Christian TShirts What Is Most Popular With The Fans?
Are the styles of t-shirts that are preferred by Christian bands the same as those preferred by their fans? Research shows that this is not usually the case. While fans do have a wide range of tastes, many favor the t-shirts that either display the names of bands or the festivals they have attended. These shirts are liked so much that many fans even keep them for years, far past their functional use. Perhaps it is a good idea to consider which style of shirts the fans are most interested in purchasing and wearing.
“Tour” shirts are especially popular with the younger crowd. One young fan, in relating what his favorite t-shirts were, listed amongst others Skillet's Alien Youth Tour, Lifehouse's 2005 Tour, and the David Crowder Band's Texas Trifecta Tour. He also claimed amongst his favorites DC Talk's 1999 Supernatural Tour, which had “Hey, You, I'm Into Jesus!” as its design. Although young fans are likely getting the Christian message through the bands' music, many are not as interested in passing along the message as they are in showing that they have attended the events. When fans have this particular point of view, it can be detrimental to the purpose of Christian music.
Other fans only pass on the message when it is a part of the band's own design, lyrics, or album title. JoyElectric's album “Christiansongs,” the Newsboys' “He Reigns,” and Barlowgirl's “Be A Voice, Not An Echo,” for example, may sound good, but realistically they are not promoting Christianity as much as they are promoting the specific bands that the kids like. This, also, distracts from the purpose; and many of the bands themselves would likely agree. It is refreshing to see that even though fans do this, most Christian musicians do not.
Advertising albums and standing up for Christ are not the same thing, but t-shirts that show the names of the bands and pictures of their album covers are putting the focus on the former instead of the latter. It is understandable that young fans like to show who they listen to and what festivals they have attended, but these styles of t-shirts aren't giving a Christian message. When a t-shirt essentially tells the world 'This is what I care most about, This is what I believe in,' it is important to have one's priorities carefully thought out before making that statement.
The most popular t-shirts that do promote the Christian faith aren't usually connected to fans' favorite Christian bands. Some like modern slogans, some like lines from Scripture, and also popular are t-shirts which encourage others to look a passage up in the Bible, such as “Isaiah 40:31.” It seems that amongst the younger crowd especially, the Christian message they receive from the bands and the Christian message they wear on their own t-shirts to witness to others are often very distinctly separate.