Derek vs. the Record Label
Derek Webb, singer/songwriter (and a christian), is in a dispute with his record label. He sent a cryptic e-mail regarding it this morning, and there’s already speculation on what the conflict might be.
I’m sure I’ll be in the minority with many 20-30 somethings here, but I’ll be very disappointed if Derek’s big issue is the use of the “s” word. I’m not necessarily opposed to hearing the “s” word in a song, but I feel like many use it as a status symbol of their “edgy-ness”. It feels very artificial to me. I’ve already read tweets and blogs telling Derek to “keep it real” or stating that simply because the label is against it, the album must be awesome. People gravitate towards that anti-establishment stuff and thrive on it. That concerns me greatly. Counter-culture doesn’t automatically equal “awesomeness” in my book.
The bible warns against us using vulgarity, and like it or not, that word is vulgar in our society. Don’t get me wrong, I occasionally cuss too, but it’s usually out of a lack of self-control – not a conscious usage to get my point across. That said, I’ll hold my final judgement until I hear the word in the context of the song, but for now, I just dont’ have a good feeling about this…
What are your thoughts? Is it ever OK for a christian to swear in a song lyric. State your case below…
Brandon said,
May 12, 2009 at 8:24 am
Word are words. They are neither harmful nor vulgar in and of themselves. It is the context in which they are used. I think using vulgarity comes from a state of heart.
Kelly said,
May 12, 2009 at 11:17 am
Despite the fact that I don’t exactly have the cleanest mouth in the world and don’t care much about swearing beyond how much of it my children are exposed to (and even then, it’s about context), I think it’s really lazy writing and thinking to dig in your heels about using one word when a million others would suffice to get the message across. Of course, I don’t know the song or the context, so I guess there could be a good reason it has to be THAT word in order to adequately convey the message, but for the most part, I don’t think editing for appropriate language is the same thing as censorship.
Now, if the argument was over the message, then I can understand standing your ground and not being willing to change the song. But if he can express the same message (which is what’s important, right?) with tamer language, then why not do it?
There’s a forum where I post some of the stuff I write that has a pretty strict G rating. When all it takes is editing a few words here or there, or leaving out a scene that isn’t plot-crucial, I don’t have a problem editing my own work. If it’s the theme or message itself that’s over the rating, however, that I won’t edit, so I don’t post those stories there. I guess as a writer, that’s where my line is. I’m not going to edit my message, but I have no problem editing HOW I convey the message.