Historically, Christian major labels have been reticent to actively sign hip-hop artists. There have been exceptions, but they’re few and far between. And they’ve been one-album affairs.

Word Records once tried its luck with Souljahz, a sibling trio from San Diego; they showed promise with their 2002 debut, but their second album remained stuck in limbo until the trio was finally released from their contract. ForeFront Records hedged its bets with teenaged hip-hopper Lil’ IROCC, but he, too, got dropped not long after going public. Essential Records is actually credited with discovering KJ-52, but he also received the pink slip once his debut, 7th Avenue, underperformed. (The label later re-released 7th Avenue after Uprok successfully broke KJ-52 into the Christian mainstream.) For the most part, though, the big players have remained on the fence.

“It used to be that any urban music was fringe in Christian music,” says Otto Price, vice president of A&R for Word Records and hip-hop forerunner in his own right. “Artists like tobyMac, GRITS, Superchick and Mat Kearney have opened the doors for other hip-hop artists to be considered a part of mainstream Christian music. Things are looking up, but we have a long way to go to be considered relevant.”

While Price and Word Records are in the hunt for new hip-hop talent, Fervent Records – another imprint in the Word Label Group, and home to  BarlowGirl and Big Daddy Weave, among others – is introducing Group 1 Crew. The trio, similar in style to the Black Eyed Peas, released its self-titled debut in February.
 
“Today … many of the most popular groups have a hip-hop element or are straight up hip-hop,” says Susan Riley, senior vice president of A&R and publishing for Word and head of Fervent. “To us, it doesn’t matter what the style is – we just want to stay relevant, and this is one way to do that and reach people through music today for Christ.”

But not all the labels show the same level of enthusiasm in embracing hip-hop acts. This hesitance has motivated aspiring rap artists to remain on the fringes – either signing to fledgling hip-hop labels or staying autonomous altogether.

“Not many larger labels seem to be picking up new hip-hop right now,” says veteran artist Verbs, himself a free agent of sorts. “But I guess, at the same time, new groups are seeking to take more of an independent route. I don’t see this as a bad thing at all, since hip-hop music and the culture it stems from cultivates well at the grassroots level.”

Joey Elwood would agree with Verbs. As president and co-founder of Gotee Records alongside tobyMac, he understands that hip-hop, before it became a business, was a culture, one predicated upon hard work, word-of-mouth and backpacks full of CDs.