I have been discovering some fantastic new Christian music lately and it’s not from listening to mainstream Christian radio. Although I enjoy listening to the popular stuff, I along with many of my close friends feel that the standard stations are just too generic and repeat the same old songs way too often. On top of that, it just feels like the music they select really doesn’t take any chances. I am inspired to sing the lyrics to many of these popular songs, but I find myself getting bored easily with the music and arrangements.
What you may not know is that the Christian Record Companies do not sign anything unless it already fits perfectly into radio’s very narrow playlist – meaning that it sounds generic and like everything else the radio stations are already spinning. They even have a name for their target demographic, and it’s a “she.” Her name is Becky – look it up, I’m not kidding! So, if you wish to find songs and artists that are extremely creative and inspiring, the majority of them are outside of the mainstream altogether. Some of them have successful careers where they are selling lots of records and downloads, performing at many churches and/or festivals, but many more of them are struggling and unknown to just about everybody. These are the artists that we as the body of Christ need to support. It is up to the consumer to help usher in a new era of Christian music.
So, with that in mind, I decided to do some research. Here are three very good ways to discover some awesome new Christian music:
1. Shoutlife.com
Shoutlife has been on the scene for quite a while. They seem to have modeled their site after Myspace in the sense that all relevant information on the artist is there, along with music, pictures, videos, etc. I have come across several amazing “unknown” artists and many of them give away free music. The drawback with this approach is that there is no filter. You have to dig and search to find good stuff, but it is there.
2. iTunes
Believe it or not, iTunes more often than not will feature some really great off-the-beaten path Christian artists. iTunes Essentials: Rising Stars Christian is a great compilation of many new and established artists that have given me a lot to listen to.
3. Searching the Internet for Free Christian Music
Sorry if this sounds a bit generic, but spending a little time with Google can help you discover some great untapped talent. Search the term Christian music downloads, Christian song music, free Christian music downloads, etc, and a little digging through the results will yield a wealth of various quality music.
