Dangerous Faith
Should Christians Listen to Taylor Swift? #81: Dangerous Life
Should Christians listen to Taylor Swift? The Dangerous Life Team dives in.
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Should Christians listen to Taylor Swift? The Dangerous Life Team dives in.
Website: www.dangerousfaith.net
YouTube: Dangerous Faith
Rumble: Dangerous Faith
Instagram: nwdangerousfaith
Twitter: @FaithDangerous
Facebook: @NWDangerousFaith
Me and Faith will sometimes pull up from the logo and we'll be like.
Speaker 2:Caitlin Clark.
Speaker 3:But it'll slam off the backboard, we won't strip it.
Speaker 1:We did that the other night.
Speaker 3:Guys, have we played basketball? Just kept yelling Caitlin every time we showed up. Caitlin, it doesn't suck.
Speaker 1:Kobe. Kobe will never fade away. Yeah, well, he did, well he died, but One day. That's the helicopter that blew Kobe up.
Speaker 3:Anywho, what are we doing, taylor?
Speaker 1:Swift oh, we're not doing. Taylor Swift.
Speaker 3:Oh.
Speaker 1:We are talking about Taylor Swift.
Speaker 3:All right, blake, I hate that. Do the intro for us All right.
Speaker 1:I literally can't think of a Taylor Swift song now. Romeo, it's me Hi song now Romeo it's me Hi.
Speaker 5:I'm the problem, it's me.
Speaker 1:That's our intro.
Speaker 2:That is our intro. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Dangerous Faith Podcast. And I have the team here with me Zeke, Chloe, Blake, Justin and Mariah. We're here to talk about Taylor Swift. Should Christians listen to Taylor Swift? Yes, no, some nuanced middle answer. We're going to Taylor Swift. Yes, no, some nuanced middle answer. We're going to dive in, Removing spirituality, faith, Christianity from the picture for a moment. I'm going to ask you all your thoughts on her talent, her music, the genre. She's in Thoughts there and then we'll get into the faith part. But just pass it around, starting with Zeke Thoughts on her talent level as a singer, the music she makes, I mean.
Speaker 3:I've never really heard her live, but I mean, her songs are catchy, I guess.
Speaker 2:Zeke says catchy.
Speaker 3:I actually did used to listen to her, like in high school and stuff like that Stuff that was coming out. Then I really haven't really. I really haven't really Wow.
Speaker 2:That was really good. What a word. He really hasn't really listened.
Speaker 3:I haven't listened to her in a while, really.
Speaker 2:So you remember more than maybe the country days when she sounded more country.
Speaker 3:I mean even a little bit of when she started going to pop. Going to pop, so I mean kind of early pop days.
Speaker 5:But, probably it's been almost seven, eight years since I've really listened to her. All right, Chloe thoughts on just her talent level and music. I think she is a very talented and hardworking woman. I mean, obviously, to get to where she is right now, it took a lot of hard work on her part, so it's pretty obvious that she is very talented and well-liked among most people.
Speaker 2:Now again removing spirituality from it.
Speaker 5:Yeah.
Speaker 2:If she like, does she produce music that you would otherwise like to listen to?
Speaker 5:I don't really listen to pop, so you're not a pop person. Yeah, I mean I think maybe some of it I would like, but if I listen to pop I think I probably would if we took spirituality out of it completely.
Speaker 2:Yeah, blake, thoughts on just her talent and her music.
Speaker 4:She's actually really talented.
Speaker 1:I've listened to some of her live stuff and it's really good. I mean, she sounds almost exactly like the recording, which I love. I love people who can sound just like the recordings. As far as her songs, I liked her in her country. Days like our song is just a classic, like everybody knows, that song and even like I don't know that, can you sing that song for?
Speaker 4:us.
Speaker 1:Copyright infringement no okay, all right, but uh, no, she's really, she's really good. I like listening to her. Uh, some of her, even some of her new stuff I I'm trying to find it, the one that was like a.
Speaker 5:The Lover album.
Speaker 1:The Lover album. Yeah, the Lover album's really good. Me and my girlfriend listen to that one a lot. We like it. I wouldn't say I'm a Swifty. I'm definitely not a Swifty, but I do I appreciate some of her music. It's catchy, okay, catchy.
Speaker 6:Justin, excuse me, sorry, I think her lyrics really speak to me, like, for example she wears short skirts, I wear t-shirts.
Speaker 1:I eat sneakers.
Speaker 6:It's not I eat sneakers. It's I eat sneakers.
Speaker 1:No, it's just, I eat sneakers.
Speaker 6:That's what it sounds like, but she's cheer captain and I'm eating sneakers. Okay, I just really, you know, feel those lyrics. It hits home for me Because I, too, wear short skirts.
Speaker 2:Justin is touched by the lyrics. Okay, mariah, thoughts on again removing faith from it, just talent and her genre.
Speaker 4:I think I'd say she's definitely the most talented female artist of our generation. But not that I like her listening to any really of her music. But I definitely you can appreciate she knows how to market, she knows how to be the best really.
Speaker 2:Yeah, okay, so there is that part of it to be famous. Yes, there's talent, but also you have to market yourself well. So good point. Yes, there's talent, but also you have to market yourself well, so good point. Now that we've covered our bases there, I'm going to ask the question and it can go wherever after this Should Christians listen to Taylor Swift? And so for those of you who listen to the podcast who are like, hey, why is this even a topic? Some people, she came out with her most recent album. Do you all remember the name of it?
Speaker 5:Tortured Poets.
Speaker 2:And there were some lyrics there that people thought, oh, this is very anti-Christian and naturally Christians, we're unified in everything we do and say we just started a big fight. You had some people that said listen to her music, it's fine, who cares, it's harmless. You had other people that said don't listen to it, she's harmless. You had other people that said don't listen to it, she's demonic, it's satanic, don't listen to her at all. Then you had a bunch of people in the middle to some degree. So I'm going to. That was the controversy, so I'm going to pass it to y'all. And just the question should Christians listen to Taylor Swift? Your thoughts, justin, your thoughts?
Speaker 6:Justin, one thing I'll start by saying is I watched a video kind of detailing this Is originally. If you look at some of her stuff, she does kind of have like especially in her country days a little bit more Christian influence in some of her songs. But as she's gotten older it seems to go from less specifically Christian to more spiritual, like her song Karma you know Karma is a God is one of the lyrics. Karma is my boyfriend. Yeah, karma is Blake's boyfriend, but she's gone to more of like the universe, give things to the universe and stuff like that More of an open spiritual thing and less focused on like a Christian mindset.
Speaker 6:So I think that's something to be aware of when you're listening to that her music.
Speaker 2:Okay good input, chloe.
Speaker 5:I think honestly, one of the biggest things about this topic, or really any other kind of music, is discernment. And I know we kind of talked about that a little bit on the Grow With Chloe episode a while ago when we talked about, like, what is worship? But even though I don't listen to I don't really listen to pop there is I don't just listen to christian music like I listen to some secular artist, um but, but I'm very.
Speaker 2:His wife listened to secular music.
Speaker 5:I mean, mostly what I listen to is christian or you know.
Speaker 5:But if it's just like a secular song, like I have to be very I try to be very wise and like what I'm filling my mind with, because as a Christian, we don't want, we don't want to put trash in our mind, because trash is going to come out if we do that.
Speaker 5:Um, so I try to be careful with like like cussing, like I will not listen to a song if it does it more than a couple of times, like that's ridiculous. Um, or if it's like completely blaspheming God, I won't listen to that. Like it's kind of just setting these ground rules, cause, like when it comes to Taylor Swift, I think some of her lyrics are very openly like blasphemous, like they like that song guilty of sin, that song, I wouldn't listen to that ever, and if I was into pop then I would probably listen to her more. Just like, just like cleaner songs that aren't really about anything super religious, because, like what I said, whatever you put in is going to come out, and so I don't want to. I don't want to listen to anything that's going to mess up my or like I don't know how to word it, but when it doesn't feel right in me like I'm not going to listen to it.
Speaker 2:Basically, Makes sense, mariah.
Speaker 4:I feel like this has been a big topic, probably in the Christian community too, with Taylor Swift, because she is marketed towards young women and young girls, I'd say, or especially in her early days. But just like with anything which you've probably seen online or maybe heard people say like, oh, I'll let my kids listen to Taylor Swift, but we do not listen to rap or we do not listen to country or you know other things, and it's like, hmm, like that's how kind of Chloe was saying. It's kind of like it's. I guess you could say the same thing or just different. Um, I don't know Just the way people accept it, I guess.
Speaker 5:guess, I think she's also been known in the past to be, like you know this, very like pure and just like fun and like good artists. So a lot of moms may be thinking like, oh yeah, she's fine, like she's fine for my daughter to listen to because they know her older, like her older stuff and I think there wasn't.
Speaker 5:I don't know if, how, I don't know for sure, but I think there was maybe one time. Like she say she was a Christian, you know nominal. But just because she says that, people would be like, oh, she's a Christian, she's fine, I'll let my daughter listen to whatever, but that's not always the case.
Speaker 6:I got you. Something I would like to get people's opinion on is there's a lot of talk about people will go to her concerts and they, straight up, cannot remember the concert.
Speaker 2:That's interesting. Tell me more. So people will go to her concert, they'll leave and they don't remember it.
Speaker 6:They don't remember it, People. There are some people saying it is like related to demonic activity and stuff like that and witchcraft. I can't tell you that to me seems a little bit overboard, because there is such a thing as having adrenaline and being so excited that you can't forget stuff like that, but I'm not going to close my mind to it entirely. It could be possible, I'm not going to deny that.
Speaker 2:But so, blake, you had an interesting facial expression there when Justin said that Any thoughts.
Speaker 1:I always just use discernment when I hear things like that. Some people want to take something that maybe one person said and then like explode it into something that it's actually not Like. I watched a video on this guy who said that the psalm. Do you all remember the p? Remember the song Gangnam style?
Speaker 5:Yeah.
Speaker 1:He said that that song was Christ revealing himself and when he's going to return. You and I were talking about that Whoa? Yeah, you need to watch that he goes through by lyric, by lyric, on how it's Christ revealing himself, when the antichrist is going to come, how he's going to.
Speaker 2:I'll be too busy doing the dance move Exactly.
Speaker 1:We're under a hypnotic trance.
Speaker 6:It really shows in the lyric when he says hey, sexy lady. That really reveals.
Speaker 1:God right there. I think that actually, if I remember correctly, he says that's the bride of Christ that he's talking about.
Speaker 2:In a way, that's terrible, chloe, you.
Speaker 5:Yeah, I was going to talk a little about the witchcraft thing too, because there's actually a YouTube video by Ruslan. Yeah, I was going to talk a little about the witchcraft thing too, because there's actually a.
Speaker 5:YouTube video by Ruslan. He did a whole deep dive into that. Ruslan, I love you, yeah, if you're listening, we love you. If you ever listen, then find this podcast. But he did a deep dive into that.
Speaker 5:It's called, like the Taylor amnesia, but Justin's right. Like there is a thing where you're so excited that your brain's just overwhelmed with excitement that you don't remember anything. But then there's other things that have happened. Like there was a tiktok that he put on the youtube video where this ex-witch was talking about taylor, swift concerts and um, showing some of the stuff she does, um, like I don't know if y'all seen the music video. Um, there's like demons walk like in the background and and stuff, and at concerts she'll do the same kind of dance and she says that's like a witch coven thing, um.
Speaker 5:And then there's like a video, too, where taylor is like singing and obviously this could be coincidence but like she's singing about a plane coming down and then you see the camera pan over and there's literally a plane like coming down. It looks like it comes into the stadium, um, and like just crazy things like that. Um, but I don't think I would go as far as to say she's a witch. I think that's kind of extreme. I think she might call herself that Like there's a couple tweets she has where she's like, yeah, I'm a witch, but I don't think she's taking it super seriously. She's like, oh yeah, cute, like a witch, you know.
Speaker 1:Interesting. But I just feel like, with a lot of these things, like I said, use discernment on it, but I feel like a lot of the times, whatever as a celebrity and as like a mega pop star as Taylor Swift is, how do you stay relevant? Well, you have to keep up with the times. It was, you know, she went from cute little Christian Taylor, you know, back in the early 2000s when that was like something like you know you could really jump to the charts with that. Now, what's the new thing? Oh, spirituality, but not involving Christ.
Speaker 2:Some people would say, Blake, to stay relevant, you have to sell your soul.
Speaker 1:Some people do say that I'm not saying it's possible.
Speaker 3:But I think Jesus was offered that at one point he was.
Speaker 6:Now something I want to tell you. Blake, I know you're a hardcore Swifty. We are not belittling.
Speaker 1:Miss Swift? No, look, I will openly admit, taylor is a cringy person.
Speaker 3:Like you should see some of her dance moves. There you go. I didn't know. Y'all were on like a first-in-basis.
Speaker 1:Oh, Tay-Tay I.
Speaker 6:She's not near as good as JoJo Siwa.
Speaker 1:That's going to be for a later episode. That's another podcast episode. That's another one. All right, so quick question.
Speaker 2:I want to hear your opinion about this. Some people will say, all right, maybe there are some adult elements, maybe some spiritual elements to Taylor Swift I'm not comfortable with. She did mention casting spells. She made a comment about thanking her audience for just her incredibly successful tour. She mentioned casting spells, which is interesting. But okay, there are these elements, that sexual, lgb, whatever that we're not comfortable with. Fine, but we should. It's okay to listen to Taylor Swift, because it can be worse. You can listen to a up and coming young rapper named. I don't listen to her music, it's trash. But Sexy Red, oh dude, anyways anyways, that's Blake's favorite artist right now, which is why he's laughing.
Speaker 2:Don't be sexy, Anyways. So so okay, Taylor Swift is okay because there are worse alternatives out there, Maybe hardcore rap that gets really sexually explicit, etc. So we should be okay with Taylor because our young people are listening to her and they could be listening to worse. What are thoughts about that kind of reasoning? Well, that's just kind of a.
Speaker 1:It's kind of like a cop-out yeah I mean that's like.
Speaker 1:That would be like me saying like oh, I'm, my sin is not as bad as the other sin, so it's okay, it's like, no, it's still, it's all wrong. But I know, and I'll say this too like taylor's new stuff is very adult and and I think and I think that also and I'm not trying to make an excuse, I'm just saying like it makes it makes sense she's getting older, she's going to write more. She's not young Taylor. It's just like with Miley Cyrus. Miley Cyrus wrote songs that were like for the Disney kids, like it was Disney channel, it was safe, you could listen to it in schools, stuff like that. And then Miley, you know she wanted to branch out and do her own thing. I think that's what Taylor's doing right now. She's just entering that world of what, like her fans are grown up now. Does that make sense? So she's going to appeal to her grown up fans.
Speaker 3:But at the same time I don't think it's not right.
Speaker 2:I don't think she's.
Speaker 3:She doesn't market it as if it's fans are older now. So therefore, this is just for y'all like there's nothing in marketing that she does that. I could be wrong, as far as I know that there's nothing that she markets to, just older people. Like her fan base is a wide range and she knows that. Like you'd have to be stupid not to like. All the people who come to her concerts aren't people who have grown up and have a full-time job. Some of them, yeah, but I mean like a lot of them are still young high school, college, etc. College, et cetera.
Speaker 1:And we also have to thank TikTok too. Tiktok is really good at taking blurbs of things and people just making that fact. I can't tell you how many times I'll hear somebody say they'll read one news article off of TikTok and then all of a sudden they're an expert on it. So it's like TikTok will do that. They'll take one blurb of what Taylor does and it's like this whole big story that it's not I what Taylor does, and it's like Taylor. It's like this whole big story. That it's not I agree, I agree.
Speaker 2:Now one point I want to. I want to ask a question from the other side. So we'll agree that the justification, well, taylor's not as bad as other artists. Not very persuasive. We probably shouldn't use that.
Speaker 2:But now I'm going to make the conservative argument for why you should listen and support Taylor Swift. This is what it is. In a world where people are not getting married, not wanting to get married, in a world where you know just, we're going in that direction, taylor Swift is she's talked about wanting one day to have a family Someone correct me if I'm wrong and that's a good thing, right? So the conservative argument for listening and supporting Taylor Swift is she has some traditional elements to her, like marriage, like having a family. That's actually good. So, compared to other people, let's take again the contrast here would be what you hear hip hop and rap. It's like having a bunch of kids with a bunch of different uh moms, okay. Well, we don't want to support that. Let's support this other artist that at least is trying one day to get married and maybe have kids. Thoughts on that. Is that persuasive to y'all or not really?
Speaker 3:I mean, it kind of implies that there's no better like it's. It implies that in's no better Like it's. It's implies that in the world that she's the best example we have for that. Yeah, I get it, she's a mega pop star and she's going to be the most relevant to the most people, but I don't think I think we have a way more better examples that we should be looking to elevate those people more than and try to like bring back some of the bad things but promote some of the good things. I'd rather just start with someone who's already promoting all the good things.
Speaker 1:Yeah, To me it's just like what I always think is like just because she has a lot of influence doesn't mean she's a good influence. Yeah, so it's like that's. To me that's a dumb argument. It's like, just because, yeah, she reaches a wide variety of people, if her material is not not good, you know what's the what's the point if she's teaching young girls to already start looking into their sexuality and, you know, start discovering these things that are, you know, meant for inside of a marriage, which is what a lot of her new lyrics on the torture poem album kind of talks about, like very graphic and sexual in nature. You know, we shouldn't I feel like as Christians, we shouldn't, we shouldn't support that just because she reaches a large amount of people doesn't mean she's a good influence. She just has a, she just is an influence.
Speaker 4:Um, I was just going to say so, I was just thinking this thought during like kind of both of y'all, which y'all were kind of saying, which is in our world today, which is in our world today, no one that big, I mean y'all, could say, is going to be Christian. In my opinion, just because it's not popular, it's not the thing now, if that makes sense. You know, new Age is the thing or not being anything and doing whatever you want is the thing.
Speaker 2:So, like I think, Are you trying to say like it would be?
Speaker 4:hard for us to have a want is the thing so like I think, are you trying?
Speaker 2:to say like it would be hard for us to have a Christian in the spot.
Speaker 4:Let's take what we can get kind of no, like it would just be so difficult.
Speaker 1:I feel like to find a good influence, to find that what she's saying is like you know how, when Christ tells us to go into the world but not be a part of the world, you know how, when Christ tells us to go into the world but not be a part of the world, it is hard to gain worldly wealth and fame and notoriety because as Christians we reject those things.
Speaker 4:Yeah, that's what.
Speaker 1:I was— so it would be insanely hard for a Christian to have the platform that Taylor Swift has without being corrupted by the world or having to give in in some— I'm not saying it's not doable, because I think it is a very doable, but how does that look? Because as Christians, we're supposed to be humble. When you have a platform like that, you're going to have to fight an ego battle that's out of this world.
Speaker 4:I was just going to say when you said like not that that is not doable. I think definitely like, if the Lord, if that is your path, like you know, to be a musician and lead others in that way or uh, you know some sort of speaker and it does gain tons of people, like billy graham, like most people, not even christians, sometimes know him just the name. Yeah, it's familiar. So I think like it is doable, like you said just not common, not common at all I also feel like too.
Speaker 1:It's like a double-edged sword whenever I think about it and this is kind of off topic a little bit, but I was just thinking about it because I've thought about this a lot. You know, whenever I what my ministry wants to look like and what I want it to look like, I don't. At the same time, I want to reach a lot of people, but I don't want a lot of people to know me and they forget that it needs to point back to Christ. They need to say look what Christ did through Billy Graham. And that's such a hard line to walk.
Speaker 3:Yeah, we talked about how you brought up the point that it would be so hard for a Christian to and to be fair, it would be hard for anyone, but I think it would be even harder for a Christian, because you're actually actively trying to fight that battle of not letting it get to your ego.
Speaker 3:But I think it's kind of a what's the word? I can't think of the word, it's not satisfying, but it's just kind of like it's nice to know that all these people whether it was the Beatles, like Beatlemania, where everyone loved the Beatles and everyone was going crazy about the Beatles, so much so that they got a big enough head to say we're more famous than Jesus. More people know about Jesus than even the Beatles. More people will know about Jesus than even Taylor Swift. It's crazy how you can look at this guy who lived over 2,000 years or close to 2,000 years ago and he was in a nowhere place in a small town, and he didn't do any of this big famous stuff like Taylor did. Yet he's made a bigger impact on the rest of the world for the past 2,000 or so years than any other pop star or celebrity can ever try and do, and I'm confident enough that no one else will ever meet his level of fame.
Speaker 2:Absolutely, and I guess I'll have a question after this, because y'all have said certain things that will lead me to what. What's after Taylor Swift? Maybe some Christian, talented Christian artists who that we could listen to instead of Taylor Swift. We'll get to that, but I guess, to sum up here, unless we have anything else we want to say, any other points we want to bring up Zeke.
Speaker 3:One other point, one of the lyrics from her songs we were looking at last night. Is that the name of the song? Another song, no, okay, I don't know the name of the song. A verse came to mind when I was reading. I'll read out the lyrics.
Speaker 1:It says oh, but Daddy, I love him. I know the song. It's actually a bop.
Speaker 2:Of course I hate to be like that.
Speaker 3:It's a bop.
Speaker 2:We have uncovered a Swifty in our midst.
Speaker 1:But Daddy, I love him.
Speaker 3:It's a bop Well lyrics are not a bop. It says God, save the most judgmental creeps who say they want what's best for me, sanctimoniously performing.
Speaker 4:Soliloquies.
Speaker 3:Yeah, so yeah, whatever that is, I'll never see thinking it can change the beat of my heart when he touches me and counteract the chemistry and undo the destiny. You ain't got to pray for me, me and my wild boy and all this wild joy. If all you want is gray for me, then it's just white noise and it's just my choice. I mean, I could be wrong, but from the sound of it sounds like what she's saying is like God apparently saved all these judgmental people who say that they would. All they want for me is mundane boredom, blah, blah. But I really want to be with this guy. So what? Why can't I just be with this guy and do for what I want? Y'all don't worry about me, y'all don't pray for me, y'all don't do any of these things. Um, and something that I found interesting is that that's something that's like really prevalent in cultures. You have a lot of people who don't want to be Christians because of the example they've seen in Christian leaders. And I'm not agreeing with Taylor here in the sense of like that she should, of her choices, but I think she's painting a bad picture against all Christians whenever she says, like, oh, it's just the judgmental Christians or judgmental people which God conveniently saves. And it is sad that a lot of Christians are overly judgmental, at least in their actions. But even Jesus and that's the sad part is that Jesus would agree with those same people who say they don't want to be Christian because of the example they've seen. Jesus literally agreed with them in Matthew 23.
Speaker 3:I think it's Matthew 23. Let me pull it up in Matthew 23,. I think it's Matthew 23,. Let me pull it up where he goes on and he's talking about the Pharisees and I think there's like seven times where he says woe you Pharisees, you hypocrites. But the interesting about that is he goes through all the different things they're doing wrong there. They say that they care about the poor but they mistreat them. They say that they care about God and his law, but they say and teach his law but they don't follow his law. And so like Jesus would agree with all the people who say like it's not fair that Christians say that they're the most generous but then they go and do these judgmental things.
Speaker 3:And the most interesting part about that is at the very start of Matthew 23,. He says listen to what they teach you and follow their teachings the same people who are being hypocrites and are doing all these wrong things, listen to their teachings and do their teachings but don't do what they do. So what he's saying is, they can, even today. I think that's relevant today. We have pastors and preachers and church members who, they know all the right things. They can teach the right things, they can say the right things. Even if they don't do it, we're still to follow their teachings, as long as they relate back to the Bible.
Speaker 2:Right.
Speaker 3:And that's what it all comes back down to.
Speaker 2:I think that's an important distinction to make. Blake did you want to add anything, if? Not that's okay, one thing I'll summarize because, zeke, you brought up something great that even those judgmental people that Taylor Swift is calling out what they might be saying is actually good, so I think that's a good thing to point out. Let's wrap this up.
Speaker 1:Just those lyrics alone, because I've listened to it. Like I said, the song's kind of catchy.
Speaker 3:Of course.
Speaker 1:It's just more for, like you know, the way I look at it is more like shock value. I look at it as this is Taylor writing and I'm not making an excuse or anything like that. I'm just saying like it seems like Taylor is really reaching out to the young high school wild side. It's like why it's like to me. It's like why would I want to do what's right when doing this is so much more fun? And it's kind of like it's like she's trying to reach to like that part of us that we all used to live, like that young high school like forget, like I'll do all that later, let me just do what's fun now. Does that make sense? And so, like I'm not saying that's right or wrong, but that's. That's right or wrong, but that's what I took from it. I would say that's wrong, my bad.
Speaker 4:Wrong, but, like you know, that's what I took from it.
Speaker 2:That's what she's going for. Yeah, that's what she's going for. Yeah, and I think there are things we need to be wary of in some of her songs LGB type support and just promiscuity and other aspects of that just to be aware of. Now, to wrap this up, on the Taylor Swift side of things, asking the question should Christians listen to Taylor Swift? Yes, it's all okay. No, none of it's okay, or some nuanced middle. You don't have to explain what your middle is, but just somewhere in the middle, let's go around the table and ask Zeke, yes, no, nuanced middle, sexy red. We should listen to sexy red.
Speaker 3:I'm probably going to stick with nuanced. I'll actually give my explanation of like. For example, maybe five to ten years ago, there's a lot of artists that I used to listen to that and I knew at the time of listening to them I don't agree with their lyrics. I don't agree with these things. That's why I want to lean more towards no, um, I'm not, not in the sense of like.
Speaker 3:If you come up to me and say, oh, uh, can a christian listen to? Can you be a christian and still listen to taylor swift? Of course there's a lot of things you can do and still be a Christian. But is it wise, is it beneficial? And if you're going to be on the iffy, I would say, at least on the songs that blatantly disagree with our faith, I would say no 100%. On the other ones, I'm like, eh, I'll leave it to your own discernment, but I have found over the years that I've.
Speaker 3:At first I was like all the Christian music is so cheesy and corny and dumb. That's what I used to think, and I was like that's why I have to listen to more pop and stuff. And I've just, I've grown to love the Christian music more and more, one. It has gotten a lot better, for sure. But two, I don't know. I just lyrics. I'm a big on lyrics, like I. We listen to some stuff that's just like poppy and fun sometimes, but lyrics if I'm going to actually listen to a song, I like to have good lyrics and a good story or good meaning behind them.
Speaker 2:Maybe that's just personal preference To Christian music in one moment, because we're going to talk about that briefly. Chloe, yes, no, nuanced middle.
Speaker 5:I'm going to agree with Zeke on everything he said about the nuanced yeah, the nuanced middle, but I do want to add one little thing. I think if you are a Christian and you do use discernment to listen to Taylor Swift and you don't listen to the songs that openly blaspheme God and Christian ideas, I don't think you should be the type of fan that idolizes her and talks about her music all the time, because if there's someone who's a non-Christian who's listening to you, then they're not going to have that same discernment and they're just going to go listen to all of her music and they're going to get their Christian ideas from those songs.
Speaker 3:Yeah, to push or not to push back, to add on to that, is another thing that we're naturally going to do it. If you haven't realized it, just pay attention to what you talk about this week and you'll notice. You do it. The things that you consume, the things you listen to, the things that you do, you're naturally going to talk about. If it's Christian or non-Christian, you're naturally going to bring them up. For example, chloe loves here's a good promotion for you said we're getting the Christian music, forrest Frank, we can come back to that.
Speaker 2:She loves him.
Speaker 3:But she likes him so much and she listens to him so much and guess what? Naturally she tells her friends about him.
Speaker 4:And now my friend is listening to him, and now she's got all her friends into him who makes good Christian music, et cetera.
Speaker 2:But we can come back to that. We'll come back to that, blake. Yes, okay, no, none of it's okay, nuanced middle.
Speaker 1:Nuanced middle just because of the fact of Because he's a Swifty no.
Speaker 2:Like you were sounding like a yes there. Like it's all okay. No nuanced middle, just because there's.
Speaker 1:Christian songs that we have to discern listening to so it's just all discernment to me.
Speaker 2:Justin, yes, no, nuanced middle.
Speaker 6:I would say nuanced middle as well.
Speaker 3:Isaac would say no.
Speaker 1:Isaac nuanced middle as well. Isaac would say no, isaac also doesn't want his kid to have Halloween, so that's going to be the most depressed kid Go back and listen to that episode.
Speaker 2:Mariah, yes no nuanced middle.
Speaker 4:I was going to say I could be the one to say no. But I mean I totally listen to. You know, I listen to secular music too. So I'm like not that it. So I would say nuanced middle for like to be short, I think that's where a lot of us fall.
Speaker 2:Now, briefly, we won't this, because it could be its own episode. Briefly, parents out there might be like, well, what are some alternatives? What are some good, high quality Christian alternatives? If we're not going to listen as much or at all to Taylor Swift, so again it's its own episode. So, just quickly, what are some episodes? Episodes, excuse me, what are some artists that you listen to in the Christian sphere? Creed, all right.
Speaker 5:We've already mentioned. But Forrest Frank is a really good like. He does Christian music with Christian values, but it's more on the like poppy hip hop sound of things. It's not really like contemporary Christian music.
Speaker 3:It's more of like fun summery like, but also really good words and he did, he redid some hymns so you can listen to some old hymns and he gets with some rappers and has some rap in some songs too, if you like that.
Speaker 5:But I also would recommend what was that Nate?
Speaker 2:I would also I'm communicating with like right off the side. I would also recommend.
Speaker 5:Some of my favorites are definitely Phil Wickham, we the Kingdom, for King and Country Josiah Queen. Phil Wickham, we the Kingdom.
Speaker 3:For King and Country.
Speaker 5:Josiah Queen. Josiah Queen is really good and then also, like you know, Andrew Tate is someone who's really good.
Speaker 4:Not.
Speaker 5:Andrew Tate. Wait, andrew Peterson, is that his name? That literally just slid right out of my mouth.
Speaker 1:Chloe is unmasked.
Speaker 3:So we know she's consuming Andrew Tate.
Speaker 5:Andrew Peterson. I don't know why consuming Andrew Tate Andrew Peterson, I don't know why I said Tate the heart wants what the heart wants, oh my gosh.
Speaker 6:Andrew.
Speaker 2:Peterson alright, Justin. One thing to say is.
Speaker 6:I typically don't listen to very poppy music, but Isaac is going to give me a high five for repping this dude. But if you're wanting something like that, Torrin Wells is a good one.
Speaker 3:I think he's going to give you a high five.
Speaker 6:He loves him Really.
Speaker 3:I don't know if he still does.
Speaker 5:I thought he loved Brandon Lake, brandon Lake's good.
Speaker 3:He loves Brandon Lake, that's why Blake has his hair like he does now, except for that song that he wrote Help. That song is garbage.
Speaker 4:What I don't think it's that bad.
Speaker 1:It's bad, but I just want to say, like, as a disclaimer, if parents are listening to this, you're just going to have to have a degree of patience Because, like even with myself, like I used to love death metal, Like I loved death metal and I loved, like, the hard rock, like you know, and the lyrics are awful. Like when you read the lyrics, they are, even though you can't understand anything that they're saying. The lyrics are atrocious. And so the problem is is if you have a child, or if you have a teen or whatever that's listened to this music for so long, it is just like breaking any habit. It is hard to get them to listen to something else, because it's what they're used to. Their memories are built off of it. It else, because it's what they're used to, their memories are built off of it.
Speaker 3:It's what is that word whenever something's familiar Nostalgia.
Speaker 1:It is nostalgia, and so you're just going to have to be patient and just keep introducing it. But I also don't think we should just force it, or else you're really going to push them away.
Speaker 3:I think one thing if I could give my mom advice going back is growing up the alternatives were either secular music or really old-timey Christian music and growing up I heard those every Sunday to the point where I just kind of got tired of it and I didn't really care for the—it wasn't the lyrics or anything like that, it was just like the very slow and stuff like that. And our generation were more upbeat and fast music and I think that's something that I really want to pay attention to going forward. My kids are trying to find it doesn't have to be something I necessarily enjoy, but trying to find a good alternative that is similar to the type of music they like.
Speaker 5:I think that would have been helpful for me having that sooner rather than later. Yeah, like even with what Blake said, there are Christian-like metal bands.
Speaker 1:They're so bad though Are Christian metal bands? They're so bad though, are they really Okay? I don't listen. There are some alternative.
Speaker 2:Christian things. All screaming is the same. Okay, my bad.
Speaker 1:There is some nuance For me. I don't like it. There might be people who find Christian metal bands satisfying, but I just think there are some.
Speaker 3:You're also a Swifty, so we take everything you say with a grain of salt.
Speaker 1:I also sit in a camp where it's like there are some things that shouldn't be made Christian, if that makes sense, just because of the realm that they're in. It's like you just really shouldn't just infiltrate it. Gangster rap, gangster Dubstep would be one Christian dubstep. Church clap makes me want to put my head through the wood.
Speaker 5:Okay, do not hate on some Lecrae and KB.
Speaker 2:We do not endorse all of Blake's musical views.
Speaker 6:I endorse Church Clap. Do not hate on.
Speaker 5:Christian rap. Christian rap is the best.
Speaker 6:You don't endorse it. You said you're endorsing your views on music. Is what he's saying?
Speaker 2:But you said you endorse Church Clap.
Speaker 1:Just say you don't endorse.
Speaker 6:Say it right now I'm sorry, I do not endorse Church Clap.
Speaker 3:Church Clap is dumb.
Speaker 5:Sorry, it was played at our wedding.
Speaker 1:I know and.
Speaker 5:I wanted to run away.
Speaker 3:Justin, you do what Blake says and you do it blindly, okay.
Speaker 5:Before Blake ever spoke about it, Anyways what song do we sing to close off?
Speaker 2:Well, you mentioned Creed. You want to hit us with some Creed? Yes, we can.
Speaker 1:We sound just like it Hit us with some Creed sendin. Can we sound just like this?
Speaker 2:with some creed, send us home what song?
Speaker 1:was that higher song that everybody knows?
Speaker 2:what all right can you take? Me higher you gotta finish the line. Beautiful all right friends, until next time. That was perfect. Hey, blake, I got a song for you. You ought to finish the line. We're blind men's sheep. Beautiful, all right friends, until next time. That was perfect.
Speaker 5:Hey Blake, I got a song for you actually.
Speaker 1:Is it Church Claps?
Speaker 5:No, no, I feel like you would like this song.
Speaker 1:Is it Crank it Like a Chainsaw.
Speaker 2:That song's so sexy. I don't know if you've seen this song.
Speaker 4:Thank you.