
Home
> Teens > Music > Bands
& Artists
 Campus Life, June/July 2006
Taking Light Into Dark Places
How P.O.D. shocked a shock jock.
by Mark Moring
No Nonsense: P.O.D. was live on the radio with controversial talk-show host Howard Stern when they completely shocked the notorious shock jock. Stern couldn't believe his ears. The guys in the band had just said, no, they don't sleep around with groupies.
"You've got to be kidding me," Stern said. He couldn't believe these rock stars were faithful to their wives and not indulging in all the sex and drugs of rock and roll. But that's just the P.O.D. wayhard music and clean living. The band, one of the hottest in the mainstream a few years ago and now making a comeback with their latest album, Testify, has always been serious about living for Christ and doing the right thing.
"We want to represent the things we believe," says singer Sonny Sandoval. "We're trying to walk our own walks and not get caught up in all the nonsense."
Watching Their Steps: When they first started out, P.O.D. was offered a deal with a Christian record company. The band needed the money, but said no thanks, because they wanted to take their music, hope and faith to the mainstream. A few years later, they signed with Atlantic Records, and became regulars on MTV and secular radio. They also became a popular act at big-time tours, including Ozzfest, and appeared on the same stage as Korn, Staind, Taproot and other hot hard-rock bands.
That's why Stern was stunned. Everybody he knows in the hard rock scene is, well, misbehaving. And P.O.D. faces the same temptations as those other bands. By going to Ozzfest and performing with secular bands, they are walking into some very dark places.
"Let's face it," says Sonny. "It is a different world. We always go to these places in feara good fear. But God has us in our place. I know God is watching out for me, and he's saying, 'OK, son, watch your step now. You can be in these places, but just be careful. Keep your guard up.' We have people on the road with usour wives, our families and pastors. We come alongside each other and we're always in prayer. To know that so many people have our backs and support us is an awesome thing. You need people saying, 'Hey man, I'm with you all the way.'"
Screaming from Rooftops: P.O.D.'s latest album is, at times, in your face with the band's faithas was last fall's The Warriors, Vol. 2 EP.
"We go into each album on our knees, and pray that God would do something awesome with it," Sonny says. "It's just the P.O.D. way to always intertwine our music with the hope we have in Christ. We encourage people to scream their faith from the rooftops. Whatever you're going through in your own life, God is the same, regardless. That's what we're testifying about. God is good always."
Copyright © 2006 by the author or Christianity Today International/Ignite Your Faith magazine.
Click here for reprint information on Ignite Your Faith.
June/July 2006, Vol. 64, No. 9, Page 23
Questions or comments about this article? |
Do you love it? Hate it? We want to know! E-mail us at:
(Just be sure to include your first and last names, hometown, and state.) |
Browse More Ignite Your Faith
Home | Advice | Hot Topics | True-life Stories | Music Faith & Life | Humor & Fun | College Guide | Soul Journey Resources | Archives | Contact Us
 |
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Try an Issue of Ignite Your Faith Free!
 |
 |
|
 No credit card required. Please allow 4-6 weeks for delivery. Offer valid in U.S. only. Click here for International orders.
If you decide you want to keep Ignite Your Faith coming, honor your invoice for just $19.95 and receive eight more issues, a full year in all. If not, simply write "cancel" across the invoice and return it. The trial issue is yours to keep, regardless.
Give Ignite Your Faith as a gift
Buy 1 gift subscription, get 1 FREE!
|
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
 |
Christian College Guide
Search schools by:
Location & Setting | Majors & Degrees | Enrollment Affiliation | Athletics | Costs, Scholarships & Grants Advanced Search | List All Schools
|  |
 |