“As for me and my house”: Nashville, the Home of Christian Music
International Association for the Study of Popular Music, U.S. Branch
IASPM-US, Nashville, Tennessee, March 9, 2018.
Material from this paper was published in “As For Me and My House”: Christian Music Executives Roundtable.
Roundtable Abstract
Nashville’s importance to United States Christianity is uncontested. The city—referred to as the buckle of the Bible Belt and (sometimes derisively) the “Protestant Vatican”—hosts the executive offices of several denominations. The region provides religious training at many Christian colleges, universities, and seminaries. Thomas Nelson, one of the world’s largest Bible publishers, anchors Nashville’s print publishing business; subsidiaries of the “Big Three” major record labels similarly anchor its Christian music industries, which include numerous independent labels, publishing houses, and sectors in artist services, music business education (at both Belmont and Trevecca Nazarene Universities), songwriting, and studio recording, among others. In short, Nashville is home to Christian music.
For Christians and churchgoers nationally and globally, Nashville’s pastoralness extends beyond its affiliation with country music. Contemporary Christian, gospel, and praise and worship musics provide entertainment, yes, but they also provide spiritual care and sustenance, supporting listeners’ (and participants’) faiths, theologies, and worship practices. For this roundtable, current and former Christian music professionals who have worked in A&R, executive leadership, higher education, music ministry, publishing, and radio promotions, among other roles, address the unique challenges that face Christian music. With many combined decades of experience in organizations large and small, our panelists are well-attuned to the city’s centeredness to the Christian music industries. We consider how Christian music has impacted Nashville, address the difficulties of maintaining a profitable business while conducting a ministry, and consider the boundaries of Christian music—increasingly porous as they are—in the broader contexts of globalized entertainment.
Roundtable panelists:
Dean Diehl
Chris Hauser
Gina Miller
Jackie Patillo
John J. Thompson
