New Releases: the Christmas Edition

Christmas is right around the corner and that means new Christmas albums from your favorite Christian artists. I came across this article from the Rhapsody Soundboard blog, in which Wendy Lee Nentwig discusses some notable new releases. Biggest surprise (for me): Susan Boyle's album "The Gift." Although not a Christian artist, the album is being marketed to both Christian and secular markets. It's doing well so far: it topped the Billboard 200 and Holiday Album lists this week. Nentwig also includes a discussion on notable tours as well.

Another good list I found is on CBN.com (short for Christian Broadcasting Network, known for shows like "700 Club"). This one has an easy-to-read rating system and a link to a special online radio station.

I also found one more list on Christianity Today's website. As an evangelical magazine, it not only lists albums from established Christian artists, but also albums with spiritual themes (including Boyle's "The Gift," Mariah Carey's "Merry Christmas II You," Katherine McPhee's "Christmas is the Time to Say I Love You," and Wilson Philips' "Christmas in Harmony.")

One thing I noticed: A lot of love for Dave Barnes' "Very Merry Christmas." Here are a few blurbs:

• Christianity Today: "Issuing a classy Christmas collection akin to Harry Connick Jr.'s yuletide discography, singer/songwriter Barnes gifts his listeners with chic musical arrangements of holiday vintages and charming originals fitting of the same set list."
•  Rhapsody Soundboard: "The consummate performer, Dave Barnes is a natural to take on Christmas classics and contribute a few of his own holiday tunes. His first holiday project, Very Merry Christmas, features a festive mix of four yuletide faves and six Dave Barnes originals."
•  CBN: "Where has Dave Barnes been all my life? I asked myself this earlier in the year when I was introduced to his music for the first time. Although he’s been around for awhile, his music has been largely unknown until recently. Barnes is a fantastic musician, and his Christmas album for 2010 does not disappoint."

Check these links:
-http://blog.rhapsody.com/2010/11/xtianxmas.html
-http://www.cbn.com/cbnmusic/reviews/best-christian-christmas-albums-2010.aspx 
-http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/music/bestoflists/2010/christmas10.html?start=1

Billboard Report (Week of December 4, 2010)

These are the #1 Songs from Billboard:

- Christian song: "Starry Night" by Chris August

• #17 on Heatseekers

- Christian album: "And If Our God is For Us..." by Chris Tomlin

• #17 on Billboard 200
• #15 Digital Albums

- Gospel songs: "Nobody Greater" by VaShawn Mitchell

- Gospel album: "Rehab" by LeCrae

• #200 Billboard 200
• #9 Christian Albums
• #15 Independent Album
• #14 Rap Album

Concert Alert: Steve Harvey and Kirk Franklin

Yes, you read that correctly.

 Next year, beginning on March 19, comedian Steve Harvey will do a nationwide tour with popular Gospel artist Kirk Franklin. Although not a Christian comedian, Harvey has performed at Gospel-themed events such as Bishop TD Jakes' MegaFest. In fact, his performance at MegaFest is the basis for his 2006 concert film, "Don't Trip...He Ain't Through With Me Yet!" The tour doesn't support an album. However both Harvey and Franklin have recent book releases. Franklin's "The Blueprint: A Plan for Living Above Life's Storms" was released in May and Harvey's "Straight Talk, No Chaser," the follow-up to "Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man" will be released next month.

Harvey says that the tour will be a challenge because he has to keep the comedy clean so that he won't offend Christians. It seems that his tour mate isn't worried; Franklin was quoted saying, "Steve brings the jokes and I bring that Jesus!"

For more information on the tour, go to Steve Harvey's website.

Concert Alert: 2 Friends Tour

On Tuesday, November 9, Provident Label Group, a division of Sony Music Entertainment focusing on Christian music, announced that Grant and Smith will reunite for the “2 Friends Tour” next year. This will be the first time that they will collaborate on a non-holiday tour in more than two decades. The tour will begin on February 10 in Holland, Michigan, and conclude on March 6 in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. “2 Friends” will support their latest albums, Grant’s Somewhere Down the Road  (released on March 30, 2010) and Smith’s Wonder (released on September 28, 2010). Both albums did well on the Billboard Christian Albums charts, with both peaking at #2.

Although she is known outside the Christian music scene for her album Heart in Motion, Grant is known as a trailblazer in the contemporary Christian/Gospel music industry. According to her official website, Grant is the first contemporary Christian artist to have a platinum record, a #1 pop single, and the first to perform at the Grammys. She is also one of only two Christian artists to have a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Her success opened the doors for other Christian artists. One such artist is Michael W. Smith. In 1982, Smith toured with Grant during her “Age to Age Tour” as her keyboard player. During that time, he wrote songs for Grant and other Christian artists, while recording his first album, Michael W. Smith Project. Released in 1983, it yielded the hit “Friends” and his first Grammy nomination. Eventually, Smith was asked to be Grant’s opening act.  The two continued to tour together until her 1989 “Lead Me On Tour.” Since then, they have collaborated musically, contributing on each others’ albums.

According to an interview with the “Tune In Music City” blog on the Tennessean newspaper’s website, both Grant and Smith are excited to perform together again. “This many years later, to get to tour together is just awesome,” said Smith. “When I think about set lists and what we might do together, the question isn’t, ‘Where do we start?’ The question is ‘Where do we stop?’” Grant agreed, saying, “There’s a nostalgia element that comes with having worked with someone solidly for so long and I’m ecstatic about hitting the road with Michael again.”

Fans should expect a mix of their favorites, new material from their recent releases and even a few duets. “We will share the stage and participate in each other’s sets,” said Grant. “But no kidding, I will have just as much fun sitting on the side of the stage and watching him. It will be like old times.”

For more information on the tour, go to their websites:

http://www.amygrant.com/

http://www.michaelwsmith.com/welcome.html

Billboard Report (Week of November 27, 2010)

A lot of crossovers this week:

Top Christian Song: "Starry Night" by Chris August

• #21 Heatseekers

Top Christian Album: "O (Disambiguation)" by Underoath

• #23 Billboard 200
• #4 Rock Album
• #11 Digital Album
• #3 Hard Rock Album
• #16 Tastemaker Album

Top Gospel Song: "I Believe" by James Fortune & FIYA featuring Zacardi Cortez & Shawn McLemore

Top Gospel Album: "Rehab" by LaCrae

• #153 Billboard 200
• #8 Christian Album
• #20 Independent Album
• #14 Rap Album

And the AMA goes to...

As I previously reported, the American Music Awards have nominated Casting Crowns, MercyMe, and TobyMac for Best Contemporary Artist. Although they haven't announced it on television (at least to my knowledge), I got the winner's name, straight from one of the nominees. Mark Hall, the lead singer of Casting Crowns, tweeted about a half hour ago, "Congrats to MercyMe on the AMA!"

There you have it, MercyMe wins it for "The Generous Mr. Lovewell"! This is their second AMA.
Let's celebrate with a few videos, shall we?

• I Can Only Imagine
• Finally Home
• So Long Self
• Beautiful (the newest single)

Billboad Report (Week of November 20, 2010)

Christian Songs: "Starry Night" by Chris August
Christian Album: "Wow Hits 2011," Various Artists
Gospel Song: "I Believe" by James Fortune & FIYA featuring Zacardi Cortez & Shawn McLemore
Gospel Album: "Rehab," LeCrae

New Album: Jason Castro

If you don't know who Jason Castro is allow me to reintroduce him:

-He was a finalist on the 7th season of American Idol, whose renditions of "Hallelujah" and "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" made him a contender.
-His distinguishing feature is his dreads.

Castro will release his second album, "Who I Am" on November 9th (that's tomorrow). This album is more Christian oriented than his self-titled debut, reflecting his faith. The first single, "You Are," described as his "love song to God," premiered on K-Love radio stations this morning.

You can listen to the whole album on his website and you can see him perform tomorrow if you're in NYC. The release party will be at the B.B. King Blues Club and Grill with doors opening at 6PM and the show starting at 8PM. Tickets are $17 in advanced and $20 at the door. If you can't make it, no worries: K-Love will stream it live online starting at 9PM EST (6PM PST).

Billboard Report: Week of November 6

Here are the top songs for this week:

Christian Songs: "Lead Me" by Sanctus Real

Christian Albums: "Move" by Third Day

Gospel Songs: "I Believe" by James Fortune & FIYA Featuring Zacardi Cortez & Shawn McLemore

Gospel Albums: "Fresh" by Tye Tribbett

(PS. Sorry for skipping a week. I'll keep up next week!)

Devil's Music in Disguise?: An Arguement for Contemporary Christian Music

One of my favorite songs released last year was Mary Mary’s “God in Me,” a hip-hop dance-inspired track. It was the group’s first single on the Billboard Hot 100 since 2000. Not only did “God in Me” hit the top of the gospel charts, it was also number 1 on the dance charts. The song’s remixes included artists such as Yung Joc and Ne-Yo. However, this song and its music video, which features shots of celebrities such as Kanye West and Common, gained as much controversy as it did praise. Critics say that Mary Mary’s style is becoming more and more secular.

However, according to an interview with Essence, one member, Tina Atkins-Campbell, says “Yes, we are aware of the trends, but we don’t force things or try to become something else. We write from our hearts and sing about what we believe in and stay true to who we are.” Her group-mate, Erica Atkins-Campbell, asks, “I wonder if they heard any of the other songs on the record or did they just see Kanye West in the video and get upset?”

This situation highlights the ongoing debate over Contemporary Christian music: does it really glorify Jesus or is it just secular music in disguise? That’s the question Steve Miller attempted to answer in his 1993 book “The Contemporary Christian Music Debate.” In a 1995 interview with British magazine Cross Rhythms, Miller explains where the idea for the book came from:    

“I attended a seminar as a youth where a respected Bible teacher condemned CCM as worldly and cited psychological studies which he said proved that contemporary music, particularly rock, was harmful to the mind and body, regardless of whether the lyrics were Christian or pagan. I took these claims seriously. If this music was harming people spiritually, I sincerely wanted to know and was willing to listen exclusively to whatever music was positive.”

In his book, Miller explores Christian music throughout history and found this interesting fact: hymns sung in traditional churches today were considered to be contemporary at the time they were written. Also, when new Christian songs were written using the style of the times, they were used outside of a church context. What we see here is a continuation of this process: churches aiming to reach those who didn’t grow up in a church environment and challenge those who did will explore using contemporary styles to do so.

In the case of “God in Me,” it seems to be working. My mother, who teaches Sunday School, asked her students what they believed the song meant. The students responded that if someone succeeds, it’s not because of that person’s abilities, but because of God working through him or her. If the song was written in the “traditional” sense, the kids probably wouldn’t understand that message. Miller warns that by rejecting contemporary forms, “…we risk losing a generation that is rejecting Jesus, often not because of his life and message, but because of the antiquated forms in which we are presenting him.”