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Is it
possible to have holy hip hop? According to The
Truth Behind Hip Hop the answer is no. He claims that
hip hop is a religion. However, many believe that the church
can use rap music to reach out to young people. Some say that
although man created hip hop, just as paper was invented by
man to put the word of God on, hip hop can also be be used
for God's purpose. |
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 There
is no such thing as Christian music, there are only Christian
lyrics.
— Rick Warren
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'Holy
Hip Hop' is the title of a new DVD presented by Christopher
Martin, better known as Play from the rap duo Kid 'n Play.
He says that he has personally witnessed how Christian rap
music can be used as a powerful outreach tool to advance the
gospel, positively impact and change lives for the better.
But what is holy hip hop? According to Wikipedia, gospel rap
uses Christian-themed lyrics to convey positive messages and
express the rapper's faith. While many mainstream rap artists
include rhymes about God and Jesus, artists such as Kanye
West, DMX, Nas and Tupac Shakur are not considered Christian
hip hop, as their lyrics focus on worldly, often profane matters.
Christian hip hop and rap artists tend to be professed Christians,
and use the fact that they are urban or suburban as a positive
issue to spread their faith, and like all Christian music,
it can be experienced as worship.
Christian hip hop has a history of being dismissed by churches
as sacrilegious, or devil music. G Craige Lewis makes a living
out of preaching his 'anti-holy hip hop' message. No money,
no support, and no funded albums were the experience of many
artists, but many see Christian rap as being on the brink
of mainstream success. |
 Christopher
Martin aka Play |
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There
are several reasons for opposing it. It’s too new.
It’s too worldly, even blasphemous. The new Christian
music is not as pleasant as the more established style.
It puts too much emphasis on instrumental music rather than
on godly lyrics. This new music creates disturbances, making
people act disorderly. The preceding generation got along
without it.
— Amazingly, this is not a criticism of holy hip hop,
but was written way back in 1723 about the hymns of the
day. As Ecclesiastes says, there
is nothing new under the sun.
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What
do you think of holy hip hop?
Please let me know. |
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How
can anyone feel that music is evil? Music isn't evil... spirits
and principalities that dwell within this earth and inhabit
the mind and body of specific people could be evil. If you
are a part of a culture, then you can truly understand it.
It's not a race, a community, or a sex, it is a mixture/collaboration
of several different components that make up a specific group.
The original Hip Hop music was enlightening in the early days...
freedom of expression, views, voices, mindsets, a re-birth
in a sense as the Renaissance Era. Here we can give the enemy
so much power by saying that something as awesome as Holy
Hip Hop is evil, when in fact... God created music... the
world perverted it... now Holy Hip Hop is taking it back and
taking it to a level that a specific generation and "culture"
can receive it. If you can't receive it... just leave it be!
Is Holy Hip Hop confusion or are you the confused one? Anything
that glorifies God to me is beautiful. I am a 38 year old
mother from South Carolina. Knine
is my brother in Christ. I know his music has touched the
lives of young men and women who were lost and when they heard
his music and his testimony... LIVES WERE CHANGED! Now you
can take that to the bank... cause it's real!
— SonyG |
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Here's
a thought for everyone who disagrees with holy hip hop simply
on the basis of the fact that you can't tell it apart aside
from the lyrics; in Japan, there's a growing niche for gospel
music to the point where Japanese folks are forming their
own gospel choirs and none of them are Christians. (Only 3%
of Japan is Christian.) To them, gospel music is nothing more
than a sound. Similarly hip-hop music is a sound. And how
foolish of us to say that hip-hop culture cannot be redeemed!
According to our Lord Jesus Christ, even Sodom and Gomorrah
were redeemable! (Matthew 11:22-24).
— Taryn |
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Hiphop
can be used for God's purpose to bring souls into the kingdom.
— Baffour |
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Holy
Hip Hop is great! I love the music and the words with the
beats. My niece loves to dance — now she dances to music
glorifying the Lord. It's good when you hear lil' kids singing
lyrics that worship the Lord.
— Brittaney |
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There
is virtually no difference between Holy Hip Hop and the regular
Hip Hop. The "new" lifestyle, beats and looks can
be termed a lot of other things, but not holy. I understand
the love for it and wanting to compromise (being wrapped up
in the music myself for a good 16 years before Jesus saved
me and delivered me — also from my huge love of secular
music). I currently live in a non native english speaking
country; the kids out here don't know the difference either,
the lyrics don't matter — the spirit is the same!
— Steve |
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I
agree with Steve with the fact that there is no real difference
between Holy and regular hip hop. In my opinion, adding a
couple scripture verses and including the name of Jesus does
not necessarily make something holy and acceptable. God is
not the author of confusion and (in my opinion) holy hip hop
is very confusing, especially to young Christians. I see no
difference between the way they perform, dress, act, neither
can I tell from the music videos that they are glorifying
God... to me it's very hard to distinguish the two. I do believe
in getting the youth involved and going into the streets and
spreading the word of God, however I do not think we have
to conform to the world's standards and methods to do this.
This would just be underestimating the power of God to change
people's lives, He doesn't need all the help we may think
He does.
— Krystle |
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There
is nothing like "Holy Hip Hop". Hip-hop is hip-hop.
There is a difference between rap and hip-hop. Some people
just call everything with a rap in it hip-hop, but there is
a difference. Rap is a way of singing or whatever. Hip-hop
is a culture that hides behind the fact that rapping is only
a way of expressing themselves. You can rap, but hip-hopping
is actually believing that you are a god and that Jesus Christ
is the white man's God. Hip-hop is pure evil. We say this
because satan has found a way to trap us teens and young adults
into sin. Satan was the angel of music in heaven — now
look at hip-hop.
— Pauline |
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Simply
put, He will give us the discernment to distinguish between
clean and unclean... holy and unholy. Unfortunately, because
the spirit of entertainment (if there is such a thing) has
taken over our churches, no one knows what is holy and what
is unholy. To call an all-night prayer session... you may
get about a handful of people... but call a gospel concert
for free, and the house will be packed! Standing room only.
I recently went to a church's album release party and it was
packed with 20- and 30-somethings... but the following week,
I went to a conference that dealt with a big issue in the
black community and the church, and there were only about
100 people. It is a sad commentary.
— JD |
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This
is what it is, the Bible teaches that all things were created
to glorify God, so if all things are created by him, that
means the only thing the devil can do is pervert. And that
is what he has done with the music of today. Same as the television
shows. Christian rap is not secular hip hop. One might say
that it is poetic genius. Who are these people to limit what
God can do to a culture. Come on man. Get at me. Stay blessed
y'all. —
Pastor Kells |
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I'm
the promoter for STP, a Christian rap group based out of Lancaster,
California. We don’t associate with the hip hop culture.
We just do what God has put in our hearts and minds. I wanna
say that in my spirit I feel right about what STP is doing.
I can't speak for all the other Christian rap groups out there
cause many rappers claim to represent Christ then they use
the N-word in their records. That just doesn’t seem
right to me. I feel like God is using our talents as a way
to encourage and to bless others.
— Freddy |
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To
redeem means to bring back to the original state of affairs.
Hip Hop's founding father is still alive today and he tells
us what his intentions were in starting the movement. So if
we say we redeem Hip Hop, and its origins were bad in the
first place, then we are redeeming something bad. To redeem
something for good means that it had to be in the first place
good. Hip Hop is not that. People don't like to read their
Word anyway, so it's hard to get the message across. Flesh
can't comprehend the things of the spirit.
— Steve Keys |
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Damn
son that is some crazy lyrics you’re spittin.
— Kabacinski |
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It
can’t be used for good if it is uprooted from evil...
How u going to present clean evil to God?
— Adrian |
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I
feel that G Craige Lewis's statement is correct when he informed
us that God does not need to use the things of this world
to get glory, God was the creator of music and if we as believers
in Christ would seek the face of God and get into his presence
we would not need to use the tactics of the devil to bring
in the youth. We as young people are looking for the truth
so that we may receive true deliverance. We have to look at
it this way, if we mix the things of the world with the things
of God it creates a state of confusion, and if the body of
Christ agrees with holy hip hop then we say that we agree
with hip hop in the eyes of the youth, which opens up a door
that should not be opened. I understand that there is a desire
to bring in the youth so that we may be saved and set free
and what we need is a person to be an example of God’s
glory and people that have the power of the Holy Spirit, that
is how you will reach the youth. Prayer is the key, teaches
us to seek the face of God. With the body of Christ we can't
be fooled by the devil and I pray that the blindfolds are
lifted off the eyes of God’s people for the devil is
trying to fool many and if we don’t understand the move
that is taking place right now in the body of Christ and in
the worldly realm many will be deceived. In Jesus' name be
set free. —
Bonnie |
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I
just can't get this evil thing, sure hip hop has a bad side
and presents the worst kind of example to the youth, but it
isn't the music in itself, its how it has been used and the
spirit it carries. This can be a pure, spirit filled message,
just as it can in any other musical form. Some of the best
work in terms of outreach in the UK is coming from hip hop
and it isn't watered down in terms of its praise or its beats...
it's changing lives and these people aren't coming to know
a different god's love. Peace.
— Johnny G |
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Holy
Hip Hop
Fasten
your seatbelt and prepare to experience the explosive world
of spiritually-enlightening holy hip hop ministry, music and
entertainment glorifying God! Director and producer Christopher
Martin professionally known as Play from the rap and acting
duo Kid 'n Play is the feature's host and invites you to meet
some of Holy Hip Hop's trail blazin' artists and Ministers
of the Gospel, who are a part of a movement that began in
the late 1980s and thrives worldwide as one of the fastest
growing music genres today, with over 2000 active emcees and
legions of fans worldwide. Peep this video and see what these
souled out Christian souljahs for the Lord are doing to change
the face of music for generations to come with powerful lyrics
and bangin' beats — and bringin' nothin' but the Truth.
A must see video for any ardent lover of music who wants to
be tuned in to the cutting edge, whether you are within or
outside the four walls of the church.
  USA
UK Canada |
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Holy
Hip Hop: Taking the Gospel to the Streets, Volume 3
Holy
Hip Hop: Taking the Gospel to the Streets is a definite must
for any Christian rap fan, either a veteran fan of the genre
or a beginning rookie listener. This compilation has flavor
from Willie Will, Choze, Pro-Vision, Fedel, Eckspress, K-Drama,
Mahogany Jones, MoBigga, NuSkool, Ryan Daniel, The Great Commission,
and XROSS. Produced by Christopher "Play" Martin
(for those of you that don't know — a former member
of Kid 'n Play from back in the 1980s) and veteran supervising
producer, David "Damonsta" Lynch, the hits are blazing
off the meter!
Listen
to the Go Ye DJ Mega-Mix
USA
UK Canada |
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The
Hip-Hop Church: Connecting With the Movement Shaping Our Culture
Hip-hop
culture is all around us: in the clothes youth wear, in the
music they listen to, in the ways they express themselves.
It is the language they speak, the rhythm they move to. It
is a culture familiar with the hard realities of our broken
world; the generation raised with rap knows about the pain.
They need to know about the hope. Enter the hip-hop church.
Like the culture it rises from, the hip-hop church is relevant
and bold. And it speaks to the heart. In this book, pastors
Efrem Smith and Phil Jackson show the urgency of connecting
hip-hop culture and church to reach a generation with the
gospel of Jesus Christ. They give practical ideas from their
urban churches and other hip-hop churches about how to engage
and incorporate rap, break dancing, poetry and deejays to
worship Jesus and preach his Word. Hip-hop culture is shaping
the next generation. Ignoring it will not reduce its influence;
it will only separate us from the youth moving to its rhythm.
USA
UK Canada |
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Noise
and Spirit: The Religious and Spiritual Sensibilities of Rap
Music
Rap
music is often seen as a Black secular response to pressing
issues of our time. Yet rap has deep connections to African
American religious traditions. Noise and Spirit explores the
diverse religious dimensions of rap stemming from Islam (including
the Nation of Islam and Five Percent Nation), Rastafarianism,
and Humanism, as well as Christianity. The book examines rap's
dialog with religious traditions, from the ways in which Islamic
rap is used as a method of religious and political instruction
to the uses of both the blues and Black women's rap for considering
the distinction between God and the Devil. The first section
explores rap's association with more easily recognizable religious
traditions and communities such as Christianity and Islam.
The next presents discussions of rap and important spiritual
considerations, including on the topic of death. The final
wrestles with ways to theologize about the relationship between
the sacred and the profane in rap.
USA
UK Canada |
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Jesus
and the Hip-Hop Prophets: Spiritual Insights from Lauryn Hill
and Tupac Shakur
Cleverly
organized into seven short "tracks" instead of chapters,
this slim volume offers reflections on the lyrics of two popular
recording artists, Lauryn Hill and the late 2pac Shakur. That
Teter, director of two More Than Conquerors campus ministries,
and Gee, pastor of Fountain of Life Family Worship Center,
are knowledgeable fans of hip-hop and admirers of the two
featured lyricists is unmistakable. Equally evident is their
desire to enable their fellow fans to discover the spiritual
truths embedded in the lyrics. The book suffers from the typical
awkwardness of the first-person narratives of two writers-the
"I, Alex" and "My (John's)" type of construction.
Still, the book offers a valuable look at the connection between
the harshness of urban life and the prophetic warnings from
two singers who managed to find hope amid difficult circumstances.
USA
UK Canada |
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Rap
and the Eroticizing of Black Youth
Are rappers raising Black youth? What kind of values are being
taught? Do rap lyrics contribute to the STD and AIDS epidemic?
How can we save Black youth? Showing that in its early days
rap music led to black consciousness, this book goes on to
argue that the current preoccupations of rap — especially
the erotic themes expressed and their dramatization in music
videos — have led to an unthinking youthful acceptance
of profanity, vulgarity, sexual abuse, and violence. The book
advocates for a return to rap's origins, for young people
to become more selective and critical of today's music, and
for parents to take a more active role in monitoring their
children's listening habits.
USA
UK Canada |
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The
Hip Hop Prayer Book
A
powerful evangelism tool, developed at Trinity Church of Morrisania
in the South Bronx, The Hip Hop Prayer Book offers a means
to worship that will draw in the young and speak to those
not generally spoken to by the Church. Containing daily prayers,
psalms, a variety of services, and a selection of bible stories
all designed with the enlivening power of Hip Hop in mind.
The Hip Hop Prayer Book features Psalm 23 as adapted by Ryan
Kearse: "The Lord is all that, I need for nothing. He
allows me to chill. He keeps me from being heated and allows
me to breathe easy. He guides my life so that I can represent
and give shouts out in his Name. And even though I walk through
the Hood of death, I don't back down for you have my back.
The fact that you have me covered allows me to chill. He provides
me with back-up in front of my player-haters and I know that
I am a baller and life will be phat. I fall back in the Lord's
crib for the rest of my life."
USA
UK Canada |
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You
may have heard of a series of DVDs called The Truth Behind
Hip Hop. These are produced by Elder G Craige Lewis of Ex
Ministries, and are proving to be remarkably popular with
young people.
The
Truth Behind Hip Hop Exposed |
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If, like
me, you were surprised to see Pastor Mason Betha rapping with
50 Cent on his single Window Shopping, you might be wondering
what's going on. Mase's conversion to Christianity in 1999
is well documented, not least in his autobiography.
Has
Ma$e exchanged Creflo Dollar for half a dollar? |
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Gun
violence seems to follow the rapper 50 Cent, who has himself
been shot nine times, and always wears a bulletproof vest.
Now it's claimed that 'Fiddy' makes a profit out of the misery
of parents who are burying their children.
Is
50 Cent Bulletproof?: Rap Music and Violence |
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"Versatile
is who I am," the ever-amped and spirited rapper shouts!
"I make music for everybody — stuff for the West
Coast gangsters and lowriders, and joints that East Coast
cats can appreciate lyrically with beats that can still get
the South crunk."
T-Bone |
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In 1993
a young unknown gospel musician released his debut album —
it went on to spend 100 weeks at the top of the Billboard
gospel charts, while also crossing over to the R&B side,
and becoming in the process the first gospel album ever to
sell over a million units.
Kirk
Franklin |
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