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Multi-platinum rock band Skillet has achieved major mainstream success while openly maintaining a committed Christian faith, resisting industry pressure to downplay their evangelical beliefs. Lead singer John Cooper, known for his vocal faith, has testified to the power of the gospel, which the band brings to a global audience through their music.

The multi-platinum, GRAMMY-nominated American band Skillet is among the most successful and bestselling rock bands of the 21st century.

As of 2024, the group had received two GRAMMY nominations, a Billboard Music Award, and achieved three Top 5 Billboard 200 album results. Securing multiplatinum, platinum, or gold RIAA certifications for twelve singles and four albums, they have sold over twenty-two million units worldwide.

Skillet’s 6x platinum hit single Monster is one of the most-streamed rock songs of all time, surpassing four billion streams and entering Spotify’s exclusive Billions Club last month. Their tracks have crossed into pop culture through syncs by WWE, Marvel, ESPN, and the NFL.

Skillet: Outspoken for Christ

Despite their enormous mainstream success, the Skillet members are outspoken about their commitment to the Christian faith. That is despite the substantial pressure within the music industry to downplay or water down their evangelical credentials.

According to John Cooper (the band’s lead singer and bassist), in the early years of the band’s success, he was approached by an influential music industry businessman, who suggested that he stop talking about Jesus.

“And he kind of went through his spiel of why, and then he said, ‘Look, I’m not telling you to not be a Christian, I’m not saying to not believe in Jesus.” But then he advised him to “Stop talking about it, don’t do Christian interviews, don’t say you’re a Christian band. You need to disassociate from that because people don’t take it seriously.”

John’s response sums up the approach of the band: “I knew I could not be silent about Christ, in fact, I needed to be more vocal about Christ.”

“…if this is gonna be the new — the new world, the new culture, the new way that people are trying to kind of steer Christians into a new kind of activism into Christianity that is void of the actual gospel of Christ, I know that I need to be vocal against that move.”

John committed his life to Christ at just five years old. Reflecting on his testimony later, he spoke about how thankful he is that he never backslid or walked away from his faith.

Family Faith

In an interview with Kirk Cameron for TBN, John shared how central his mother’s faithful witness was in instilling the Christian faith into him.

“My mom was a Jesus fanatic, okay — and I mean that 100% awesome. My mom loved God and she made it her mission to teach her boys about the Lord — and so there was no choice in the Cooper family. […] from as early as I could remember — two years old, three years old — we’d sit before school. She would read the Word. She would make us memorise Bible verses. We’d have to pray together. That was my mom’s mission.”

As a consequence of his mother’s preparation, and despite the fact that she passed away when he was just fifteen, John says he has continued to trust in the goodness of God. He is thankful to have a ‘boring’ testimony:

“The great part of it is this: in the end, all of this is for the glory of God. All of this is not about us — it’s not about how great my story might be or might not be. The great news is: I used to not know God. I used to be dead in my sins, but I am saved now through Christ Jesus. So I always tell people: no, the great thing for me, I didn’t have to have the pain. … I think that some of that comes down to: sometimes we want to try to make the story better than it is. Let me tell you, if you are saved by Jesus Christ: that’s as good as it’s going to get.”

John is married to co-band-member Korey (guitar and keys), who shares his committed Christian faith — as do the other members of Skillet, the English-born drummer and vocalist Jen Ledger and lead guitarist Seth Morrison.

 

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Skillet’s Impact for the Gospel

John Cooper has spoken about the evangelistic impact that the band has had — including being used as a vessel to bring people to Christ. He regularly speaks with people who have heard a Skillet song, which has prompted them to inquire into the truth of the gospel.

Speaking with Kirk Cameron, John explained:

“God can do anything. If he can speak through a donkey, he can speak through people like me and Kirk [Cameron].”

But he also reflected that there is something particularly powerful about music, citing the example of David in the Old Testament, who played for King Saul to sooth his evil spirit..

“…whenever the harmful spirit from God was upon Saul, David took the lyre and played it with his hand. So Saul was refreshed and was well, and the harmful spirit departed from him.” (1 Samuel 16:23 ESV)

He continued:

“I don’t understand how this works. All that I know is that music makes people soft. It makes them feel understood. It makes them open to hearing things that they might not be open [to] under other circumstances. And then the Holy Spirit does the work, and I am so excited when I hear these stories [of radical change prompted by hearing Skillet’s music].”

The band has not been without its controversies. Last year, they released a rock version of “O Come, O Come Emmanuel”, which sparked backlash from some quarters — with some calling the song “demonic filth”.

Others pointed out that the song’s heavy-hitting lyrics were introducing the Christian message to people who were unlikely to ever set foot within a church. And it certainly has been reaching ears — achieving a phenomenal #1 Billboard result across multiple charts, including Rock Digital Song Sales, Alternative Digital Song Sales, Hard Rock Digital Song Sales, Christian Digital Song Sales, and Holiday Digital Song Sales.

While controversial, the song is emblematic of Skillet’s entire journey to date — controversial with Christians and non-Christians alike, but authentically and unapologetically infused with the gospel.

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Image courtesy of Jen Ledger/Skillet via Instagram.