Family Force 5: Changing The Game For Christian Pop/Rock

Christian Pop Music. Usually the term conjures up images of sub-par music, poor production, and if you ever came across it on the radio, you'd change the channel as quickly as possible. The alternative/rock music has improved enough over the past ten years to be quite formidable with the addition of bands like August Burns Red, Underoath, and Reliant K. But pop music, not so much. With the release of Toby Mac's (formerly of DC Talk) first solo CD there appeared a glimmer of hope. His music was eclectic, blending genres like rap, reggae and rock. It was definitely something to make your ears twitch. That was back in 2001, and finally it seems that there might be a contender for the title of Pop King--Family Force 5.

This band hailing from Atlanta takes the term "Pop" to a whole other meaning. Last week I had the opportunity to attend Spirit West Coast, a Christian music festival that takes place every year in Monterey, CA. There I was able to witness firsthand the experience that is Family Force 5. Comprising of 3 brothers and 2 of their friends FF5 (as their known by their die hard fans) literally rocks your face off. Their live show consisted of lights, costumes, and what I found most interesting, a guy in the corner with a laptop displaying Logic and a wireless Midi keyboard. This seemingly innocuous man was the synth section, additional drum section, sound effects and on occasion an additional base line. As if this wasn't radical enough, the lead singer donned Hulk fists and grabbed a mic to sing their hit song "Put Ur Hands Up". I was surprised. There were lots of teenagers, which was to be expected. What wasn't were the youth leaders and parents in the back jumping and dancing to the music as well. You'd have thought it was a Duran Duran reunion tour. And yet there are still the naysayers. Those that think they're not "Christian enough". Apparently you can't be a Christian artist unless you use the name "Jesus" and the words "prayer" and "salvation" in every one of your songs. Who knew?

In an article on The Fish.com Solomon Olds, lead singer, addresses the negative comments:

"Christian music has a sound that is very safe and watered-down. There's a lot of kids that are into the lyrics, but the first names that you gravitate toward on the radio; if it's Snoop Dogg, if it's Eminem, if it's Michael W. Smith, the Newsboys; it's the music and the melodies and the beat of it. A lot [of] Christian music isn't done that way. It's done in a mold that sells to an older demographic...and that's totally fine. But if I hear an artist on the radio I've never heard, I know it's Christian music because anybody can pick it out...I don't think it appeals to a younger generation. They want something raw, something that's fun and exciting, something that's urgent, or something that has a message they can latch on to. There's a lot of bands out there that are teaching depression, that are talking about suicide, and stuff like that. Those are avenues that kids want to explore.But at Family Force 5 we want to give an alternative to that, where it's just as exciting, it's just as fun, it's just as urgent, but it has a positive message. And the positive message is, "We're here to rock the party all night long!"[1]

Now, it would be easy to think that the success of a band in Christian music is of no consequence to you. Not so. If you look at the numbers in the Christian music market you will find that while they are still affected by the current economic status, their artists still contend with mainstream artists on the Billboard Top 200. Gospel Duo Mary Mary's latest album debuted at #7 on the Billboard Top 200,[2] Toby Mac's latest album debuted at #27,[3] Underoath's 2006 album debuted at #2,[4] and Family Force 5's album debuted at #30.[5] Numbers like this don't lie and clearly Christian music fans support their artists. With the increasing popularity and quality of pop music by Toby Mac and now Family Force 5 there is a new market opening. So, to all the songwriters and producers who think the mainstream market is over saturated, try looking in a different direction. If you open your minds up to this new genre of music, you may be stretching your mind as well as your wallet size.

Sources:
[1] The Fish.com
[2] Mary Mary
[3] Toby Mac
[4]Underoath
[5]Family Force 5