Blog | Picking Songs for Church: Staying Current With New Music
Picking Songs for Church: Staying Current With New Music
Picking songs for church can be a tricky task. There’s a ton of factors that play into finding the right set of songs, from the average age of attenders to worship culture, past songs, type of sound system and building, and so many more. The task gets especially difficult when it comes to new songs. They may be playing on the radio, but that doesn’t mean you can assume everyone knows them (or even wants to hear them at church). If you are trying to figure out a process for selecting new songs, as well as staying up to date with popular and new worship music, here are a few tips:
Finding New Worship Music Releases
If you’re trying to introduce new songs at church, a great (and obvious) place to look is at new releases. It’s always a good idea to keep tabs on 5-6 of your favorite artists. Hillsong, Bethel, Jesus Culture – whoever it is, lock in the ones whose music you seem to cycle the most through and research the most recent records. Anything that’s come out in the last 6 months is most likely still circulating on the radio, making it a great choice if you need familiar songs for the congregation.
Finding Worship Music based on Theological Message
All worship leaders already know that songs need to be theologically consistent, but most worship pastors don’t recognize their tendency towards a certain type of message, i.e., God’s goodness or greatness, love, hope, mercy, etc.
As a result, while songs selections may be musically coherent, your message might be repeating itself over in every song. When selecting new songs, try to select them based on a theological message gap that you have in your current song rotation. You don’t need to re-iterate the same message you keep delivering. Look for something that fits both the mission of your church and worship ministry, while also distinguishing itself from the rest in message direction and intent.
Finding Worship Music Other Churches Are Using
Yes, your Sunday mornings are occupied, but more and more churches are moving to livestreaming their services. That means well-known and acclaimed churches, as well as neighbors in your own city are livestreaming their services, allowing you to get insights into how they are structuring worship, what songs they are introducing, and how the congregation is responding.
Finding Worship Music based on Congregational Preference
Whether you like it or not, the congregation at your church deals you a “hand of cards” so to speak, and you will most likely have to work with that. The average age of your congregation alone can determine entire categories of worship music that they may want to hear. That doesn’t necessarily limit you from introducing new releases, but be vigilant of the energy and message of the song. There’s plenty of new music that meshes well with an older congregation – you’ll just need to be strategic about the introduction method, frequency, and context.
Wrapping It Up
Finding new worship music that’s appropriate for your church’s congregation can prove to be a lengthy task. Congregational preference will certainly play a role in your search, as different age groups of church cultures will dictate what style and era of music is preferred. It’s best to keep an ear to the radio as well as closely tracking your favorite worship groups to see what new music seems to be “sticking” with the public. Since modern churches are now live streaming services, it’s easy as a worship pastor to pull old services later in the week to review what others are playing – whether it’s acclaimed and well-respect churches, or your own city’s neighboring churches.
About the Author
Chris Fleming is a professional musician from Minneapolis, MN who has played with artists such as Kari Jobe, TAYA, Aodhan King, and Jason Gray. He is actively involved with the CCM scene and has contributed as a drummer, music director, song writer, and producer for various worship artists and churches locally and nationally. Chris is the Motion Designer at Motion Worship, helping to create motion background collections and countdowns for our subscribers.