Stryper frontman Michael Sweet recently spoke with Chris Akin for 1 Question With… Check out the discussion below.
1QW: The music of Stryper has been getting heavier and heavier. Is that because you’ve watched the world go from questioning Christianity to openly mocking it, which makes you guys more angry?
Michael Sweet: “Well, it does upset me often when you see a band come out, or a person come out, and speak about openly their faith, their belief, whether they’re a Muslim, or they’re an atheist, or they’re a Satanist, or whatever it is. And right, they get this (claps hands). But often when a Christian comes out, a Christian band like Stryper or what have you, they get (thumbs down), and it’s just the way it is. We’ve been mocked from the very beginning. You know, if we sang about girls or Satan, we would have been the cool kids, but we’re not because we’re singing about Jesus.”
“You mentioned Metallica and Slayer – no disrespect to those guys – I would never want to be like those guys. Not in a million years. Yeah, they’re playing stadiums. Who cares? I didn’t get in this for the money, I didn’t get into this to play stadiums. There’s a rush that comes with that when you play to a big crowd and it’s electrifying, but my point is that’s not what we’re doing this for. So we don’t long to be Metallica or Slayer. And we’re not that style. We’re going to keep being who we are. We have been for 40 years. I don’t know how much more time we have left in us, or years we have left in us. It could be another 10 or 15 and we’ll just keep doing what we do.
Stryper will release their new album, When We Were Kings, on September 13 via Frontiers Music srl. The band has released the official music video, produced by Gavin Holmes, for the title track.
Michael Sweet comments on the project: “We wanted to take you back in time, to see a small glimpse of the band back in the early days. Gavin Holmes did an amazing job of creating an animated time machine that relives and revives the incomparable 80s. When We Were Kings!”
Watch below:
Produced by Michael Sweet, the artwork and tracklisting for When We Were Kings can be found below.
Tracklisting:
“End Of Days”
“Unforgivable”
“When We Were Kings”
“Betrayed By Love”
“Loves Symphony”
“Trinity”
“Rhyme Of Time”
“Raptured”
“Grateful”
“Divided By Design”
“Imperfect World”
“Loves Symphony” lyric video:
“Grateful” visualizer:
“End Of Days” lyric video:
Stryper will be embarking on their 40th Anniversary tour this fall.
Says the band: “Our 40th Anniversary tour is right around the corner! Find the city closest to you and come celebrate with us. During this one-of-a- kind, 2-set show, we will be performing fan favorites spanning 4 decades. VIP packages are also available at each venue.”
More info at Stryper.com/tour.
Stryper’s 40th Anniversary Tour dates:
September
11 – Greeneville, TN – Niswonger PAC
13 – Uncasville, CT – Wolf Den
14 – Shippensburg, PA – Uprise Fest 2024
15 – Akron, OH – Goodyear Theater
17 – Columbus, OH – TempleLive at the Columbus Athenaeum
19 – Anderson, IN – Paramount Theatre
20 – St. Charles, IL – Arcada Theatre
21 – Shipshewana, IN – Blue Gate PAC
23 – Tulsa, OK – Cain’s Ballroom
24 – Cedar Park, TX – Haute Spot
25 – San Antonio, TX – The Aztec Theatre
26 – Midland, TX – Wagner Noel PAC
28 – Arlington, TX – Arlington Music Hall
29 – Fort Smith, AR – TempleLive
October
19 – Wichita, KS – TempleLive at Wichita Scottish Rite Center
21 – Denver, CO – Oriental Theater
25 – Stateline, NV – Harrah’s Lake Tahoe – South Shore
26 – San Juan Capistrano, CA – The Coach House
29 – Phoenix, AZ – Celebrity Theatre
30 – Tucson, AZ – Rialto Theatre
31 – El Paso, TX – The Plaza Theatre
November
3 – Lincoln, NE – Bourbon Theatre
7 – Patchogue, NY – Patchogue Theatre for the Performing Arts
8 – Sayreville, NJ – Starland Ballroom
9 – Glenside, PA – Keswick Theater
10 – Baltimore, MD – Rams Head Live!
13 – Clearwater, FL – Capitol Theatre
14 – Jacksonville, FL – Florida Theatre
15 – Atlanta, GA – Center Stage
16 – North Myrtle Beach, SC – House of Blues
Stryper are:
Michael Sweet – Lead Vocals/Lead & Rhythm Guitar
Robert Sweet – Drums & Percussion
Oz Fox – Vocals/Lead and Rhythm Guitar
Perry Richardson – Vocals/Bass