Rappin' for Jesus

"Rappin' for Jesus" is a 2013 song that has been viewed over 71 million times on YouTube as of January 2021.[1] The song was purportedly written by a Pastor Jim Colerick and his wife Mary Sue from a church in Iowa for a youth Christian outreach program.[1][2] The original video was uploaded to YouTube by user Brian Spinney on February 5, 2013 and garnered wider attention through the website Reddit.[3][4] Spinney claimed to have directed the video with his pastor while in high school.[5]

"Rappin' for Jesus"
Single by Pastor Jim Colerick and Mary Sue Colerick
ReleasedFebruary 5, 2013 (2013-02-05)
Genre
Length2:52
Music video
Rappin' for Jesus on YouTube

The Daily Dot concluded the video is a hoax, calling it "obviously fake".[5] Chris English, pastor of GracePoint Church in Dubuque, Iowa, said in 2013 that he had never heard of Pastor Jim Colerick or West Dubuque 2nd Church of Christ, the church supposedly affiliated with the song.

The website of West Dubuque 2nd Church of Christ, linked to by the original video, claims that the church closed in 2004. However, The Daily Dot pointed out that the website had been created on January 15, 2013, the same day as Spinney's YouTube channel.[5][4] In light of this, The Huffington Post questioned the authenticity of the video, calling it "very peculiar indeed".[3]

Criticism

The song has the chorus line "Jesus Christ is my nigga". Pastor Chris English, in an email to The Christian Post, said the use of the word nigga was "clearly over the line, and offensive".[6] He thought the video, parody or not, perpetuated many negative stereotypes about Christians, and as such, would have never worked in an outreach program for young people.[6]

The Dallas Observer also criticized the song, saying: "it's cheesy. It's bad. It's painful." It described the song as having a negative impact on public perception of Christian rap.[7]

References
  1. Spinney, Brian (February 5, 2013). Rappin' for Jesus. Retrieved June 19, 2020 – via YouTube.
  2. "Home Page". West Dubuque 2nd Church of Christ. Archived from the original on April 18, 2018. Retrieved August 5, 2018.
  3. Thomas, Emily (February 13, 2013). "Rappin' For Jesus: Music Video Births New Rap Star Of Christianity (NSFW Language)". The Huffington Post. Archived from the original on June 13, 2018. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
  4. "White Pastor Rhymes 'Jesus Is My N*gga' In Rap Video". NewsOne. Urban One. February 15, 2013. Archived from the original on January 23, 2017. Retrieved May 7, 2020.
  5. Hoffberge, Chase (February 13, 2013). "That "Rappin For Jesus" video is obviously fake". The Daily Dot. Archived from the original on November 11, 2020. Retrieved May 18, 2018.
  6. Schapiro, Jeff (February 21, 2013). "Iowa Church's YouTube Hit 'Rappin' for Jesus' Video a Hoax?". The Christian Post. Archived from the original on August 5, 2018. Retrieved August 5, 2018.
  7. Skinner, Paige (June 12, 2018). "Dallas' Christian Rappers Have Beats and Holy Spirit, But Is What They Do Rap?". Dallas Observer. Archived from the original on August 9, 2020. Retrieved March 24, 2020.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.