Is It Time to Totally Rethink Christian Music? by BILLY HALLOWELL/PUREFLIX via Charisma News
Music and film producer Mark Joseph knows a thing or two about the entertainment industry, having worked for decades in both the Christian and secular worlds. In his new book, Rock Gets Religion: The Battle for the Soul of the Devil’s Music, Joseph makes the case for Christians to “make their music in the middle of popular culture.”
Joseph recently told The Billy Hallowell Podcast that he believes it’s important for Christian artists to speak to the broader culture by having a presence in the mainstream. He also expressed worries about attempts to keep Christians out of the secular music arena.
“American culture thrives when all different voices are at the table,” he said. “When one group suddenly evacuates, that creates a problem in the culture.”
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Listen to Joseph explain why Christians need to enter the secular realm in the podcast.
Joseph explained how he came to love both secular and Christian music during his younger years, but soon came to question why Christian music was contained in its own isolated genre—a dynamic that kept great talent from being heard in the mainstream.
“I began to really question, ‘Why are they walled off?'” he said. “I just felt bad that there were so many amazing artists that were in Christian music who never got to be heard by the outside world.”
Joseph soon started working in record distribution overseas and met some of those Christian artists. His concern only intensified.
“I realized that people of faith, devout Christians were not being heard,” he said, noting that he soon found himself wondering how this trend could be reversed. “It’s like Christians were at the kiddy table, not being taken seriously.”
The music and film producer soon set out on a mission to try and change that dynamic, writing three books on the subject over the years. Joseph has plenty of ideas about how Christians can take their music into the mainstream.
