I’m a Christian. I’m also a musician. Some of my songs are about faith and God, but not all of my songs are. It seems like these days there are clear-cut Christian music genres and Christian artists—everything they write seems to be worship songs or at the very least songs about faith.
But what about those songwriters who want to write about all kinds of things, not just about their faith?
Do all your songs have to be specifically Christian in order to call yourself a Christian musician?
I don’t write my music to please a certain audience, so when it comes time to share my music, it seems hard because I’m not sure who my audience is and what they want to hear. This problem affects what venues I choose to play at, how I market my music, and how I describe my music to other people (which I touched on a little bit in an earlier post).
Let’s just focus on choosing a music venue.
When I’m looking for a music venue in town to play at, I basically am choosing between bars, coffeehouses, and churches. I know that some people will be completely turned off by hearing me sing a song about faith and God, and so I hesitate to play my religious songs at venues like bars and coffeehouses. I also know that playing at church venues usually involves being part of a Christian music event—it may not be outright worship service, but it seems like everyone is expecting songs to be about God—so I hesitate to play my non-religious songs because I’m afraid people will be upset that I’m not worshiping God with every song.
In either situation, people are not hearing the full “me” sound. They’re getting only part of the story. I don’t like feeling that I have to hide part of who I am in order to not offend an audience. While my intention is not to offend people with my music, I desire to authentically represent who I am—and my faith is a part of my story.
Is anyone else struggling with these kinds of issues? How do you handle it?
Katelyn Holub 