Rolling Stone senior music editor Joseph Hudak recently asked Christian artist Brandon Lake if there is room for Hudak in Christianity as a “Christian Buddhist.” In his response, Lake said, “I would so hope that you felt like the doors were open.”
“I would probably say I identify as Christian Buddhist in some way,” Hudak said in an interview with Lake on Rolling Stone’s “Nashville Now” podcast April 1. “And I’m not asking for your judgment of me, but I’m just asking, in terms of Christianity and the church, is there room for that?”
“Is there room for me, and maybe other people who—and, I’m serious—and other people who may not identify even remotely Christian?” Hudak continued. “Is there room in the faith, and also in CCM and your music, for what I just identified as, or perhaps for someone who is even, not even a foothold, a foot, a footprint in Christianity?”
Brandon Lake to Joseph Hudak: ‘I Think Jesus Would Love To Sit Down With You’
Brandon Lake is a Grammy and Dove Award-winning contemporary Christian singer and worship leader, known for songs including “Graves Into Gardens,” “Too Good To Not Believe,” and “Gratitude.” He joined Hudak last week for a conversation that covered the increased demand for Christian music, how Lake got into country music, and Lake’s thoughts on the controversy that followed country artist Jelly Roll’s comments at the 2026 Grammy Awards.
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At one point, Hudak mentioned the pressure the public puts on artists, and Lake commented that it was “a funny thing when people expect someone who’s been given a platform to have all the answers.”
“It is, it is,” Hudak responded, “but I would say, respectfully, if it’s a platform that preaches about love and acceptance, I feel like that responsibility should be there.”
After Hudak got Lake’s thoughts on the fact that, at the Grammy’s, Jelly Roll declined to comment on current social issues, Hudak remarked to Lake, “Listen, man, I don’t envy you…you’re in a tight spot. Look, I get paid to do this, right? And this is part of what we do, right?”
“Holding power to account is what journalism has been all about, but you’re trying to bring people together in a way,” said Hudak. “I don’t envy you because [if] you say the wrong thing, you know, it’s really hard to walk that line. And isn’t that what faith is all about, right? It’s the camel through the eye of the needle, right?”
Hudak had mentioned early in the discussion that he was raised Catholic. Near the end of the interview, he asked Lake, “Can I share something personal with you? I’d love to get your take.”
“Please,” said Lake.
Rolling Stone's Joseph Hudak recently asked Brandon Lake if there is room for Hudak in Christianity as a Christian Buddhist.Click to Post
