Mat Kearney is this week's featured artist and he represents a growing stable of muscians who are redefining what it looks like to be a Christian in the music business.
Since it's birth in the late 60's through the early 2000's, Contemporary Christian Music (or CCM) has been it's own little universe. The Christian sub-culture embraced the safe artists and their safe, but uplifting music. Any group or artist that flirted with wider commercial success was quickly labeled a sell-out (see "Grant, Amy").
Eventually some CCM artists like dc Talk, Jars of Clay, Bob Carlisle, Kirk Franklin, and Sixpence None the Richer fell into commercial success and proved you didn't have to comprimise your overall Christian message to make good music.
As CCM became more and more dominated by worship music and artists, the next generation has risen up and followed these trailblazers going full speed ahead. Bands like Lifehouse, The Fray, Owl City, and individual artists like Mat Kearney have proven that the Devil doesn't have all the good music and it's possible to be 'salt and light' in the secular music business.
The above song isn't overtly Christian, but it doesn't have to be. His life obviously is and his overall catalogue of songs reflects it too.
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