*Note: This is a theoretically-based research paper that I wrote discussing the intersection of creativity and commercialism in answer to the following question:
“Can an artist ever be truly creative and commercial? Discuss the complex points arising when an artist aims to create innovative music and receive due financial reward. Refer to ONE or TWO artists or bands.”
INTRODUCTION
Is it truly possible for an artist in today’s music industry to continue to create innovative music, while also working the commercial side of the industry, in order to rake in their due of financial rewards for their artistic labour?
Using relevant theory, from writers like Negus & Pickering (2004), who discuss three general categories that many theorists agree on concerning the relationship between commerce and creativity, this essay seeks to argue that although in some cases, creativity can be lost in commerce, the reality is more nuanced.
To support this view, I will reference Schopenhauer (1818) in terms of the question of ‘genuine’ or ‘inspired’ art, while also incorporating Frith’s theory on evaluating popular music in terms of audience preferences.
I will also engage with Saha’s (2018) theories on formatting, marketing, and branding, and how it specifically applies to my case example.
In “Creativity, Communication and Cultural Value,” Negus and Pickering (2004) presented the three proposed lines of academic thought concerning this relationship between creativity and commerce.
While some academics like Fletcher argued that “commerce corrupts creativity”, others like Ettema and Whitney believed that commerce can “inspire creativity” and yet others like Frith noted that the two are so invariably intermingled since an artist is exposed to the
end that their creativity is recognized, loved, and thus ‘paid for.’ Therefore, it would be “misleading” to try and separate them (Negus and Pickering, 2004, p.47).
In discussing this question as related to my specific example, I will also touch on the commonly held perception of ‘selling out’, and ‘industry lore’ as described by Saha (2018).
Case Study – MaryMary
My chosen artist example is MaryMary, a prominent sister group in the contemporary Gospel genre, who have experienced some mainstream success by their innovative approach to the creation of their music.
I first got into MaryMary as a child, after an acquaintance gave me their sophomore album (Incredible).
I chose MaryMary for my case study, because the Gospel genre is relatively niche, and predominantly viewed through the lens of the ‘moral standards’ of the Christian faith. Known Gospel artists are therefore generally expected to shape their musical approach by these.
These perceptions limit the mainstream success Gospel artists can ‘safely’ enjoy, without accusations from Christendom, as deviating from the faith for fame and financial reward, i.e. selling out, or on another front using the genre as a soft launch pad into the secular music industry, because that artist couldn’t succeed in the secular genre like they probably really desired.
I felt that using a relatively well-known example like MaryMary allows me to discuss the complex points surrounding the relationship between creativity and commerce because MaryMary were perceived as being in a niche genre.
MaryMary group members Erica and Tina Campbell first began their music careers in the mid-1990’s with stints on different travelling gospel shows and toured as back-up singers for prominent R&B artists like Brandy and Eric Benet.
In 1996, they met Warryn Campbell, who would become their main producer. He suggested that they should become a group and helped them get signed to a publishing deal with EMI (now a part of Sony Music).
They were finally signed to Columbia Records in 1999, as one of the few gospel recording artists under a mainstream label. By this time, they had formally established their musical entity as MaryMary.
“Shackles (Praise You)” MaryMary’s debut single, which was released in early 2000, became an instant crossover success, cracking the R&B and pop top 10 charts in the US, peaking at 28 on the Billboard Hot 100, and going Top 10 in mainstream charts in other countries like Australia, the Netherlands, Belgium, and the UK.
Gospel radio stations were slow to catch-up on MaryMary’s Gospel crossover style because it was frowned on by Christendom. It was after “Shackles (Praise You)” found success on R&B radio stations, that gospel radio finally ‘yielded’ and played it.
Nonetheless, “Shackles (Praise You)” did eventually become one of the bestselling gospel singles of all time, and was eventually certified platinum in the US, UK, and Australia.
Their debut album ‘Thankful’, on which “Shackles (Praise You)” featured,would win them their first Grammy, and was later certified double platinum by RIAA. It is their best-selling album to date.
MaryMary – Brand Name and Audience:
Saha noted that: “Marketing in the cultural industries consists of two components: research and promotion. It entails turning cultural commodities/producers into brands, constructing their identity and promoting them as such.” (Saha, 2018, p.132).
The name ‘MaryMary’ was taken from two Biblical characters, The Virgin Mary who is considered holy and perfect, and Mary Magdalene, who is considered very imperfect.
According to MaryMary, it was a deliberate attempt to bridge the societal gap between the two extremes of perfect, and imperfect, and to send the message that the Gospel was for all, no matter how far apart one may be coming from (Rimmer, 2000).
It was also a key part of the group’s messaging as ‘relatable people,’ who were willing to publicly acknowledge that they face the same issues, struggles and life questions as both their religious and non-religious audiences.
This was influenced by aspects of their background, one of which was them frequently going on outreaches with their parents to the rough urban neighbourhoods in Inglewood, California. “Shackles” was clearly aimed at this group of people.
Saha (2018), quoting Ryan (1992) noted that: “…marketing and packaging involve positioning the commodity in a market and segmented niche, and then branding it in a way that places upon it a higher status. Moreover, through its aestheticization the cultural commodity becomes a powerful carrier of particular discourses. (Saha, 2018, p.132)
MaryMary had placed their music (the artistic commodity in this instance), in the niche market of contemporary gospel (Saha, 2018).
However, their branding was carefully strategized to reach a wider audience outside the Gospel genre, which would give it higher status, and also draw attention to the discourse around the viability of Gospel music even in secular spaces. (Rimmer, 2000)
In an interview with NPR (Austin, 2009), Tina said their target audience from the beginning had not been religious.
Erica concurred, saying that their being signed to a mainstream label like Columbia, and hearing and seeing the reactions from the people at the label while explaining their brand, meant that they could strategise early on in their creative journey how to introduce the ‘MaryMary’ style of Gospel music to a wider audience. (Austin, 2009)
Furedi (2010) noted that this portrayal of celebrities as being ‘relatable’ and capable of developing a ‘closer relationship’ with their audiences is extremely popular, whether it be through social media or other means, and: “Although they are not quite like ordinary people, their problems and predicaments are sufficiently familiar to everyman to allow for the forging of an emotional bond. Contemporary celebrity culture succeeds in transforming the powerful and the well-known into intimate and familiar figures.” (Furedi, 2010, p.494)
Although they were not ‘celebrities’ yet, MaryMary did acknowledge quite early the power of emotionally connecting with an audience via the medium of relatability (Furedi, 2010), knowing that would bring them greater success, and the inherent financial reward.
Specifically, citing MaryMary as examples, Audrey Gray, the CEO of Gospel Music Industry Alliance said that they: “…understood branding, utilised media and were savvy to music business models early in the day. As a result, their commercial viability has not been hindered by a dependence on church circuits or solely Christian audiences. This in turn made them attractive to TV networks, major labels, sponsors, extended their booking territories and overall commercial appeal.” (Mixmag, 2022).
With these strategies already at the foundation of their career, it cannot be said that MaryMary somehow substituted creativity for commerce. It was always their intention to blend creativity with connection to audiences, which would inevitably yield commercial, and in turn, financial dividends.
MaryMary – Lyrics, Beat, Sound and Musical Style
MaryMary composes, writes, and produces most of their music, including all their hit songs, because their main producer Warryn Campbell, who instigated the formation of the group, became Erica’s husband.
This dynamic gave them the ‘luxury’ of artistic control over their work, because it is mainly ‘in-house.’
In this vein, they hardly record songs from other people for their albums. (MaryMaryTV, Sitting with Me Interview, 2011). Rather, they are asked to write songs for others and have been honoured for their songwriting work with the notable ASCAP Golden Note Award (ASCAP, 2011).
The general composition of MaryMary’s music is inspirational, Gospel lyrics, but they largely combine these with beats that fall under the secular R&B, urban contemporary, and hip-hop genres.
In terms of a typical songwriting session, Tina said that they write what is in their heart, whether it be contemporary, or more traditional gospel and that they do not fit into any particular classification (Perry, 2009) insinuating that commerce does not play a critical part in encouraging creativity (Negus & Pickering, 2004).
Although their music is R&B-oriented, the lyrics of many MaryMary songs follow the format of typical pop songs as proposed by Bradley (2017), “(1) support the sound; (2) do not detract from the song by becoming overcomplicated; and (3) capture the audience’s attention through a catchy hook or other lyric device.” (Bradley, 2017, p.17)
However, they have also constantly emphasized throughout their career that religious inspiration plays a key role in their songs (TBN, 2012)
In this line of thought, Schopenhauer argued that inspiration that is beyond oneself, such as MaryMary claimed to have, is what creates “genuine,” authentic art (Schopenhauer, 1818, p.216). Aristotle also insists that creativity is: “a gift from the gods, occurring when the artist is ‘bereft of his senses.’”
Erica herself did acknowledge: “We’re singers. We’re songwriters. We are engaged by the world with our music in different things…We’re aware of the industry that we’re in …it’s also business, and we want to sell records, and we want to be effective, and we want to be marketable…” (Perry, 2009)
This creative combination allowed them to perform on both religious (Dove Awards, 2001) and non-religious (Top of the Pops, 2000) stages and collaborate (Billboard, 2014) with other mainstream artists like their labelmates at the time, Destiny’s Child, and proves that commerce can indeed nuance creativity.
Essence Magazine, looking back over their career as a group noted that: “they [MaryMary] forced Christian music to grow with them, dragging some critics unwillingly into the future of faith-based art.” (Essence, 2020)
MaryMary – Vocal Approach
The specific style of music that MaryMary sing, as aptly described by Robinson (2009) requires: “Flexibility, accurate intonation, control, power, vibrato options, and a wide vocal range…virtuoso-level melismatic singing, major vocal and emotional dynamic changes, and extended use of vocal range all serve as powerful tools of expression during the performance of this music.” (Robinson, 2009, p.598)
This required that both Erica and Tina had to have considerable competency as individual vocalists to succeed commercially in this genre, although their voice types and vocal ranges are different.
Notably on most of their records, Erica, as the alto would ‘set the tone’ of the songs by singing the first verse, and Tina, as the soprano would build on the tone in the second verse.
On the bridges, typically both singers would harmonize, or alternate lines, and then adlib on the rest of the repeated chorus, against their blended harmonies in the same order as the verses.
Tina’s voice tended to be more prominent on faster tempo songs, and Erica’s on slower songs.
Although they also sing traditional gospel songs, some of which they have appended their contemporary interpretation on, MaryMary do not operate under the performance style of traditional gospel, which is less focused on vocal performance techniques: “[Traditional gospel’s] musical characteristics consist of basic through-composed melodies, simple arrangements (no modulations of key or change in tempi), and modest accompaniment (piano and/or organ). All vocal textures and timbres are acceptable in this style.” (Robinson, 2009, p.597)
Another key difference is that the contemporary gospel style is more performance based: “They [artists that perform in the contemporary gospel style] bounce, sway, clap, gesture, wave, strut, and often engage in highly choreographed dance routines.” (Robinson, 2009, p.598)
By contrast the traditional style is more focused on personal worship, with less flashy movements: “Non-musical elements consist of rocking, swaying, clapping, hand gestures, and hand waving.” (Robinson, 2009, p. 597)
Tina justifies their more contemporary music style in their debut interview (Columbia Records, 1999): “We like music that makes you want to move, makes you want to groove, … and I think the words determine the feel of the music, and with the feel to our words you definitely know it’s totally gospel.”
According to Robinson (2009), MaryMary’s musical choices do align with the contemporary gospel genre which: “…blends the musical and performance practices of blues, jazz, rhythm and blues, soul, hip-hop, rap, and rock with the core elements of gospel music performance… [and] includes repertoire from the Contemporary, Contemporary Jazz and Blues, World, and Urban gospel music styles.” (Robinson, 2009, p.598)
This differs from the traditional style of gospel music which according to Robinson is characterized by: “repertoire and performance practices that are folk-like in nature, and demonstrates musical characteristics of the Hymn, Quartet, and Early Classic Gospel styles. The style is intimate and emotional, much like a sung prayer or personal praise offering.” (Robinson, 2009, p.597)
The contemporary gospel style draws from other genres of music that are clearly not gospel, blending it with the core gospel elements.
Therefore, the beat of a typically contemporary gospel song might not sound much different from the beat of any secular R&B or hip-hop song one might hear on the radio, aside from the lyrics.
This explains why you would, and did hear “Shackles” rather than Edwin Hawkins’ “Oh, Happy Day”, in every venue possible, where people were not picky about genre, but just wanted music that everyone could rock, and sway to (Robinson, 2009) while engaged in their regular activities.
On the other hand, the traditional gospel style does not rely on other genres that are considered ‘secular,’ but is simpler, relying on the build of old hymns and classical music, and an accompaniment of a piano or organ, giving it its more religious feel and sound (Robinson, 2009).
MaryMary themselves had not been allowed to listen to any secular music in their house, but they were allowed to listen to gospel music, of all styles and flavours (NPR, 2011). However, outside the house, they did hear other music that was not gospel.
While both contemporary and traditional styles all fall under gospel music’s wide umbrella, fans’ interpretation of what a ‘true gospel song’ should sound like does widely differ.
Fans who grew up with traditional gospel may opine that ‘real’ gospel music should not be focused on catchy beats and entertainment (which the contemporary gospel style encourages), but rather personal engagement with the message of the song (Robinson, 2009).
Younger gospel music fans tend to be more receptive to contemporary gospel because they may have grown up hearing, or come across secular music, but seek an alternative that sounded like the world, but carries inspirational lyrics (Robinson, 2009).
These would opine that gospel music should move ‘with the times,’ and not allow itself to be put in the ‘traditional’ box.
But when does gospel music become too commercially focused, and contradictory to the accepted Christian ethos, and who is to determine where profit is prioritized over worship (McGinnis, 2023)?
Creativity vs. Commerce
This conflict between commerce and creativity (Negus & Pickering, 2004) has been in existence since the earliest days of categorizing music itself (McIntyre, 2019).
Profiting from gospel music has even had a longer history dating back to 1640 but is more challenging to dissect in the modern era (McGinnis, 2023)
McIntyre citing Wicke explains that: “an adherence to the Romantic ideal has engendered a strong ‘criticism of commerce, which was seen as the opposite of creativity and communication’” (McIntyre, 2019, pg.71)
Notwithstanding, commercially recorded gospel music exploded in popularity in the early 1900’s, with southern gospel singers Andrew Jenkins, and J. Frank Smith “who…revolutionise(d) gospel recording” being at the forefront. (Wolfe, 1983, p.53)
By the time that Smith passed in 1937, “every [major record] company had recorded major gospel singers and composers.” (Wolfe, 1983, p.59).
However, Frith (2002) noted that what is selling is not a fail-proof gauge of what an audience wants: “This equation of popular culture with market choice is problematic. It means that “popularity,” by default, is consumption as measured by sales figures and market indicators … Even if such figures were accurate (which is doubtful), they provide no evidence as to why such goods are chosen by their consumers nor whether they are actually enjoyed or valued by them.” (Frith, 2002, p.15)
Saha agrees when he discusses formatting for artists, noting that good marketing sometimes covers for the rejection of formatting by a particular audience(Saha, 2018, p131)
Musical formatting is defined as: “creating a cultural text according to a production format or formula…[it] is a form of creative control that is the corporate response to the uncertainties of the cultural marketplace.” (Saha, 2018, p.131)
While MaryMary’s second and third albums (Incredible & the self-titled MaryMary), were commercially successful, spawning number 1 gospel hits, they did not have as much crossover success as their first album.
However, with these albums, they were able to cement their place in the gospel world, as well as with their religious fanbase.
This was because both albums somewhat fit within the formatting that was acceptable to their religious fanbase (Saha, 2018), as the emphasis was not so much on the sound, but on the message as the songs “Yesterday,” and “In the Morning,” evidenced.
However, this would change with their 5th studio album, “The Sound,” in 2008 (their Christmas album excluded).
This album again had the crossover appeal that was the main feature of their first album, as it was dominated by MaryMary’s evolution in their sound.
The two most successful singles from “The Sound” album both peaked at No.1 on the Billboard Dance Club Songs charts (Billboard Chart History, Tab 11).
“Get Up”, the first single, had a more dance-pop sound, and would win them their second Grammy. The success of “Get Up” however was quickly overshadowed by their next hip-hop driven smash hit, “God in Me”, featuring contemporary gospel artist Kierra Sheard.
In terms of overall commercial performance, “God in Me” was second only to “Shackles” (#28) on the Billboard 100 chart, peaking at #68. The song also made history as the longest climb to the top 10 in the 67-year history of the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, peaking at #5 in its 42nd week, and won the group their third Grammy.
However, “God in Me,” would attract wide controversy among their religious fanbase, and some of them articulated their displeasure with the song, for differing reasons.
These included the track’s sound which was distinctly hip-hop, the accompanying music video, which was framed as a MaryMary fashion show, featuring secular artists like Kanye West, and the lyrics that seemed to overtly “glorify the dollar” even namechecking the luxury brand, Gucci.
As Hesmondhalgh (2007) aptly notes: “…music is even more difficult to talk about than other symbolic forms… Asking about the meanings of particular pieces of music is unlikely to prove fruitful, but listening to the way in which people struggle over the articulation of their pleasures [or displeasures] can be highly productive.” (Hesmondhalgh, 2007, p.508)
“The Sound” (album) vs. previous albums – the differences
Ryan (cited by Saha, 2018) noted that: “…even in the most commercial settings, artists can never be wholly dominated by formatting, not least since managers understand that, while their job is to encourage authors to understand how formats work, they cannot impose it wholly as this will impede their ability to come up with an original (albeit according to type).” (Saha, 2018, 131-132)
It seems rather clear to me that the writing and production process for “Shackles,” was less dominated byformatting than those for “God in Me.”
“God in Me,” was released in late 2008, a year marked by other successful mainstream R&B releases, alongside R&B’s overall transition to a more pop-oriented sound, and the increased use of auto-tune (Phillips, 2021) in hip-hop records (Guardian, 2008).
Warryn Campbell, their producer, said himself in a documentary on the making of the albumthat ‘God in Me’ was inspired by that hip-hop sound that was popular on the radio at the time.
He, their producer, wanted MaryMary to bring their twist to that currently ‘reigning’ secular sound that would appeal to their younger audiences (MyBlockInc/Columbia Records, 2008).
The overall concept and production of “The Sound” album, was distinctly different from their previous albums, in that it was created as an ‘FM radio broadcast experience’ with a more radio-friendly sound.
Conversely, “Shackles” was born from Warryn’s having a frustrating day at a songwriting session for a movie soundtrack. Hence, he and MaryMary expressed surprise at the impact of the song commercially. (UrbanTVonDemand, 2023)
Having listened to different songs on all their releases, I feel that with “The Sound,” album, MaryMary intentionally leaned more towards commercial appeal sonically, and in doing so discomforted their religious fanbase.
This sonic shift away from their more distinctive R&B sound in their previous albums, into experimenting with other mainstream sub-genres like dance-pop, hip-hop, and crunk, felt seismic to most of their established fanbase.
Interestingly, while the song titles did not suggest this, the lyrics of “Get Up” and “God In Me”, both on “The Sound” album clearly explored more commercially viable themes of empowerment, ‘the good life’, self-determination, and perhaps self-aggrandizement, similar to other mainstream R&B releases of 2008.
In the arena of sound, there were clearly more live instrument arrangements on “Thankful” such as acoustic guitars, organs, and horns, which you would hear in older genres like jazz and blues, which share the same roots with gospel music (Robinson, 2009).
On the “The Sound” album however, more electronic instruments such as synths and autotune (Burnim, Maultsby, 2015), were employed to keep a cohesive flow similar to what you would hear in a dance club.
The use of such musical instruments falls under the contemporary gospel style of performance: “Accompaniment includes not only a full rhythm section with horns, but also can use drum machines, synthesizers, and vocal effects.” (Robinson, 2009, p.598)
Overall, ‘The Sound’ was MaryMary’s most ‘commercially leaning’ and thus their highest-charting album to date, expanding the MaryMary brand, and enabling them to reach the widest mainstream audience up to that point in their career.
However, The Sound’s success was clearly not an indicator that their evolving musical direction was popular with all their core fanbase (Frith, 2002).
The album gave rise to a rather raucous debate within their core religious fanbase as whether MaryMary had ‘sold out,’ at best, or gone over to the dark side at worst, a common debate based in industry lore (Saha, 2018).
Industry lore as defined by Saha (2018) is: “…the executive’s understanding of how an audience is going to react to a particular cultural good, gleaned from a combination of market research, experience and gut feeling.” (Saha, 2018, p.120-121)
In music, the industry lore is that to have increased success no matter the genre, in the music industry, and mass appeal to wider audiences, artists were ‘required’ to embrace darker sounds and themes in their music and branding, or in other words ‘sell out.’
Juxtaposed against that lore, is another, requiring that artists’ 3rd or 4th albums, signal a significant change in their musical direction (Martin, 2020), as well as their branding, as evidenced by mainstream artists like Taylor Swift, Alicia Keys, and Whitney Houston.
In MaryMary’s case, “The Sound,” signalled a marked change in their music and branding direction.
While discussing the album and religious Black entertainment in one promotional interview, (MaryMaryTV, 2009), Tina gave indication of this directional change, saying that she expected “The Sound” album “to dominate the world.”
Erica, however, did immediately try to walk Tina’s statement back in that instance but with little success, as the ‘cat’ of their intention for this album had already leapt out of the bag (Path MEGAzine.com, 2009).
I do not think that the idea of selling out is old-fashioned, and there are artists both in mainstream and religious contexts that I do believe have at some juncture in their careers ‘sold out,’ sacrificing their creativity and authenticity at the ‘altar of the dollar.’
In MaryMary’s case, I do not feel that they necessarily ‘sold out’ as commonly understood, although the musical direction and sound of this album was undeniably more ambitious and strongly influenced by commercial factors (Negus & Pickering, 2004).
However, it is my view that ‘Thankful’ and even ‘Incredible’ were more ‘original’ and authentic representations of their unique brand of Gospel R&B that had first made them popular, than ‘The Sound’ was.
This brings MaryMary’s evolution as artists into the third category as postulated by Frith (Negus and Pickering, 2004: p.48), that creativity and commerce are almost inseparable.
Conclusion:
As someone who enjoyed MaryMary’s music, I was somewhat surprised, and disappointed, to see them overly focus on commercial factors later into their careers. I certainly think this detracted from their lyrical creativity, watered down their message, and somewhat tarnished their branding.
Nonetheless, as Frith noted, this debate around creativity’s intersection with commerce, is quite nuanced, and very complex, but even more so in niche genres like Gospel (Negus & Pickering, 2004).
The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry Global Music Report (IFPI 2025), noted artists’ ‘freedom’ to choose their musical approach as part of their ‘Manifesto to Make Music Thrive’: (IFPI], 2025) This report continues that policymakers should “protect and maintain” the global music market, which was built on this ability for artists to decide their musical approach to their fans. (IFPI, 2025)
“Shackles” is still MaryMary’s most popular song, including on Spotify with over 150 million streams, whereas “God in Me” is surprisingly fourth in popularity, though second in streams (just under 20 million).
So, if MaryMary were to do a new album bringing back the clearly R&B influenced sound that was evident in their first three albums, it would be successful today, as there is still a market for that R&B sound (Bradley, 2025), and for their brand of inspirational lyrics (Luminate Data, 2024).
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