Rising Christian Artist Josiah Queen’s Message
Emerging Christian musician Josiah Queen feels he has an important message that resonates with many young fans—and, perhaps more importantly, their parents.
This conviction is central to Queen’s music. His song dusty bible has garnered over 40 million streams on Spotify and calls for a world less dominated by the iPhone and its ceaseless demand for attention. Currently, it sits at number 4 on Billboard’s Hot Christian Songs chart.
“That’s not real life,” Queen expressed to Crosswalk Headlines. He emphasized that the distractions caused by smartphones and screens are steering individuals away from the teachings of the Bible.
“What we read in the Bible is real life, real truth,” he declared, pointing out that the essence of Jesus—found in the Bible—is fundamentally how we connect with God.
In dusty bible, the 22-year-old artist reflects on how constant busyness and distractions hinder his generation from achieving genuine peace. He posits that this overwhelming sense of urgency is largely driven by technology, which consumes time and attention. “There’s dust on the Bible,” he remarks, implying that with the allure of a new iPhone, it’s no surprise people may feel emotionally unfulfilled.
Queen is aware that some of his quick rise to success can be attributed to technology, which has allowed him to forge a grassroots following independently, bypassing traditional barriers like music labels and radio. His song i am barabbas, for instance, accumulated millions of streams on TikTok even before he signed with Capitol Christian Music Group.
His acoustic folk style is distinct in the Contemporary Christian Music scene, often drawing comparisons to bands like Mumford & Sons and The Lumineers.
His most popular track, prodigal, has achieved a staggering 124 million streams on Spotify.
“I grew up in the church, and when I discovered Jesus, it was like discovering music at the same time,” he shared. His journey began in a prayer room where he played the piano, sang psalms, and found joy in music. “I’ve always had a love for Christian music,” he added. In fact, it’s been the only genre he listened to for years.
Queen has aimed to be a Christian songwriter since he was around 12 or 13. He started sharing his music on social media, and as people took notice, he stayed committed to his craft.
Despite his family having no musical background, they faced challenges with music labels and radio stations. Eventually, he found his audience. “It was a major turning point in my career,” he mentioned.
Now, he boasts a following of 1 million on Instagram, 4.6 million monthly listeners on Spotify, and over 4 million fans on TikTok. Quite impressive for someone who was relatively unknown just two years ago.
In November, he took his message to over a dozen college campuses, advocating for returning to God’s Word over the superficial distractions of smartphones.
“It helps me release music,” he said with a smile, reiterating that “that’s not real life.”
Related Videos
Josiah Queen encourages young audiences to prioritize their Bibles over their phones.
