When it comes to declaring their faith from stage, Becca (left), Alyssa, and Lauren Barlow are anything but silent.

Different bands have different approaches to sharing their faith. Some labels or managers have advised artists to "tone down the Christian talk" in hopes of more mainstream appeal. But Rebecca, Alyssa, and Lauren Barlow aren't buying that speech. They're emphatic about being open with their faith on stage, and that's the driving theme of BarlowGirl's latest project, How Can We Be Silent. Drummer Lauren Barlow explains further why she and her sisters refuse to keep quiet when it comes to talking about their beliefs.

Your new album is titled How Can We Be Silent. What sparked that?

Lauren Barlow: We didn't want this record to be about us girls. This is a call for our generation to be unashamed and to speak out about what God is calling us to—to show and tell the world around us about the hope of God. Sometimes it seems like Christians are always the first to quiet down, to just go with the idea that our lifestyles should speak for us and show God. I don't think we should only show people God through our lifestyles, but also through our words, because we have nothing to be ashamed of. God is speaking to us and we have the answer—the hope people are looking for. But not enough of us are speaking out.

So you're not simply offering a call to salvation.

Barlow: No, it's not just about a call to salvation. We share in these songs and from stage about how God has picked us up in broken times and times when it felt like he was silent. It's about telling people there is hope.

Purity is also a big thing we're always outspoken about. We're pretty radical in some ways as we talk about not dating, and the idea of actually giving up your dreams for what God has for you. We're speaking about the radical things that God has done in our lives. Sure, people could hear us talk about drawing close to God and that could lead to salvation, but really this speaking out is about getting people to think about drawing closer to God for hope and direction.

Are you saying you gave up dreams for BarlowGirl? And is that what we hear in your radio single "Here's My Life"?

Barlow: Yeah, we actually never wanted to do this. We didn't one day say, "Hey, let's start a band." It was never a big deal for us. Alyssa wanted to pursue Broadway, and Becca doesn't even like to be on stage—she wanted to pursue cosmetology or be a mechanic. I wanted to work at Sea World with dolphins. Each of us looked forward to leaving Chicago and moving on, living our lives in the way we thought we should live it.

But music has been in our family since the day we were born—traveling and doing services with our family. God eventually used it to grab hold of us. We felt him ask, "Will you be what I have created you to be?" I think many times we Christians get it backwards and pray, "This is what I want to do; please bless it." That's kind of the direction we were heading, until we felt this stirring in our hearts with songs that we thought we should be writing. It was almost like God came around the back door to get our attention by giving us songs to write. [Soon] it was like, "I think we're a band." We only played about seven shows before we signed with Fervent Records.

Now, I couldn't imagine doing anything else. I don't have any regrets. I still love animals and would love to pursue that, but God has allowed us to speak in people's lives through music. It isn't that I couldn't have spoken into people's lives working at Sea World. But over time, we've discovered that together, the three of us can create a stronger, greater impact. I see that now, and find myself so fulfilled and content.

Your lyrics are very open. Is there a time to be subtle in the message and a time to be overt?

Barlow: Being too overt turns people off, like overbearing Christians that are only trying to get people saved. If we're just about seeing souls saved, we're not teaching them about a loving relationship with God or about the things he's done in our lives. Yet on the flip side, it just seems so popular now to say, "Don't talk about God outright. Just be a good person. And by being such a nice person, then eventually someone will come to you and ask you about God." Which [to me] is like saying, you want me to not talk about or even mention the man who came to earth to die for me, simply because that will make some people uncomfortable.

So then do you believe that boldly proclaiming Christ to everyone is always the best way to evangelize?

Barlow: People say, "You talk a lot on stage about God. Sometimes you're pretty out there with what you believe in." I could also be on stage and say, "Live a good life and be a good person, be nice, and do nice things just to be popular with a crowd." But if I have 45-60 minutes to talk about the love of my life, I'm not going shut up about that, because that's an opportunity to talk about the hope I have in my life.

We don't always give a salvation message, but we do talk about who God is and what he does in our lives. That's not to say that people can't get saved because we only tell people who God is and what he can do. There is a balance. This isn't about just living the example and not shouting about it in their faces, but it's also about not being afraid to mention his name.

Do people ever call you naïve because of your convictions?

Barlow: I don't know what reaction people have to How Can We Be Silent yet, but in the media I don't think so. I think they're seeing the album as a broader range of topics. I don't see anyone pigeonholing us with this record.

Overall, I don't know if people are like that. We have gone through a lot of stuff in life, though maybe we haven't been exposed to some things. In fact, we have lots of people come to us and say, "This is what I was exposed to, so how do I get to where you are at?" Or someone might ask, "How do I pursue God from where I'm at now?" We're happy to tell them and share with them that it's never too late to get a second or third or fourth chance. We honestly believe that message ourselves.

What other ways are you putting wheels to this message for fans?

Barlow: We started the Speak Out campaign, which works through message boards and the Speak Out website. It's about the question of how can we be silent. It's for people in their everyday lives—how they can speak love, forgiveness, and hope to their worlds around them. With this CD, people can be a part of the campaign and speak the idea with other people. This is about checking yourself—"Am I speaking forgiveness and loving others?"

How have you grown musically with this album?

Barlow: We decided to go out on a limb with a few songs on this record, like "One More Round," for example. We all love jazz, and Becca was playing around with this awesome riff. So we tried this jazz-meets-rock style, and it's one of my favorites. Will we ever be able to play it live? I don't know, but it's cool. It's been good to branch out some musically. The harder songs are edgier, and the softer songs are very mellow. We wanted to branch out more into the different song styles that we listen to.

The process is definitely the same as our past records. We've been writing all our songs all along, and I certainly have no regrets about any of the old ones, because they reflect where we were at that time. But the difference for us now, compared to four years ago, is that we're at a point where we're more comfortable exploring different ideas and sounds.

Click here to visit our artist page for BarlowGirl, where you'll find previous interviews, reviews, and more—including our review for How Can We Be Silent. Visit Christianbook.com to listen to song clips and purchase their music.

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