I don't know about you, but I thought the 90s were the best Decade for Contemporary Christian Music.
(Warning: waxing nostalgic will occur. Proceed with caution.)
I first got into it in high school, freshman year or so. That was about the time I discovered Point of Grace. They were four women out of college, and they sounded really good. The first song I heard of theirs was "The Great Divide." I was hooked.
The next artist I remember liking was Jaci Velasquez. She was 16 at the time, and had a great voice. Jaci's music had Spanish influences, and she released a Spanish-language album a few years later. She even went sort of "indie rock" for one album.
CCM even had a brief foray into dance music (well, what I call dance) in the early 2000s, with the ladies' trio ZoeGirl. I liked them, but they really sounded great when they changed their sound to rock around the third album.
About my senior year I was introduced to The Katinas. They are five brothers from Samoa, and they sound great.
Other artists I loved included Carman, and Twila Paris.
Fast forward to now. A lot of the artists I liked have either retired or slowed down. ZoeGirl disbanded. Twila Paris has slowed down, at least touring-wise. Jaci hasn't done a lot of music or touring, due to family. But we still have the Katinas; and Point of Grace, even though they've changed one or two hands.
It'll be a sad day when they retire.
In short, what do I love about CCM? The music. The voices. The message.
