Stryper Drummer Robert Sweet Says Group Was “Given a Hard Time” for Being Christian in Metal
It’s time to talk about religion. That’s certainly not going to piss off anyone. Nobody’s ever had a bitter disagreement about religion. This should be fine.
Recently, Robert Sweet, drummer for Christian glam-metal-turned-nu-metal group Stryper, talked with Sofa King Cool Magazine and talked about how he feels that his group was unfairly discriminated against for their Christian beliefs and lyrics throughout their career. As transcribed by Blabbermouth, he said:
“I think, and a lot of people have told us, especially in the industry, ‘If you guys weren’t doing this Jesus thing, and we know you mean it. And, really, I want everyone to know that’s the truth, because radio never played us. And it was a miracle we got on MTV. But still, to this day, radio has played us very, very little. But we were willing to take that hit financially. And it’s been rough at times. It’s been really unfair because a lot of people have come up and said, ‘Hey, man, I’m not a Christian. You guys are one of the best bands I’ve ever heard.’ And I’m, like, ‘Well, great. Thank you.’ We don’t look at ourselves as any better than anyone else, but we had to stick with it. We had to make sure that the message of Jesus was first and foremost and front, no matter what people said. And, man, were we ever given a hard time. I am telling you, I didn’t know so many people were gonna come against us back in the ’80s, and even up to this day. But it’s all worth it.”
Throughout the interview, Robert Sweet insisted that Stryper’s particular brand of Christian glam metal that sort of morphed into nu-metal in the 2000’s has an appeal that stretches far beyond a Christian audience, as illustrated by a rather bizarre story that Sweet told during the interview:
“I remember my brother [STRYPER frontman Michael Sweet] and I spoke with a Satanist, I think it was, I wanna say France. He came out. I mean, the guy was so complimentary. He wanted to speak with Michael and I. And he came down and he said, ‘You guys are the biggest white metal band in the world. Why aren’t you out playing the big festival next door? Why are you playing this 3,000-seat place that’s sold out? You should be over on that stage over there.’ And we said, ‘Well, yeah, we’d like that.’ But he was so complimentary of us. And yet he was very open that he was a real-deal Satanist, but he loved STRYPER… And that’s always been our hope.”
I’m going to say that if that story actually happened, and that’s a big “if” right there, I think that someone was fucking with Stryper.
If you’re a satanist who happens to love Stryper, you can catch them on their upcoming “To Hell With the Amps: The Unplugged Tour” which starts tomorrow night. Dates listed below.
May 30 – MadLife Stage & Studios – Woodstock, GA
May 31 – Amos’ Southend – Charlotte, NC
Jun. 01 – East Tennessee Distillery – Piney Flats, TN
Jun. 04 – City Winery Philadelphia – Philadelphia, PA
Jun. 06 – Narrows Center For The Arts – Fall River, MA
Jun. 07 – Tupelo Music Hall – Derry, NH
Jun. 15 – Pickens County Performing Arts Center – Liberty, SC
Jun. 20 – Warner Vineyards – Paw Paw, MI
Jun. 21 – The Hobart Art Theater – Hobart, IN
Jun. 22 – Danenberger Family Vineyards – New Berlin, IL
