The rockstar who changed the view of music
Phoebe Simcock,
12th Oct 2021
Tags:
Life
Blog
Our inspirational person today is a rebel with a difference. He rebelled from the norms of what was expected by a rock and roll musician and followed his own path. He is the third bestselling artist in the UK charts after The Beatles and Elvis and debated leaving music behind because at the time Christian music wasn’t as popular as it is now. He showed producers and doubters wrong with a number one in the UK in five consecutive decades, and leading up to Christmas you’ll probably hear his number one single ‘Mistletoe and Wine’. It’s the one and only Cliff Richard.
Harry Rodger Webb was born in India but moved to England after Calcutta became a dangerous place to live. At the age of 16, he became interested in music and his father bought him his first guitar. Harry then decided to join a band and change his name to suit his image, and Cliff Richard was born. He hoped that the name Cliff would resonate with the idea of a cliff edge and therefore rock, which eluded to his future as a rock and roll artist.
In 1964, Cliff Richard became a Christian, and his faith became a big aspect of his life. At this time Christian music was stereotyped as mainly gospel music and a Christian rock star was unheard of, so his choice to follow his faith impacted his music greatly.
His inspirational qualities come from his dedication to his career.
He considered leaving music and becoming a teacher, but his inspirational qualities come from his dedication to his career and his strength to overcome this obstacle.
Christian friends encouraged Richard to stick with his talent and Cliff emerged with new Christian music and faith-related songs that combined his love of music with his love of God.
Despite being called everything but a rebel, Cliff Richard had an incredibly rebellious attitude. Musicians at the time of Richard’s rise to stardom were synonymous with smashing up hotel rooms and taking advantage of their fame and fortune, but Cliff refused to follow this trend.
Spread positive words rather than hate.
He has paved the way for musicians who explore music for the joy of it, and intend to spread positive words rather than hate.
Richard couldn’t understand why bad behaviour was being celebrated and in the media, he was being socially punished for sharing his life with God and living a more wholesome life. It would have been very easy for him to give up on producing music, but he knew this view wasn’t shared by everyone and he continued to be vastly successful for those who appreciated him.
It would have been much easier for Cliff Richard to hide his beliefs and maybe it would have made him more universally popular, but his personality and his faith have helped him to become a successful artist who stays true to his calling.
Follow our dreams or faith no matter who will disagree.
Cliff Richard is a real inspiration to those who are scared to explore their faith because they’re worried about what people will think. He still had a number one single in five consecutive decades, a knighthood from the queen, and has listeners that listen because they can relate to him and they support his lifestyle. This should inspire us all to follow our dreams or faith no matter who will disagree, and treasure those who support us in our decisions.
