Christian electronic dance music, also known as CEDM, Christian EDM, Christian Dance Music, CDM, or Christian electronic music is a genre of electronic dance music and

Christian music Christian music is music that has been written to express either personal or a communal belief regarding Christian life and faith. Common themes of Christian music include praise, worship, penitence, and lament, and its forms vary widely aro ...

. Its musical styles closely mirror non-Christian EDM; however, the CEDM culture's lack of drug use and emphasis of positive lyrics (often focused on

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesu ...

-based principles) distinguish it from non-religious counterparts. EDM.com wrote "the

EDM EDM or E-DM may refer to: Music * Electronic dance music * Early Day Miners, American band Science and technology * Electric dipole moment * Electrical discharge machining * Electronic distance measurement *Entry, Descent, and landing demonstra ...

culture can feel quite welcoming." Many live concerts and events have been held in Christian churches in addition to traditional venues such as Lumination,

Creation Festival Creation Festival, commonly shortened to Creation, is an annual four-day Christian music festival in the United States. According to its organizers, it is the "Nation's Largest Christian Music Festival." Average attendance is between 50,000 a ...

and LifeLight Music Festival. CEDM has also been incorporated into some

Christian worship In Christianity, worship is the act of attributing reverent honour and homage to God. In the New Testament, various words are used to refer to the term worship. One is ("to worship") which means to bow down to God or kings. Throughout mo ...

routines.

Popular figures

During the late 2000s and early 2010s several Christian electronic artists rose to prominence in

and general

popular music Popular music is music with wide appeal that is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. These forms and styles can be enjoyed and performed by people with little or no musical training.Popular Music. (2015). ''Funk ...

, those include G-Powered,

Owl City Owl City is an American electronic music project created in 2007 in Owatonna, Minnesota. It is one of several projects by singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Adam Young, who created the project while experimenting with music in his pa ...

, and Kye Kye. Other mainstay artists in the genre include

Capital Kings Capital Kings was an American pop, EDM and Christian pop act. The group went on indefinite hiatus on January 3, 2018. The group originally consisted of producer and rapper Cole Walowac and singer Jon White, who was later replaced by Dylan House ...

, LZ7, DJ Flubbel,

Gawvi Gabriel Alberto Azucena who goes by the stage name GAWVI, formerly G-Styles, is an American Christian hip hop artist and music producer, formerly for Reach Records. He was born on September 23, 1988 in the Bronx, New York. He has released thre ...

Hillsong Young & Free Hillsong Young & Free (also known as Hillsong Y&F or simply Young & Free or Y&F) is an Australian contemporary worship music group from Sydney, Australia, where they started making Christian music in 2012 at Hillsong Church. They have released ...

, Andy Hunter LE37, NONAH, Ocean Avenue, Oiwolf,

Matthew Parker Matthew Parker (6 August 1504 – 17 May 1575) was an English bishop. He was the Archbishop of Canterbury in the Church of England from 1559 until his death in 1575. He was also an influential theologian and arguably the co-founder (with a ...

, Bryson Price, Re5a, Red Letter Hymnal, Reyer, Tony Foxx, and Transform DJs. CEDM also includes other subgenres included in EDM, such as

dubstep Dubstep is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in South London in the early 2000s. The style emerged as a UK garage offshoot that blended 2-step rhythms and sparse dub production, as well as incorporating elements of broken be ...

techno Techno is a Music genre, genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally music production, produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempo often varying between 120 and 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central Drum beat, rhythm is typ ...

deep house Deep house is a subgenre of house music that originated in the 1980s, initially fusing elements of Chicago house with the lush chords of 1980s jazz-funk and touches of soul music. Its origins are attributed to the early recordings of Larry Heard ...

and

trance Trance is a state of semi-consciousness in which a person is not self-aware and is either altogether unresponsive to external stimuli (but nevertheless capable of pursuing and realizing an aim) or is selectively responsive in following the dir ...

. There also is a perception of genre-blending between CEDM and

Contemporary Christian music Contemporary Christian music, also known as CCM, Christian pop, and occasionally inspirational music is a genre of modern popular music, and an aspect of Christian media, which is lyrically focused on matters related to the Christian faith and ...

. A significant number of artists from this genre tend not to reference themselves as solely Christian music due the crossover with other genres,. There also is a perception of genre-blending between CEDM and

, such as

Christian hip-hop Christian hip hop (originally gospel rap, also known as Christian rap, gospel hip hop or holy hip hop) is a subgenre of contemporary Christian music and hip hop music. It emerged from urban contemporary music and Christian media in the United S ...

musicians

Andy Mineo Andrew Aaron Mineo (born April 17, 1988), is an American Christian hip hop artist, producer, music executive, and video director based in New York City. He is signed to Reach Records and his creative initiative Miner League. In addition to ...

Lecrae Lecrae Devaughn Moore (born October 9, 1979), mononymously known as Lecrae, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record and film producer, record executive, actor, and entrepreneur. He is the president, co-owner and co-founder of the in ...

, and

Kanye West Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and fashion designer. Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West gained recognition as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the ea ...

Reception

In September 2014, Hallels.com conducted an interview with CEDM artist

, and claimed that some in the Christian community deem dance music as, "music of the devil", to which Parker replied, "I don't believe any rhythms, melodies, chords, or harmonies are inherently evil and belong to the devil. Frankly, I think that's stupid." Zurich Lewis of the Biola University Chimes wrote an article aimed at

Christians Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

distinguishing the harmful elements of the EDM culture (such as drug use) from the musical style of the genre itself. In 2014, Matt Shea of

Noisey ''Vice'' (stylized in all caps) is a Canadian-American magazine focused on lifestyle, arts, culture, and news/politics. Founded in 1994 in Montreal as an alternative punk magazine, the founders later launched the youth media company Vice Media ...

wrote a tongue-in-cheek blog post, saying "Nay, the Lord has spoken, and he has done so through womps...Hallelujah!"

Radio

Usually broadcast on

Christian radio Christian radio is a Christian media radio format that focus on programming with a Christian message. Many such broadcasters play contemporary Christian music, though many programs include sermons, radio dramas, as well as news and talk prog ...

broadcasts, there are

internet radio Online radio (also web radio, net radio, streaming radio, e-radio, IP radio, Internet radio) is a digital audio service transmitted via the Internet. Broadcasting on the Internet is usually referred to as webcasting since it is not transmitte ...

stations that specifically broadcast CEDM, such as Radio U Fusion: EDM, NRT Radio Remix, God's DJs, URLive, and GLOW. NRT Radio and David Thulin partnered to create a CEDM radio show, ''The Reconstruction'', which seeks to promote Christian EDM.

References

{{Electronica Contemporary Christian music Electronic dance music genres