Resources
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Ø
Air One
90.9 FM
Ø
Free 107
107.3 FM
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Ø
www.philchalmers.com
(great secular music reviews)
Ø
http://www.youthspecialties.com/central/chrmusmag.html
Ø
http://www.youthspecialties.com/central/music.html
Ø
http://www.youthspecialties.com/central/chrmusresources.html
Ø
http://www.family.org/pluggedin
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Ø CCM Magazine
Ø Plugged In (from Focus on the Family)
Ø Both available at Mardel, Family Christian Store, and Lifeway Christian Strore
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Top 40 / Pop Christian Alternatives
If You Like ............... Try:
Christina Aguilera ........ Shine, V'enna, Raze
Britney Spears ............ Shine, V'enna
Sheryl Crow ............... Larue
Shawn Mullins ............. Eli, Darryl Evans
N SYNC .................... Plus One, Katinas, Raze
Backstreet Boys ........... Plus One, Katinas, Raze
Mandy Moore ............... Shine, V'enna
Sarah Mclaughlin .......... Sixpence None The Richer, Larue
Tori Amos ................. Michelle Tumes, Sarah Jalin
Fiona Apple ............... Deborah Fatow
Backstreet Boys ........... The Katinas, Raze,
Worldwide Message Tribe
Michael Bolton ............ Bob Carlisle
Toni Braxton .............. Kathy Troccoli
Mariah Carey .............. Amy Morriss, Cindy Morgan
Paula Cole ................ Michelle Tumes, Sarah Jalin
Shawn Colvin .............. Susan Ashton
Sheryl Crow ............... Out Of The Grey, Clear,
Carolyn Arends, Jennifer Knapp
Celine Dion ............... Lisa Bevill
Enya ...................... Iona, Maire Brennan
Gloria Estefan ............ Jaci Velasquez, Amy Grant
Hanson .................... Squirt, Nikki Leonti
Natilie Imbruglia ......... Christine Glass
Indigo Girls .............. Jennifer Knapp, Clear
Janet Jackson ............. Tammy Trent
Jewel ..................... Rebecca St. James, Jeni Varnedeau
Sarah Mclachlan ........... Sarah Masen, Nichole Nordeman
Jennifer Knapp, Watermark
Natalie Merchant .......... Clear, Jennifer Knapp
Alanis Morrissette ........ Rebecca St. James,
Jeni Varnedeau
Deborah Fatow
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Rap/Hip Hop Christian Alternatives
If
You Like ............... Try:
Dr Dre .................... Crow
Notorious B.I.G. .......... B.B.Jay
Scarface .................. J Roc
Master P .................. Prime Minister
Eminem .................... Cross Movement, Ambassador,
Knowdaverbs, MG the Visionary
Arrested Development....... Gotee Brothers
Bone Thugs N Harmony ...... T Bone, Brothuz Grimm
C-Murder .................. Lil Raskull, Prime Minister
Coolio .................... God's Original Gangstaz
DJ Quick .................. Lil Raskull, Prime Minister
Fugees .................... Brothuz Grimm
Geto Boys ................. Nuwine
Goodie Mob ................ Str8 Young Gangstaz
Ice Cube .................. Gospel Gangstaz
Mase ...................... DCP
Master P .................. Nuwine
NWA ....................... Gospel Gangstaz
Outkast ................... LG Wise, T Bone, DCP
Scarface .................. Lil Raskull, Prime Minister,
Nuwine
Snoop Dogg ................ Rubadub, Lil Raskull
Tupac ..................... LG Wise, T Bone
2 Live Crew ............... Str8 Young Gangstaz
Wu-Tang ................... KIIS, Dirt, The Cross Movement
Too Short ................. DCP
R&B Christian Alternatives
If You Like
............... Try:
R Kelly ................... Amani
Mary J Blige .............. Gina Brown
Boyz II Men ............... Take 6, Annointed
Brandy .................... Lakita, Terri Carroll
Toni Braxton .............. Angie and Debbie
R&B ....................... Kirk Franklin
R Kelly ................... God Quest, Take 6, Annointed
Salt N Pepa ............... Lakita, Terri Carroll
Stereo MC's ............... Gospel Housing Authority
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If You Like
............... Try:
Bush ...................... Switchfoot
The Clash ................. The Dingees, The Huntingtons
Cranberries ............... Sixpence None The Richer
Modern Rock ............... DC Talk
Dave Matthews Band ........ JIB, Caedmons Call,
Identical Strangers
Burlap to Cashmere
Foo Fighters .............. Eric Champion, Seven Day Jesus
Tragedy Ann
Garbage ................... Plumb
Goo Goo Dolls ............. Miscellaneous
Green Day ................. MXPX, Value Pac, Ghoti Hook
Marcy Playground .......... Dime Store Prophets
Matchbox 20 ............... Third Day, Lloyd
Nine Inch Nails ........... ErinFall, Klank, Circle of Dust
Oasis ..................... Delerious, Kosmos Express,
Newsboys, Split Level
Offspring ................. MXPX, Value Pac, Ghoti Hook
Pearl Jam ................. Plankeye, Seven Day Jesus
Rage Against The Machine .. Project 86
Ramones ................... The Dingees, The Huntingtons
Rancid .................... The Dingees, The Huntingtons
REM ....................... Dryve, The Waiting
Stone Temple Pilots ....... Johnny Q Public, The Bleed
Third Eye Blind ........... Audio Adrenaline
U2 ........................ Delerious Kosmos Express
The Verve ................. Delerious Kosmos Express
The Wallflowers ........... Big Tent Revival, Smalltown Poets
Chris Taylor
Counting Crows ............ Chris Taylor
Weird Al Yankovic ......... Apologetix
Hootie and The Blowfish ... Third Day
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Classic Rock Christian Alternatives
If
You Like ............... Try:
Aerosmith ................. Bride, Guardian, Whitecross, Lloyd
Guns N Roses .............. Bride, Guardian, Whitecross, Lloyd
Classic Rock Parodies ..... Apologetix
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Metal/Hardcore Christian Alternatives
If You Like
............... Try:
BLink 182 ................. Twotimer, Broken Cedars, MXPX
Korn / Limp Bizkit ........ EDL, Project 86
Green Day ................ Twotimer
311 ....................... Spoken
Godsmack .................. Eternal Decision
Black Flag ................ Crashdog
Korn ...................... POD, Every Day Life, Blindside
Spoken Training for Utopia, Rod Laver
Marilyn Manson ............ Massivivid, Klank, Circle of Dust
Rackets and Drapes
Metallica ................. Lament, Precious Death,
Deliverance, Eternal Decision
Ministry .................. Chatterbox
Nine Inch Nails ........... Massivivid, Argyle Park,
Klank Circle of Dust
Offspring ................. Crux, Blames
Pantera ................... Living Sacrifice,
Mortification Ultimatum,
Strongarm, Embodyment
Rage Against The Machine .. Project 86, POD, Every Day Life
Spoken
Sepultura ................. Living Sacrifice,
Mortification Ultimatum,
Strongarm, Embodyment
Slayer .................... Zao, Mortification,
Living Sacrifice Embodyment
Rob Zombie (White Zombie) . Zao, Tourniquet, Project 86
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If
You Like ............... Try:
UB40 ...................... Christifari, Temple Yard,
Channelsurfers, Christ Fa Real,
World Wide Message Tribe
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If
You Like ............... Try:
Eiffel 65 ................. Raze
Bloodhound Gang ........... Raze
Chemical Brothers ......... Cloud to Ground
Chumbawamba ............... World Wide Message Tribe
Depeche Mode .............. The News Boys, Ian, Code of Ethics
Madonna ................... Nitro Praise, Vol 1-6
David Morales ............. Scott Blackwell
New Order ................. World Wide Message Tribe
Orbital ................... Prodigal Sons, Hydro, Joy Electric
Mindbender
Pet Shop Boys ............. The Echoing Green
Prodigy ................... Paradigm Shift, Prodigal Sons,
Virus, Prophecy of P.A.N.I.C.
Stereo MC's ............... Gospel Housing Authority
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Country Christian Alternatives
If
You Like ............... Try:
Vince Gill ................ Tim Greene
Country Music ............. Mid South, Paul Overstreet,
Ricky Skaggs
LeAnn Rimes ............... Rhonda Gunn
Randy Travis .............. Ken Holloway
Shania Twain .............. Rhonda Gunn
Country ................... Collin Raye, Ricky Skaggs,
Paul Overstreet
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If You Like
............... Try:
Mighty Mighty Bosstones ... The Insyderz, Buck, The Supertones
No Doubt .................. Mayfair Laundry
Reel Big Fish ............. Five Iron Frenzy
Rancid .................... Five Iron Frenzy, The Supertones
Sublime ................... Five Iron Frenzy, The Supertones
Smashmouth ................ Insyderz, Five Iron Frenzy
Swing Christian Alternatives
If You Like
............... Try:
Cherry Poppin Daddies ..... The W's
Big Bad Voodoo Daddy ...... The W's
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I.
Introduction
A.
Why we’re doing this (Ashlee)—Hockey game (Let me Go On)—Miss
USA Pageant (liquid dreams song)—Pushing the line of appropriateness, and so
we as Christians must take a stand in our families if we don’t want to be
caught up in the downward spiral of family values. Today's teens are desensitized to violence, murder, abusive sex, and
profanity, and I blame music as the number one reason for this. When I quote
some of the most profane lyrics to teens, especially in public schools, they
respond by saying "So, what's wrong with that?" Our kids are numb, and
we must step in and take action.
B.
According to USA Today… According to USA Today, 500 Gen-Xers (teens) were asked, Who or what
would you take on a deserted island? The top pick, unbelievably, was parents
(29%), followed closely by music (24%), and computers (21%). In other findings,
65% said they would rather listen to any CD rather than the president. (USA
Today, June 19) Powerful stuff. At least parents were first, but you see how
important music is diverting focus today. WE HAVE THE TWO MOST POWERFUL
INFLUENCES IN A TEENS’ LIFE IN THIS ROOM RIGHT NOW.
C.
Never
done this for parents before
D. We’ve been there (Christian music has improved—we didn’t have the choice several years ago), but have also learned about how positive music can impact our lives (praise and worship example, sermons, etc.)—censorship, screening, we prohibit our kids to hang out with bad people, but allow them to listen to music that curses at them and brags about a lifestyle that is incongruent with our values (One thing I can't figure out is why the government allows teens to buy this violent and pornographic music, but they install a rating system on movies and won't sell pornographic videos and magazines to those under the age of 18. It's the biggest double standard that exists in America today. Most of the music I've observed should be rated PG-13 and R, and some should even be rated X.).
E. The only question we want you to be thinking about today is: “Do you think God cares about the kind of music we allow our teens to listen to?” Pray and ask God if He cares. Lifestyle of worship (to God or to?)
F.
Activity
II.
Questions
A.
What would you think of a group that sang about sex with the dead (DMX),
sex with 10 year olds (Eminem), choking women to death while you have sex with
them (Korn), promoting phone sex (N Sync & Blink 182)?
B.
CD
cases
III.
Take notes, etc. Play the first half of the video. 30 minutes
IV. Response to video.
A. What did you think of the video so far?
B. Vladimir Lenin said, “One quick way to destroy a society is through the music.” Do you believe some of these groups can help to destroy our society? Why or why not?
C. MTV said in a recent quote that they own the youth of America. Do you think they control certain aspects of the youth culture? Do they dictate what teens buy? (MTV—no more videos, game shows, Sisqo’s thong showdown, etc.—all about sex)
V. Identify verses & read first two. Jot down and if you decide to visit with your teen, you might want to have these verses handy to study what the Bible has to say about this topic.
VI.
But B&A, the industry polices itself with labels. When
you start to see people in the industry saying music is bad, it's bad. Even
Madonna doesn't let her child watch MTV. But, Dio's idea about the music
industry policing itself is ludicrous. That's like drug dealers making the drug
laws. But, so far that has been the answer. Record labels are responsible for
policing themselves, and they choose which albums are good and bad. The ones
that they consider bad, they put a warning label on the cover that says
"Parental Advisory, Explicit Lyrics". The problem with these labels
are many, but let me touch on a few.
First of all, warning labels sell albums. A lot of the groups want warning
labels, and some put them on voluntarily. Secondly, there are albums put out
without warning labels that are just as bad as the ones with labels, but the
biggest problem is record stores selling these albums to minors of any age with
no restrictions. All the stores' policies are different. It should be 18 years
or older, unless you have parental consent. But most stores sell to teens 16 and
up, and a lot sell to anyone. The bottom line is we have a multi-billion dollar
industry making money off of our kids, and no outside party policing them.
That's the reason for my book and my ministry - because, parents, youth leaders,
teachers, principles, and pastors... it's up to you and I.
VII.
Break. 10 minutes
VIII. Questions? Feedback? Play Part II of video.
IX. Questions.
A. What do you think of the material on this video? (Shocking, fair, unfair, cause change)
B. Tori Amos said, “We like our pain, we’re packaging it, and we’re selling it.” What do you think about these artists selling their pain? Are you buying their pain?
C. Would you consider a 30-day secular music fast for your family?
X. Five Steps a Parent Can Take (Don’t overreact and lash out—it won’t help you, them, or us—give them the material to research and guide them to making decisions)
First of all, you need to have a relationship with your son, daughter,and youth group member. This isn't a magical answer. If you don't, that's the first problem. You must either try to rekindle that, or bring in a youth worker or counselor who can help with your relationship. Your teen needs a positive role model in their life! That is the first step. Next, you need to have patience. Don't storm into your teens room and start tearing down posters and smashing CDs. This only breeds rebellion, and severely hurts your communication.
B. STEP TWO:
Spend time with your teens! Spend time with your teens! Spend time
with your teens! Did I make my point? According to USA Today (8/19/95),
"The average American family spends 7.5 hours each day watching television,
making TV the number one consumer of people's leisure time." Actually the
numbers range from 4 to 7.5 hours a day, but even 4 hours is way too much time
to be zoned out and not interacting and communicating with your kids. Use this
time to do things as a family, and spend time with your kids.
C. STEP THREE:
Okay, now that I'm off my soapbox, the next thing to do is sit down with your teen and examine the lyrics, lifestyles, graphics and philosophies of their favorite groups. Discuss your family values, as well as biblical values. I WANT MY MUSIC CHOICE TO BE CONSISTENT WITH MY VALUES (CHRISTIAN MUSIC, R-RATED MOVIES)
D. STEP FOUR:
Then, discuss Christian alternatives. You will need to find
alternatives that have the same style of music as the groups your teen likes. I
have the groups listed in Chapter 3, "Is There Such A Thing As Christian
Rock?" Also, you can call me for suggestions. You may not like the music
personally but you don't have to listen to it. The important thing is whether
the lyrics glorify God, and the band leads a lifestyle that is honoring to
Christ. Eventually, your teen will grow out of this musical style. I don't know
too many grandparents who listen to heavy metal or rap music.
Also effective are Christian concerts. Try to find out when the big Christian
acts are coming through your area, and take your kids. But, whatever you do,
don't take them to a concert, or buy them a CD of an untalented Christian group.
If this occurs, it could close the door on Christian music for good.
E. STEP FIVE:
Another
thing you have to consider is your example as a parent. I have a lot of parents
who drag their kids to my seminar because of their teen's music, but after I
talk to these teens, I find out dad listens to secular drinkin' and cheatin'
country music, and mom watches soap operas all day. Don't be a hypocrite,
because two people will find you out God, and your kids!
If your son or daughter is younger, and hasn't started listening to secular
music, here is an idea. Make your home a safe place, where no secular music is
allowed, period! Allow Christian music only, and make sure it is positive, and
lifts up Christ. This way your kids will be exposed to Christian music at least
some time every day. They will still listen to secular music if they want to,
but at least they can't listen to it in their bedroom all day and night, and go
to sleep and wake up to anti-Christian thoughts and messages. Eventually, your
kids will know you care about them and will thank you years later.
All the advice I have given you would be meaningless without prayer. Get on your
knees and talk to God, and believe he's going to work a miracle in your home.
XI. Here’s what we will do to help you as parents in this area.
A. Prayer, intervention.
B. Teen workshops
C. Resources, (websites, i.e. Creed, Pearl Jam reviews)
D. Setting examples in life, at home, with kids, in vans
E. Offer Christian concerts
F. Interlinc
XII. Prayer—for parents—that parents will take info and do with it as God wants them to
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