Is Creed a Christian Band?

Creed is a rock band that originated in Tallahassee, Florida.  The members who have been in the band the longest are:

• Scott Stapp-guitarist
• Mark Tremonti-vocalist
• Brian Marshall-bassist
• Scott Phillips-Drummer

They released three albums before breaking up in 2004, then reunited in 2009, but since 2012, they have been on hiatus.  Let’s start from the beginning.

Is Creed a Religious Band?

Creed was formed in 1994 in Tallahassee, Florida by founding members Scott Stapp and Mark Tremonti who both loved to write music.  They had numerous discussions and writing sessions of songs that addressed Christian Theology.  Scott was the stepson of a Pentecostal minister, and because of his spiritual background, he and Mark held auditions and ended up hiring Brian Marshall, who plays bass, Scott Phillips, who plays the drums, and Brian Brasher, who does rhythm guitar.  Brasher left the band in 1995, and the band decided to move forward with just four members.  Four songs had already been written and went on their debut album, My Own Prison, which topped the charts.  They performed wherever they could, which included bars and small venues, locally.

Creed’s first banned name was Naked Toddler, which came from Mark, but it had an adverse reaction.  They were trying to find another name for the band when Brian mentioned he used to play in a band called Mattox Creed.  Scott was inspired by the Creed part of that name as well as the rest of the band.

After some persuasion by the band, the owner of a bar, who could guarantee an audience of two hundred, agreed to let the band play there. The owner told HitQuarters that despite mostly playing covers, they performed two original songs that really impressed him.  As a result, the band was quickly signed to the promotions company.  Their debut album, My Own Prison, was self-released on the company’s record label, Blue Collar Records, and sold six thousand copies throughout Florida. 

In 1997, Diana Meltzer from Wind-Up Records heard the album and wanted to sign the band.  She, along with president Steve Lerner, CEO Alan Meltzer and A&R representative Joel Mark, all flew to Tallahassee to see the band perform live and decide whether to sign them.  The band ended up signing with the label.

The album ended up being remixed and re-released by Wind-Up Records in 1997.  Four singles were released which were Torn, What’s This Life For, One, and My Own Prison, and each one topped at number 1 on the Billboard Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart.  Because of all of the exposure, sold over six million copies and received numerous awards.

Their second album, Human Clay, was released in 1999, debuted at number 1 on Billboard 200, and sold over 10 million copies, causing it to be certified diamond by the RIAA.  the first single from the album, higher, topped the rock radio charts for seventeen weeks, which was a record.  Other singles from that album included What If, With Arms Wide Open, and Are You Ready.  The first three topped the radio charts, which made a total of seven.  The band won their only Grammy for With Arms Wide Open for Best Rock Song in 2001.

In 200, Cred had a problem.  Brian began drinking to the point that a decision had to be made with management about his future.  When he was asked to go to rehab, he refused.  He ended up making comments that criticized Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam saying that Scott was a better songwriter as well as saying Pearl Jam recorded songs without hooks.  Creed had to distance themselves from Brian’s comments saying the comments made were not the band’s view of Pearl Jam.  Brian ended up leaving the band of his own choice and was not related to the comments.

The third album, Weathered came out in late 2001.  It debuted at number 1 on Billboard 200 and stayed there for eight weeks. It was certified platinum six times over.  There were six singles from the album: My Sacrifice, Bullets, One Last Breath, Don’t Stop Dancing, Hide, and Weathered.  

Despite this success, problems arose once again.  In 2002, the tour to promote the album was delayed because Scott had a concussion from a car crash.  As a result, Scott became addicted to pain medicine.  This, combined with other events, came to a head at a concert in 2002 in Illinois.  People who went to that concert filed a lawsuit saying that Scott was so intoxicated or medicated, he couldn’t sing a single Creed song.  The case was dismissed, but that controversy led to Creed breaking up due to tensions between Scott and the band.

In 2009, the band got back together for a reunion tour.  They hired guitarist Eriv Friedman for the tour, which started on August 6, 2009, and ended on October 20.  They came out with their first album in 8 years which was released on October 27.   Scott commented on the title saying, “It really defines and articulates, melody-wise and lyrically, what’s happened with us. We’ve come full circle and it’s a great place to be.”(Wikipedia)

On September 25, 2009, Creed did a concert in Houston that was recorded and broadcast via the Internet and released in December with the title Creed Live, which was their first live recording.    

They also tried to tour in support of the album, but not every show sold out.  It also got mixed reviews despite the fact that Skillet joined the tour in support.

They also toured in 2012 where the band performed their first two albums and selected tracks from Weathered and Full Circle.  They started the tour at the Chicago Theater.  The tour also included stops in South America and Indonesia.  In 2013, the band went on hiatus and is still on hiatus.

What kind of music is Creed?

Creed is described as alternative rock, alternative metal, post-grunge, and hard rock.  They have also been described as nu-metal, Christian rock, grunge and heavy metal.

Scott’s influences are Otis Redding, Donny Hathaway, Def Leppard, U2, The Doors, and Led Zeppelin.  Mark’s influences are thrash metal bands like Slayer, Metallica, Exodus, and Forbidden.

Is Creed a Christian Band?

The Washington Post recorded Scot saying: 

The biblical imagery of singer Scott Stapp’s lyrics got Creed typed as Christian rock by early listeners, and the band’s denial of any religious objective has unsettled some of its more fervent fans. “We are not a Christian band,” Stapp insists on the band’s website. “A Christian band has an agenda to lead others to believe in their specific religious beliefs. We have no agenda!”

Brian also stated that Scott uses spiritual imagery as a metaphor in his lyrics.

After reading those quotes, I must conclude that Creed is not a Christian band.

Creed band Christian Songs

Creed does not have any Christian songs.

Is Creed a satanic band? 

Although Creed can’t be labeled as a Christian band, there’s no evidence to indicate they are satanic.

Conclusion

In my opinion, Creed is not a Christian band.  A Christian band would not make comments such as the ones cited above.  However, as I have said before, one must make that determination for themselves.