the cornerstone of 21st century popular music is…

unoriginality.

I know I’m not supposed to always be critical, but I had a moment last Friday that had me heated. As I listened to the legendary 95.5 KLOS (classic rock – my new favorite station), I heard a familiar lyric, and I was confused…

Take a look at my girlfriend,
’cause she’s the only one I got…

and so on. As I listened to the song unfold, I couldn’t believe it. The one that I’d been listening to for months was just another cheesy cover! I remember telling myself several times that I liked the beat to that song, and though I thought the rap part in it was cheesy, the chorus beat and overall feel kinda made up for it. And it turns out the Gym Class Heroes covered the original done by Supertramp in 1979 (almost 30 years ago!). They even changed the title and the story; GCH’s song is called “Cupid’s Chokehold” and is about a guy who’s talking to his parents about this girl he thinks is “the one,” while Supertramp’s song is called “Breakfast in America,” has no rapping whatsoever, and is about someone wanting to go to America who’s never been before.

“So what, Michael? This happens all the time; it’s called sampling. What’s the big deal?”

Here’s the big deal: everyone’s insecure. There are so few musicians trying to find their voice, their style, their element; and there are so many musicians looking for someone else’s to borrow…take…steal. And what’s the result? You and I are still looking for music and musicians who can inspire us to do something more important than think about ourselves and the significant others we want and the “stuff” we “need.” The shallowness of the lyrics can be matched with the shallowness of the music that accompanies them. People are scrambling through their parent’s old LP’s, searching for a voice and a style they can recreate and have you thinking is original. I’ve been listening to KLOS for about 3-4 months, and I can tell you that between KLOS and KRTH (oldies and a little classic rock), you’re listening to most of what musicians today wish they could do. And get this: it’s so simple!!! Most of them were experimenting with things we take for granted (electric guitars and their effects, piano synthesizers), and they still managed to do it better than most of what I hear on the radio.

Now, I will not do a complete historical analysis of the music that you may hear on these stations, but I can give you some interesting dates:

• Motown Records began in 1959.
• The Beatles, as we know them, came together in 1962.
• The Jimi Hendrix Experience came together in 1966.
• Woodstock took place in 1969.
• Marvin Gaye came out with “What’s Going On” in 1971.
• Bruce Springsteen put out his first album in 1973.
• The Sex Pistols played their first show in 1975.

Some of the most influential rock and r&b artists got their start somewhere during this period. It just so happens that according to this credible website, the Vietnam War took place between those dates. John F. Kennedy was shot in 1963. MLK was shot in 1968, as was Robert Kennedy. The United States was in the midst of the cold war with no sign of resolution. The UK was in the midst of occasional, yet very present conflict with the IRA. The centers of rock and roll and r&b were filled with drama of all types, and part of me thinks that it’s the collision of such drama that cultivated the fertile ground of originality in which the above musicians planted themselves.

Our country has been in the midst of its own drama for a little while, but it seems that much of our generation has planted itself in the rocky soil of quick gratification and social apathy. While some of us care deeply for our government and foreign relations, many of us would rather be left alone. Our music tells the same story. Once in a while, someone like Pink will come along and make people angry by artfully and passionately stating an opinion about something important. But for the most part, the rest of the popular musicians are content to sit idly by and make music about a boy and a girl or something else “not as intense”, thus achieving the escape that most of us now seem to think is the purpose of music.

Why are your musicians afraid of being original? Because they’re afraid to stand face to face with the issues of our day that run laps in our minds and hearts. And why are they afraid to face our core issues? Because they know that they have no answer. They know that all they can see is confusion, conflict, hopelessness, poverty and deceit, and they have nothing to say about it. They can’t respond to it, because they don’t have a solution. They won’t emotionally engage, because that would take too much time and effort. The easiest thing to do is to turn a blind eye to that about which we desperately need to be stirred, called, and moved.

David, the primary poet of the Bible, uses the phrase “new song” 6 times in the Psalms. It is his second usage that I want to leave you with:

I waited patiently for the Lord;
he inclined to me and heard my cry.
He drew me up from the pit of destruction, out of a miry bog,
and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure.
He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear, and put their trust in the Lord.
(psalm40.1-3)

It is from the place of being rescued, of seeing hope and being saved, that the speaker acknowledges that God gives him a new song. He says that people will hear that new song and see, fear (worship), and trust in God. And this is what musicians are supposed to do. We’re supposed to look upon the desolation in our own lives, and see God rescuing us from it. And then we’re supposed to look upon the desolation of the earth, and know that God is redeeming that too. Then, in the place of rescue and safety, we’ll find that God has given us a new song to sing, acknowledging God for what’s he done for us and for others. And it is this song that moves people, for they experience the Lord, and have no choice but to be moved to see what he’s doing, and partner with him in what he’s doing.

It’s time to sing a new song,
because it’s time for our generation to be moved.

like rain.

I haven’t talked about any of my songs yet, and I think that’s wrong. So I’m gonna show you one.
(for the audio, click here.)

I write a few different types of songs. I write corporate worship songs, I write reflective songs about my faith, and I write rock songs about life. I hope to have the courage to not just talk to you about art, but to also share with you some of mine. My art and my artistry is a work-in-progress, so any thoughts or impressions you may have are much appreciated.

verse 1
I need overflowing grace
I need everlasting love
I need supernatural peace
From you, my Lord

chorus
Like rain, fall down
Like rain, fall down
Like rain, fall down and heal my soul

verse 2
approaching the throne of grace
desiring your words of love
draw near to me, Prince of Peace
come near, my Lord

bridge
oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down
that the mountains might quake at your presence
oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down
that we might be in awe of your presence

Let me take you through the major pieces:

1. Grace/Love/Peace: These are overused words in the church with loads of meaning and significance. I wanted to give people a way to invite those things into their lives that they might be able to relate to. The first verse speaks of each of those things being large in relationship to our need. The second verse gives specific images that point to those things.
2. Like Rain: Psalm68.7-9 says it all. The image of water has always been one that represents life that God offers us, and the image of rain reinforces that lifelike water image with a heavenly element due to its skyward source: O God, when you went out before you people, when you marched through the wilderness,
   the earth quaked, the heavens poured down rain before God, the One of Sinai; before God, the God of Israel.
   Rain in abundance, O God, you shed abroad; you restored your inheritance as it languished.
3. Oh, that you would…: Isaiah64.1 says it clearly, and we can see the quake theme repeated. The imagery here is striking. Imagine that you are sitting in the front row of your favorite movie, and the curtains open slowly to reveal the beginning of the movie. And as the movie begins, the scene is on the Rocky Mountains, exploding by the minute and putting people in danger.

The song is about our need for God and how he wants to be someone in your life that exhibits grace, love, and peace in you. The tone switches throughout the song, from a baseline need for God to a need for an experience with God, with the desire for God’s presence as the foundation and the desire for God’s powerful coming into our lives as the surrounding landscape. I love Isaiah64.1 because of its dramatic picture of God entering our world and messing things up and coming powerfully and personally into our lives. We can immediately dispel the idea that Elohim isn’t close to us and that he doesn’t want to show up and be strong for us, and we can continue our journey with our God knowing that he is generous to grant to us himself when we need him.

Amen.