‘Catolipop’, the boom of Christian music explodes again with the Pope’s visit

They used to say that modernity did not go well with Catholicism, but it is clear that this is not true, at least from a cultural point of view. Using the codes of youth, the music they listen to and the ways they communicate, … the Catholic religion has unleashed a revolution in the pop scene that has led not only to the creation of successful groups, but also to others that already existed being attracted to Christian values, expressed through lyrics and melodies that have a central element: faith.

“At a time when young people feel that the world is so full of bad news, where there are no certainties and almost nothing seems to make sense, Christian music emerges as an opportunity to connect, not only with oneself and with God, but with people your own age, on a level that, in addition to giving inner peace, strengthens faith or even reveals it to you,” reflected Javi Caño, a member of Hakuna, with ABC a few days ago. Hakuna is a name that surely needs no introduction anymore because it has become a mass phenomenon, and will be one of the highlights of the concerts for the Pope’s visit. As a legal entity, Hakuna is a ‘Private Association of the Faithful’ approved by the Cardinal Archbishop of Madrid that was born in 2012, promoted by priest José Pedro Manglano with the intention that young people prepare for the World Youth Day (WYD) in Rio de Janeiro the following year. But fourteen years later, on the street, it is simply a music group that is a hit: it has almost 700,000 monthly listeners, some of its songs exceed twenty million plays, and they fill huge venues like the Movistar Arena at their concerts. Related news visual No No Send your message to the Pope. Even Pope Leon XIV is a fan, as he once said he liked their song ‘Forofos’, and it has been decided that Hakuna will be part of the composing team for ‘Alza la mirada’, the official song of his next visit, in which they will also perform alongside other artists selected especially for the occasion. They are the spearhead of an increasingly numerous movement, whose protagonists are ceasing to be niche artists to become more and more integrated into the pop scene. Among them is Trigo 13, a group that emerged five years ago in Madrid linked to the volunteer NGO Jatari, which began to sing about “how Christ has unsettled us, turned our lives upside down and put in our hearts the desire for others to know him,” and which already exceeds a quarter of a million monthly listeners on Spotify. Another strong name is Tuyo, which a few months ago led, together with Hakuna, an initiative to unite more than 20 Catholic music groups from all over Spain and a total of 120 singers to launch the song ‘(Tú) El único Rey’, “a song of praise, prayer, unity and family” that went viral after surpassing 800,000 plays in its first 24 hours. They have also joined the celebration of Leon XIV’s visit and will perform at the vigil to be held on June 6 in Plaza de Lima in Madrid, which has added a long list of names this past week: Beret, Malmö 040, Antonio José, Hey Kid, Ignacio Serrano, DePol, Mr Rain, Inazio, Lola Tuduri, Antoñito Molina, Pablo Pablo, Servus Mariae, Presencia Project and the choir of the musical ‘Godspell’ by Antonio Banderas. The groups Siete Días, Tuyo and Trigo 13 RRSS. Other names in this scene are Aisha Ruah, Clara H, Don Ignacio Ozores, Ecos, Hermanas de los Pobres, Ignis, Javier Portela, Kenosis, Misión Jatari, Presencia, Salve, Shemá or Volver a Siquem. More veteran are Siete Días, a Catholic pop group from Toledo that began its journey in 1994 “to promote spirituality and reach all those people who do not yet know the faith, so that they discover the true happiness that only God can provide.” There are hundreds, if not thousands, of such groups around the world, especially in Latin America (in the United States they are more evangelical than Catholic), with names like D`Fe and Celinés in the Dominican Republic, Daniel Poli and Athenas Venica in Argentina or Azeneth Gonzalez in Mexico. And also, man does not live by pop alone. This phenomenon has also reached electronic music, with the Portuguese Father Guilherme, rap, with the Madrid native Guillermo Esteban aka MC Grilex, and of course rock, with Spanish bands like La Voz del Desierto (with three priests from the diocese of Alcalá de Henares in their ranks), or even metal, with the Italians Metatrone. From Siloé to Niña Pastori. But there are also other artists who, without expressing their Christian faith explicitly in their songs, do let it show or develop it when they have the opportunity to explain themselves in interviews. The case of Rosalía with the album ‘Lux’ is the most evident, but at lower levels of impact new pop preachers are emerging, such as singer-songwriter Iñigo Quintero, who made an international splash with his spiritually themed songs, or the bands Siloé and Besmaya, also chosen to perform before the Pope in Plaza de Lima. Siloé admit that among certain sectors of the music world it is still “frowned upon” to show off Catholicism in songs. In Siloé (not to be confused with Grupo Siloé, another Christian musical group present on Spotify) they admit to being “believers,” but claim not to be “a Christian music group, nor dogmatic,” a clarification they have probably made so as not to close doors in the indie scene in which they move. “In Spain, being openly Catholic in music is frowned upon,” they explained recently in an interview with ‘La Voz de Galicia’. “Then you see Bono, from U2, or Justin Bieber showing that they are believers and having that spiritual touch also in their lyrics and iconography and we think it’s super cool. But if someone appears in Spain who might have a similar vibe, we immediately go on the attack, to criticize and look for faults. We carry a very heavy backpack of complexes.” Besmaya also come from the indie scene, but they hit it so big that they were signed by Sony in 2022 (now they are with Acqustic, the agency behind Iñigo Quintero’s big break) and are now another of the big names in this movement, despite being somewhat reluctant to fully identify themselves, agreeing with their Siloé colleagues and showing that this scene still has a way to go: “Everyone can have a very different experience of the transcendent,” they answered when asked if they are a ‘catolipop’ group. “We are Christians and we know that we have had and have those experiences, but in the end they are emotional, affective experiences, which we believe should not be labeled, because perhaps by labeling those experiences or those works of art you are depriving many people of the right to identify with them. Maybe with the label there are those who stop feeling supported or understood.”

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Opinion ‘Alza la mirada’, this is how the official anthem of the Pope’s visit was created. The concert lineup will be completed with a cast of stars such as Sergio Dalma, who will perform in Barcelona at the Prayer Vigil on June 9 at the Olympic Stadium, plus Niña Pastori, protagonist of the recital in the Lucero neighborhood on the 6th after Leon XIV’s visit to the Cedía 24-hour Caritas center; and David Bustamante, Daniel Diges, Diana Navarro and Rozalén, who will sing at the gathering at the Santiago Bernabéu stadium in Madrid, where the official anthem of the visit, ‘Alza la mirada’, created by a choir of a thousand singers, will also be performed.