The lead singer of rock band Skillet says he wants the group's music to bring hope to an anxious generation of young people who are bombarded with anti-biblical messages every day and who desperately need “the hope found in Christ.”
Frontman John Cooper and his bandmates will release their next album on November 1st. rotateis a high-octane, ten-song project that contains the counter-cultural message that characterizes the group's music. Unpopular The song urges fans to stand up against the madness of the world. rotatelaments the despair of the world, but declares, “I believe there's still time to save us.” Not scaryurges fans to “keep the faith” and “never back down.”
Cooper said the album is a call for revolution “against the sadness, depression, anxiety and demonic things we experience every day in our culture.”
“I'm overwhelmed and heartbroken by the amount of people who are struggling with depression and suicidal thoughts and feel like they don't matter,” Cooper told Crosswalk Headlines, referring to what she's read on social media and in her Skillet feed. “I really do care deeply about people who are struggling with suicidal thoughts and mental health. Those kinds of issues.”
“I believe this is the result of a society that has abandoned God. [and] Some people have said, “We don't believe in God. There is nothing other than the material world. There is nothing other than how I feel.” And if there is no God, it would be really difficult to find a reason to live.
“So it's a revolution against all that. 'You matter. There is a God. God loves you. There is hope for the Earth.' … This song is rotate This song is specifically about that depression, that anxiety, the fact that people feel like there's nothing left to live for. So the chorus of the song is, “Let's sing a song of revolution. We have a fire of hope in our hearts. Let's march to the beat of love. We have to tell people about the hope we find in Christ.”
Skillet is one of the most successful crossover bands in music history, having won a wide range of awards while touring with mainstream and Christian groups. The band has sold over 22 million records worldwide and has been streamed over 24 billion times worldwide. They have been nominated for two Grammy Awards and won a Billboard Music Award.
Cooper said, Weak, feeble, woke up. He is also a podcast host. Cooper Staffsaid he wanted the songs on his new album to be truthful anthems for a new generation – in fact, he originally intended to title the album “Anthems for the Revolution.”
“song Unpopular [can be] “This is not only an anthem for the younger generation, but maybe it's an anthem especially for the younger generation of Christians to not be ashamed of the gospel of Christ,” Cooper said. “Because we're in a day and age where if you just say you believe in God, you're not taken seriously, especially when you're talking about academic jargon or taking college classes. My daughter is in college, and if she said, 'Yeah, but what about a higher power?' she'd be laughed at, because college today is totally materialistic.
“So the song goes: 'Hey, if it's unpopular to say you believe in Jesus Christ, then today's a good day to be unpopular.'”
“The teachings of Christ in the Bible bring this kind of peace. There is a huge difference between Christian peace and the chaos the world is inflicting on our children. Today is a really good day to be unpopular.”
Related article: Skillet's John Cooper calls new album a “counter-revolution” driven by love
Photo credit: ©Skillet
Michael Faust He has covered the intersection of faith and news for 20 years, and his work has appeared in Baptist Press, Christianity Today, Christian Post, Leaf Chronicle, Toronto Star and Knoxville News Sentinel.
