Document Type
Book
Publication Date
2024
Abstract
“What will people think,” Toby McKeehan, Michael Tait, and Kevin Smith asked thousands of young evangelical fans in 1996, “when they hear that I’m a Jesus Freak?” This trio of young men “on fire for God,” who performed as DC Talk, were the biggest thing in CCM in the 1990s. Their 1995 album Jesus Freak portrayed conservative evangelical youths as rock-and- roll rebels. “Welcome to the Freak Show,” the Jesus Freak tour, filled stadiums, and their high-energy, slickly produced concerts were teaming with screaming devotees. Fans pointed up to the sky as the band sang, “Jesus is the way,” in a throwback to the Jesus-freak revivals of their parents’ generation. DC Talk’s sold-out shows gave conservative evangelical activists hope for the future of the nation.
Recommended Citation
Payne, Leah, "“Jesus Freaks” Youth-Group Bands and the Power of Christian Rock (1992–2000)" (2024). Faculty Publications - Portland Seminary. 178.
https://digitalcommons.georgefox.edu/gfes/178
Comments
Originally published by Oxford University Press. 2024. Chapter 5 of God Gave Rock & Roll to You by Leah Payne. Pages 91-116.