holy hip-hop, no one style dominates. Christian hip hop features all conventional hip hop styles. There are many styles (just like secular) such as Westcoast and Eastcoast.
[edit] Reaction and Acceptance
[edit] Christian Music Industry
As with many inchoate and newly formed musical genres and subgenres of Christian Music, Christian hip-hop initially had difficulty finding an audience. Despite early rejection, Christian hip-hop has managed to follow other forms of Christian music, such as Christian metal, in becoming a dominant force within contemporary Christian music. Christian music awards shows such as the GMA Dove Awards and Stellar Awards have added rap and hip hop categories.[8][9].
[edit] Performances
Live events such as RapFest (held annually in August in New York City) as well as conferences such as Flavor Fest (held annually in November at Crossover Church in Tampa, Florida), the Holy Hip Hop Music Awards & Artist Showcase(held annually in January in Atlanta, Georgia), and the Texas Holy Hip Hop Achievement Awards (held annually in Houston, Texas) have helped to foster the genre among evangelical youth and young adults. Other notable events include The Yuinon & H.P., based in Detroit, Michigan.[citation needed]
[edit] Media
Websites which cater to Christian hip-hop include Rapzilla [1] and SphereofHipHop.com. HolyHipHop.com exceeded 140,000 Digital Downloads in 2006. Christian hip hop themed videos and DVDs are also increasing in availability and popularity. Christopher "Play" Martin (formerly of Kid 'N Play) released a DVD on Amen Films entitled Holy Hip Hop which made it to Blockbuster Video Stores in March 2006.[citation needed]
[edit] Churches and Christian Audiences
Some church congregations have adopted hip hop-themed musical worship. 2007 Holy Hip Hop Music Awards received appearances by Kurtis Blow, GrandMaster Caz, Cheryl "Salt" Wray and even Mase walked in unannounced and went to Pastor Eddie Velez on stage in front of a packed audience to apologize for saying that Christian rap was not of God five years earlier. 2007 Holy Hip Hop Music Awards also received a written endorsement letter from the mayor of Atlanta acknowledging the event's support by the City of Atlanta and recognizing its 7th year.[citation needed] However, other people and churches see "Holy Hip-Hop" and still associate it with the mainstream Hip hop culture which they view as incompatible with Christianity's teachings. [10]
[edit] Secular Audiences
Holy hip-hop has enjoyed some crossover acceptance as well. One of the early accepted artists were D.O.C., who matured under the guidance of former Prince guitarist and vocalist Dez Dickerson,[citation needed] while the gritty Gospel Gangstaz were ex-Bloods and ex-Crips who began ministering to gang-affiliated street youths and winning fans from Interscope to Snoop Dogg.[citation needed]
One of the most notable mainstream reactions to Gospel rap was to KJ-52 (pronounced "five-two") and his single "Dear Slim", which was written to Eminem in an attempt reach him with the message of Christ. The song became famous and controversial among Eminem fans when it was featured on the hit show Total Request Live. KJ-52 began to receive hate mail (including death threats) from Eminem's fans, though KJ-52 claimed that the song was not a "diss".[11] This also led to the single being disparaged by VH1 as # 26 on their "Top 40 Worst Moments in Hip Hop"[12], an issue the artist addressed in a follow-up song titled "Washed Up".
The United Kingdom has also recently received Christian rap with groups such as Jahaziel and One Love; although their music has been increasingly played in underground Christian hip hop circles, they have yet to achieve mainstream success. Recently Jahaziel Received airplay on Londons Choice FM with DJ Richard Blackwood as the host who has expressed a liking for his work, namely the song "In My Neighbourhood". The hip-hop gospel scene is also in Japan, with artists such as Yoshi Blessed and Hinds 57 who is now in the comedic pop group BAD. In other countries Christian hip hop has been present in recent years, for example in Germany and South Africa.
Nigeria has over the years also been influenced by spiritual hip-hop culture. Several groups have been formed blending Western flow with contemporary Nigerian culture, causing There is a strong following of Christian rap. Artists such as Roof Top MCs and Bouqui are making Gospel Hip-Hop mainstream.[citation needed]
[edit] See also
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