The Perception of The Country Music by Audience in The USA

Worldviews and Country Music

Country music is an old and important genre. It has always been extremely influential both within American Culture and western culture more broadly. Country music (in its early days) was notable for its sad and sorrow filed lyrics, which made it popular because it reflected the mood of those who chose to listen to it. When we look at the broad spectrum of music, we can see that genres most often influence other genres. This has certainly happened to country music, as country music in 2017 often contains upbeat lyrics, accompanied with a wide variety of themes. Music is more than just words put to a tune, songs are often a story or a situation that has occurred to the artist, and as country music has progressively diversified, it has become a channel for many different people to express how they feel.

Peoples life styles show the type of worldview that they have. Christian academic James Sire defines a worldview as “… a commitment, a fundamental orientation of the heart, that can be expressed as a story or in a set of presuppositions (assumptions which may be true, partially true or entirely false) that we hold (consciously or subconsciously, consistently or inconsistently) about the basic constitution of reality, and that provides the foundation on which we live.” These fundamental orientations of the heart can shine through when a musician puts pen to paper and write lyrics. Because of this, the music we listen to can be said to reflect our broader worldview. As the values embedded in the songs we enjoy partially reveal our beliefs and ideas about the world around us and our presuppositions.

When it comes to a Christian worldview, we believe that God is omnipotent and that our purpose on earth is to glorify Him in everything that we say and do. There are many songs that are clearly not born out of a Christian world view. A good example of a song that is not coming from a Christian worldview is, “Family Tradition” by Hank Williams Jr. This song is coming from a very worldly view. It talks about drinking to get drunk, smoking to get high, and living the life that he lives to engage in (casual) sexual relationships. This is not coming from a Christian worldview whatsoever. This is obvious because the bible explicitly forbids substance abuse, as author J Stephen Lang notes when he writes “… [people] who belong to the Kingdom of God should lead a life that reflects what God desires for his people… this does not include altering our mind and behavior with chemical substances instead of finding our fulfillment in God.”, songs like Family Tradition can easily be shown to promote a worldview of secularism and hedonism. We also know that the Bible promotes traditional marriage and does not approve of sexual relationships outside of the Holy bond of marriage. So, the lyrics discussing casual sex are in direct contradiction to what a Christian worldview world value.

This is clearly a song espousing a Biblical message, as it directly references events in the Bible, such as the death of Christ and the washing away of sin after said death. This is in stark contrast to a song like “Family Tradition” that has lyrics about worldly pleasures and desires. Although artists sometimes bury messages in metaphors and other lyrical devices, its usually obvious when a song is endorsing a worldview.

As Christians, I would not say that the only music we can listen to is Christian music. However, it is necessary that we are mindful of what we listen to because what we listen to can have a profound effect of how we live our lives. We need to surround ourselves with music and entertainment that are pleasing to the Lord. Personally, I enjoy a wide variety of bands and singers, but when I listen to music that doesn’t come from a Biblical worldview, I try to make sure that it is something that is not going against God. For example, one song I enjoy from a band without a Christian worldview is “The Middle” from the band Jimmy Eats World. This song has a positive message that both encourages and motivates the listener. It promotes a form of loving individualism that, while not in parallel with a Christian worldview, seems compatible with one.

Overall, the worldview a song is coming from is essential to its reception by the listener. Not only that, but the relationship can work two ways, as music is influential on a person’s worldview. Because of this, I believe Christians should try to only listen to music that coheres (or does not offend) our worldview. And in 2017 this is easier than ever, because we have such a wide selection of songs and artists to choose from. There was a time when a song like “Family Tradition” was the only option for someone who wanted to hear country. But nowadays we can listen to Carry Underwood, or other Christian artists, when we desire to hear country music.