Was Walmart Right to Ban This Christian Album?? (churches, gnostic, belief)
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I thought the first two things you said as well. Stryper is still around?! I don't "get" "Christian hard rock" -- it just never made sense to me. The group seems to be choosing titles for shock value. I still can't get over that they are still around. I mean, is Amy Grant still popular as well?
BTW, I have made a lot of nice crafts that Walmart will never sell. Does this mean I am being persecuted?
I couldn't find the last three Stephen Bishop CD's at any Walmart.
Last week, Stryper released their 10th studio album which is one of their best ever. The song writing, music and vocals are outstanding and this is one of the best new rock releases I've heard in years.
For those who don't know, Stryper is a Christian hard rock band, and has always been a bit controversial in the Christian community from the start in the 80s as rock music was seen as devil's music and the band shared the same label as acts like Poison who promoted a sin soaked lifestyle. It's pretty amazing that out of all those 80s hair metal bands, Stryper is one of the few who survived and still going strong.
This is a band who does not shy away from the Christian label. Lead singer Michael Sweet is often quite outspoken about their faith and desire to bring people to Christ through music. Just look at the lyrics on one song:
It's a great album, but just one problem. They chose to title the album with a phrase that is so controversial that Walmart won't carry the album and even for me personally, I just can't support this or buy the album because of those words. I'm really disappointed in this band. It feels like a cheap ploy to get attention. Cmon guys. You knew this would stir up a lot of criticism and resistance. Their explanation that the phrase is a plead for God to rid the world of evil doesn't fly. There are many other ways they could have conveyed that message. Or even just use a comma. God, Damn the Evil for instance.
Also, isn't God's plan to do this anyways? Why would we need to pray for God to destroy or damn the evil in this world?
I have bought a few Stryper albums in the past, and I got an album or two of Sweet's solo effort. I like some of their music. But no, I would not buy that album based on the title. And I respect Walmart for taking the stance they do. I have no clue if they apply the same standard to other genres of music. I'd be curious.
As a PRIVATE company, Walmart has the EXCLUSIVE RIGHT to decide what goes on their shelves.
I don't think that was ever debatable. They are going to cater to their customer base and they obviously felt this album would get a lot of complaints from customers. I'm sure it would too. I just find it bad business sense to risk alienating your fan base because of a simple title.
I don't think that was ever debatable. They are going to cater to their customer base and they obviously felt this album would get a lot of complaints from customers. I'm sure it would too. I just find it bad business sense to risk alienating your fan base because of a simple title.
Don't worry about it, Stryper is probably going agnostic.
With Walmart choosing between the small minority of Stryper fans, and the infinitely larger family base of customers, it's no mystery why they chose as they did. All businesses make these kinds of decisions. Whoopy-doo. I'd bet there are Christian music stores that are banning the album too.
Stryper's too sensationalistic for their own good. They've had a history of jinxing themselves. They chase after attention, whether positive or negative.
Last edited by Thoreau424; 04-25-2018 at 02:41 PM..
This is not surprising considering the fact that Wal-Mart has always sold censored versions of music with explicit content and G-D falls into that.
Regardless, I'm surprised Wal-Mart is still selling CDs. Best Buy stopped last year I believe.
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I don't "get" "Christian hard rock" -- it just never made sense to me. The group seems to be choosing titles for shock value. I still can't get over that they are still around. I mean, is Amy Grant still popular as well? 
