76 - "Marketing Is Witchcraft" And Other Road Trip Theology w/ Sho Baraka

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Today, we continue: "Theologians in SUV's Coming Back from the Airport".

Listen in on an unfiltered conversation with Sho Baraka about creativity, Christian hip hop, and the hidden forces shaping the modern church. We start light and personal, talking Atlanta culture and the “many hats” Sho wears as a writer, cultural critic, speaker, and artist. From there, he walks us through his origin story: poetry, West Coast influences, freestyling, and the slow work of developing a voice that doesn’t sound like anyone else.

Then we zoom out to the music industry and the attention economy. Sho challenges the pressure to overproduce and to live inside the algorithm, and he names why promotion can feel less like honest communication and more like manipulation. If you’ve ever wondered why so much music feels rushed or hollow, you’ll hear a clear diagnosis and a better vision for making art with patience, maturity, and depth.

The conversation gets even sharper as we talk about the Western church, “relevance,” and the danger of being tethered to empire. Sho argues that what masquerades as church can become Christendom, Christianity shaped to please power. He also reflects on justice work, the temptation to let anger become condemnation, and the hard but hopeful path back through confession, repentance, and real community. If you care about faithfulness, public theology, racial solidarity, and the integrity of Christian witness, this one will stay with you.

Sho came to Waco on he and Malcolm's "Good Culture In An Empire" Tour. If you missed it here, reach out and see if they're coming to your city. They have dates in Denver and Atlanta already lined up.

Check all things Sho Baraka out at www.shobaraka.com/

His Book: He Saw That it Was Good

Latest Album: Spotify: Midnight of a Good Culture / Apple: Midnight of a Good Culture

The Bootmaker's Ballad (Music video)

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