I loved Christian music growing up: Jars of Clay, DC Talk, Five Iron Frenzy, Audio Adrenaline, Sixpence None the Richer, and many more. But somewhere around my mid-20s, I mostly stopped listening to Christian music. I found it boring, predictable, formulaic, lacking much of a human pulse. I admit to becoming a bit cynical about it, all but giving up on the idea that contemporary Christian music could be excellent. Thankfully, I didn’t give up on it completely, and I hold out hope that an artistic renaissance in Christian music is on the horizon.

As much as the state of popular Christian music today continues to be discouraging, there are glimmers of light in lesser-known and far-flung places. The indie Christian music scene is thriving, and the next generation of Christian artists and songwriters is giving me renewed hope. Instead of copying popular secular styles (the “Christian version of ____”), many up-and-coming artists are blazing original trails, putting unique musical spins on the words and poetry of Scripture.

I spent a few months scouring Spotify for the best examples of quality contemporary Christian music. It was my joy to recently spotlight 14 artists whose work stood out to me and who I mostly hadn’t heard of a year ago. Take a look at the article below and check out the music of these artists on Spotify or Apple Music.