In recent years, full choirs have been downplayed in commercial gospel. Some artists hope ‘Jesus Is King’ will reverse that tide
To some, the music of the black church and choral singing might seem synonymous. But there are a mix of genres and approaches, according to Birgitta Johnson, an associate professor of ethnomusicology at the University of South Carolina. And in the last decade-plus, the focus shifted to emphasize the work of “smaller praise teams” singing, Lawrence says, rather than large choirs. Lawrence is hoping that West can reverse this trend.
Professor Johnson believes that industry forces are responsible for the move away from choir-first music in commercial gospel. “The gospel music industry got subsumed by the major [labels] and the conglomerates in the late Nineties,” she says. “They and the program directors at radio stations are deciding what type of gospel is being played.
Second, what’s known as “praise and worship” music is thought to be more flexible and easier to grasp than choir-based music. “It’s often got more of a rock sound to it; it sounds more like secular music,” says Phillip Carter, a gospel artist who leads a Bring Back the Choir event twice a year. “Some of the chords they play during praise and worship, especially in Contemporary Christian Music, came from people like U2, light rock, classic rock.
De-emphasizing choirs in gospel doesn’t just impact the sound and texture of the music — the medium affects the message as well. “Praise is thanking God for what He’s done, worship is loving Him for who He is,” Lawrence explains. “It’s a little more vertical, not horizontal, in message, meaning it’s about you and your relationship with God. But it doesn’t always allow you to tell stories. Some other songs reach out, speak in second person, talk to the listener, encourage the listener.
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