When I was growing up, to around 1989 when I was 12 I just listened to whatever Mom and Dad did and most of what they listened to was Contemporary Christian Music (CCM for short) or oldies.
At some point later that year I heard something I’d never really heard before called rap. I think this was on one of those satellite stations that my cousin got but I don’t remember. The sound set my ears and heart on fire and I had to listen to more.
Oskaloosa got radio stations like KBOE and oldies and then classical and then other 80s rock at that time … no rap there. Perhaps I could ask my parents for a rap cassette for Christmas.
I remember the look of shock on their faces. It looked like this :^O At that time they either didn’t know what rap was or all they could think of was all the cursing or the girly chasing that was done.
Not wanting to disappoint me they found a CD that year by a brand new group called dc Talk who also was a Christian group which meant I was safe from any cursing or “girly chasing”
I liked it. It had a bit of grunge rock/rap thing going on with a bunch of stuff mixed in that shouldn’t work but did. I also started checking out other Christian artists like Petra, Degarmo & Key, White Heart, and some of the calmer stuff like Ray Boltz and Dallas Holm.
Who are those guys?
Exactly. Most of the people in my class really didn’t know them. I liked them a lot. Still do. When I wanted to talk music I had to find the nearest Vennard Student who either liked the same stuff or at least knew who I was talking about.
When it comes down to it, I just never got into secular music that much. The closest I get to secular is a good movie sound track. I didn’t even really like Kiss’s “Rock and Roll and party everyday” song when I first heard it in gym class. Then I heard it like a hundred million times in gym class and would now rather smash a radio and pay someone for it than risk ever hearing that song again.
Another problem has always been that I’ve pretty much had to listen to demos in the store as best I could or take my chances in buying a cd because the radio station never played it.
But nonetheless I ended up with something of a unique taste in music. I miss Sam Goody being in Osky. I was starting to find some great international music there before they closed.
Wal-Mart doesn’t really carry bands like Angela, Hikaru Utada, 12 girls band, or Jackie Chan. Yes that’s a joke as far as I know he doesn’t sing professionally. It’s hard enough to buy this music let alone a radio station playing it.
KBOE is not about to break from country any time soon. Shame.
At some point Pella got a Christian radio station and I thought, finally I’ll have a station I can tune into to listen to the music that I like ….
Unless the Christian Rock band played any Worship song then KCWN probably doesn’t play it. We’re fortunate that they play Newsboys praise song with a rock edge to it. But if KCWN ever played anything that didn’t sound like it came straight from Easy Listening it’d be an act of God.
I mean couldn’t they play classic christian rock at least? Generally once music hits 15-20 yrs old it is considered safe even though it never changed. As Larry Norman once wrote, “Why should the Devil have all the good music?” He wrote this because there are some “Christians” who consider anything that might make your toe tap is from the devil, even if the song speaks of Jesus.
Today I still listen to some of the old stuff. I still like it and I probably always will. But I’ve also found a love for newer stuff and metal. Demon Hunter, FireFlight, Flyleaf, The Showdown, and others.
And though these bands sing lyrics that no Christian would be against KCWN will not play them.
If there are any stations playing this kind of music they’d better let me know in person cause I so don’t listen to music radio that much I’ll probably never find the station if it is out there.
If I do listen to radio I prefer talk. It’s usually politics or news and I love the debate and the exchange of ideas. I get angry and I get good laughs. Without the risk of listening to music I don’t really like.
There are few people I can listen to my music with and we both know and enjoy the songs. I’ve been told my music is too preachy, too old, lacking something and the list goes on.
The strange part is these artists have concerts and they are usually always full, so it’s not like they don’t have their fans around here, I just happen to not know many of them.
In the end I often feel I’m Musically alone. Yes this sometimes bums me out, cuz I really do like what I listen to and I’d like to share it with people and not just get complaints.
But that’s not why I’m writing this. Or even to start a music debate. I’m just pondering an idea. I mean what would happen if I ever got a radio station. What if I didn’t play CCM? What if I really did play “Jesus Rock & Roll”, man? or Jesus Metal? Jesus Blues? What if I formatted it so there was no mention of Southern Gospel? Unless they pay good money to pay for an ad about a concert or something?
I mean if I formatted it to play as Baz Luhrman once had a CD entitled “SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE” but it was of course geared towards Christians who want to rock out and dance and go nuts for God? I’d probably try to throw in some J-POP for you Otaku too!
Would you listen? Would you be curious? Would you say like me that it’s about time? Would you say that I’m crazy? … uhm don’t answer that one. ;^)
I once was a DJ on KIGC on Sunday. I did play anything and everything “Christian” I could get my hands on to play on the Sunday show. I even had some people call in for requests. Some of them asked me to play something normal… but then there were the others. The ones who liked the same thing that I did. I’m pretty sure I had 3 fans.
I’m so proud. I know it’s not a lot, but not everyone can claim to have 3 fans at some point in their lives. Ok I jest. I don’t know if I had fans or not, but the point is there is a hole in the area looking to be filled. People who actually do love Jesus and good music. And people who may not love Jesus but are looking for something good and different to listen to and then find that there is a God and He loves them.
My good friend pointed out, since his church is looking to build/buy a radio station that plays Christian music for old farts and farmers and they expect this to be a mission to reach non-Christians…. How exactly does playing music that no one but a Christian would want to listen to be a mission? Ok, you might reach the “Non-Christian” old farts and farmers, but that rules out a lot of people.
I’ve wondered before, but I wonder again what could we do if we got our hands on a Radio Station? Plug in some Jesus Music and Rock out?
Personally I think it’d be like pulling teeth. It’d hurt to start with, but once the bad teeth are out and the dental work is done, then maybe we could enjoy it.
I’ll leave you on this note. The Newsboys have a song that says to “SHINE! Make them wonder what you got. Make them wish that they were not, on the outside looking bored!”
Of course the song also mentions a transformation so great that vegetarians may BBQ hamsters… I’m pretty sure it’s a metaphor, and no hamsters were harmed in the making of the video.
