The Danger of "No Church in the Wild"

Still from Video "No Church in the Wild"

There is danger in “No Church in the Wild”. 

The beat is amazing, the hook catchy and the video is riveting, but JayZ and Kanye West’s “No Church in the Wild” is a dangerous song. 

This song has been out for a while, I may seem a little behind, but a few days ago, with the release of the video this song has seen resurgence. #NoChurchInTheWild trended on Twitter like mad the day of the release. 

Rap is an amazing art form. 

It can be lyrical and melodic, or hard and edgy. Really successful artists can combine all of that into one song and have a hit that lives beyond them. No Church in the Wild may be that kind of song. 

On a musical level I love the beat and the instrumentation. I can understand how easy it is to be pulled into a catchy beat and not pay close attention to lyrics, but as a writer I know the power of words. So do these artists. 

Some of the ideas in this song espouse racial division, drug use, sexual exploitation, anti-religious, anti-God, and anti-Christ. The last two, for me, are the most alarming. Here are the lyrics from the song: 

[Hook: Frank Ocean]

Human beings in a mob

What's a mob to a king? What's a king to a God?

What's a God to a non-believer who don't believe in anything?

Will he make it out alive? Alright, alright, no church in the wild

[Verse 1: Jay-Z]

Tears on the mausoleum floor

Blood stains the Colosseum doors

Lies on the lips of a priest

Thanksgiving disguised as a feast

Rolling in Rolls Royce Corniche

Only the doctors got this, I’m hiding from police

Cocaine seats, all white like I got the whole thing bleached

Drug dealer chic, I’m wondering if a thug’s prayers reach

Is Pious pious cause God loves pious?

Socrates asked whose bias do y'all seek?

All for Plato, screech

I’m out here balling, I know y'all hear my sneaks

Jesus was a carpenter, Yeezy he laid beats

Hova flow the Holy Ghost, get the hell up out your seats, preach

[Hook]

[Bridge: The-Dream]

I live by you, desire

I stand by you, walk through the fire

Your love is my scripture

Let me into your encryption

[Verse 2: Kanye West]

Coke on her black skin

Make a stripe like a zebra, I call that jungle fever

You will not control the threesome

Just roll the weed up until I get me some

We formed a new religion

No sins as long as there’s permission

And deception is the only felony

So never **** nobody without telling me

Sunglasses and Advil, last night was mad real

Sun coming up, 5 a.m., I wonder if they got cabs still?

Thinking 'bout the girl in all leopard

Who was rubbing the wood like Kiki Shepherd

Two tattoos one read "No Apologies"

The other said "Love is Cursed by Monogamy"

It’s something that the pastor don’t preach

It’s something that a teacher can’t teach

When we die the money we can’t keep

But we probably spend it all cause the pain ain’t cheap, preach

[Hook]

The Real Danger 

When I look at the lyrics alone I am saddened by the message they carry. Jay Z refers to himself as J "hova", Kanye wants to form a new religion. If you can't see the danger of this song yet, I want to show you now, and it is three-fold. 

First, with such amazing instrumentation and beat, Jay Z, Kanye, The Dream and Frank Ocean have created a song that grabs your ear and holds it. The better the beat, the more likely we are to listen to it. Once we hear the beat, the lyrics eventually begin to soak in. Soon, we begin to say the very words that denounce our Father. 

Secondly, this song attempts to replace God and morality. Established in the first few lines, God’s importance or relevance is downgraded and discounted as unimportant. Jesus was just a carpenter, priests are all liars, and there is no sin as long as there is permission, only their words matter: “preach”. 

Poison wrapped up like the preverbal apple, this is perfectly packaged to corrupt the heart of the listener. 

Finally, the imagery in the video is violent. Rioters throw Molotov cocktails at police, the smoke and black and white videography evokes empathy for the rioters. The director Romain Gavras portrays these law breakers as the victims of violence not the perpetrators. The theme of the video seems to say that justice is no longer about regaining a balance of morality and right, but about “getting back” at the man. 

If there is no God then there is no morality. If there is no church, then there is no need to repent from our sinful nature. If there is no relevance to Christ then there is no death in doubt. 

This is why this song is so dangerous. O be careful little ears what you hear. 

I warred with whether or not to write this. I don’t want to be labeled as a hater. I do not want to be seen as a hatemonger because I am a Christian. I want to be seen as an honest critic with a valued opinion. That may not happen. Whatever does happen, I want to share with you this one thing: I will never back down from standing up for my Father. I am His and He is mine and His banner over me is love. 

How do you feel about listening to music that is not religious or Christian in nature?