Faith & Spirit Quote by Michelle Shocked

A “slippery slope” is usually a cheap argument; Michelle Shocked turns it into a lived geography. The line walks you, first: “I walked along” places the speaker in motion, not preaching from a safe overlook. Then comes the sting in the syntax: failure isn’t framed as talent or circumstance, but “lack of faith,” a phrase loaded with American moral accounting. It’s the kind of language that haunts musicians and misfits alike, people told their survival depends on belief - in God, in the dream, in themselves.

The devil shows up less as theology than as a contract. “Sell your soul” is the oldest showbiz metaphor because it’s also the most accurate one: the fear that compromise won’t arrive as a dramatic choice, but as a series of small, rationalized steps. Shocked’s intent feels pointed at that moment when artistic ambition and spiritual self-policing blur, when you can’t tell if you’re chasing a break or being chased by a story about what you “should” be.

Subtextually, it’s a critique of purity culture dressed as confession. If you fail, it’s not just unfortunate; it’s evidence you didn’t deserve to win. That’s a brutal logic, and it’s why the lyric works: it stages the psychological trap, not the sermon. In a music world that sells authenticity as a brand, Shocked frames the real peril as transactional faith - believing hard enough to stay “good,” while the market waits to price your doubt.