Many sensible adults are avoiding anything that smacks of news in this crazy age of things never expected to be seen on American shores. So it’s not surprising that young people have found a resource that not only nourishes their Christian faith but also encourages them to build their own community, based on the Holy Scripture.
Holy Culture Radio is a 24-hour Christian Hip-Hop and edutainment channel available on SiriusXM satellite radio. Launched in 2022, the station features faith-themed rap and R&B music, talk shows, and cultural conversations designed to uplift, inspire and empower listeners nationwide.
It’s the realized vision of James ‘Trig’ Rosseau, a former rapper, music producer, author, business executive and founder of The Corelink Solution. Rousseau, who founded a nonprofit organization, calls Corelink a cultural bridge that engages youth where they are and connects them to the church’s mission.
Meaning and Connection
“When I went from artist to producer, I thought I could do a show, or I could help build a platform for shows, an artery into the community,” says Rosseau, who left a C-suite role in corporate America to become a conduit for faith-based content. ”Younger generations aren’t just looking for entertainment. They’re looking for meaning, connection and something that feeds their spirit instead of draining it.”
He says many of them didn’t start in communities and are now getting their first jobs, and unlike past generations, will move to a new position every 18 months.
“That’s normal for them. So different language, different perspective, different preferences, but it doesn’t mean they are not for the kingdom,” Rosseau says. “We have to help them understand what the kingdom is and their role in the kingdom.”
”And that’s what we’ve done now. We did our first week and reached five million folks and we just went more from digital to starting doing local events again.”
Nearly 38% of Christian Culture Radio listeners are between ages 25 and 45, a demographic coveted by advertisers yet often associated with digital fatigue and content overload. Among those listeners, nearly half say they are likely to attend a motivational or inspirational seminar within the next year, and they are 39% more likely to volunteer in their communities over the next 12 months. It signals that consuming Holy Culture radio doesn’t stop at listening; it translates into action.
Promoting Faith and Positivity
“Their musical interests range from Lecrae, who’s on his 10th album to Miles Minnick,” Rosseau says. Minnick, he says, “is on the West Coast. He’s created a nice movement he calls the GLO Movement and is really bringing people together in California and beyond to understand how they can impact culture.”
Holy Culture also launched a record label with a roster of artists, including Craig Watson, a 21-year-old Philadelphian “who gave his life to the Lord three years ago and is just on fire,” Rosseau says. Meanwhile, he says, J Silas is a veteran performer who “can still get on stage and do what he does very well, and get the audience engaged.”
Rosseau says Christian Culture Radio succeeds because its listeners see the station as a place rooted in faith and positivity, powered by music and conversation. Rousseau believes he has created a channel that goes beyond entertainment.
For example, Holy Culture listeners and performers have held meetups periodically to foster a sense of belonging, including an upcoming gathering for artists and another for non-artists. Deepening their connection to the Holy Culture Radio community, participants share ideas about faith and how their relationship with Jesus enhances their lives.
Encouraging Emotional Growth
Those meetups have blossomed into “Reconnect,” a recurring gathering that encourages seeing the church as a resource rather than just an institution.
One such gathering in January drew roughly 300 attendees on the first night. The next morning, around 150 people attended a panel discussion on entrepreneurship, financial discipline, health, and a life of purpose.
Rosseau says it’s not surprising that Holy Culture Radio’s younger generations of fans are the ones building the Holy Culture community. The programming, he says, is filling a spiritual void for young people that is exacerbated by modern life: political turmoil, global warming, social media-induced isolation and stunted emotional growth.
“They have higher levels of anxiety than any prior generation, higher levels of insecurity, have suffered through more isolation, and lower levels of resilience,” Rousseau says. His generation, for example, “grew up to take a punch and come back,” he says. But Millennials, as well as Generations Y and Z, aren’t quite as resilient.
“They get hit, they are wounded,” Rousseau says. “They’re laying down, like, ‘What happened? Somebody don’t like me.’”
‘Safe Places, Genuine Conversations’
As a result, “they’re looking for safe places, genuine conversations,” he says. Holy Culture Radio listeners, he adds, want “people they can look up to; but they can’t say words like, ‘I need a mentor, I need a sponsor, I want an apprenticeship.’ Instead, they’ll say they need a mental health day.”
He said it was overwhelming to watch the young people surround one of the group in prayer.
”It blessed my heart to see these kids go arm-in-arm with each other at the front of the church and just holding each other going back and forth,” Rosseau says. “They stood together by themselves in prayer for 20 minutes.”
Those are golden moments for Rosseau and his team, even when their struggle as a non-profit is real and poses many challenges.
“We’re struggling, but we’re joyful,” he says. “And God has kept us. We own our own building, so we’ve been blessed beyond measure. And I do believe this is a year for us to raise a lot more donors. I’m optimistic because I think people can see transformation more easily when we’re in community.”
This story originally appeared here.