No twerking. No drinking. No smoking. But plenty of room for Jesus at this Christian nightclub

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The young crowd at a Nashville nightclub was ready to dance under the strobe lights to a throbbing mix of hip-hop, rap and Latin beats. For weeks, on its Instagram account — under hashtags like #jesuschrist #nightclubs — club organizers asked people to be ready to dance the worship night away and look their best: “When you pull up, we expect to see you in your Holiest Drip.” At the mid-February event, many in the racially and ethnically diverse crowd wore a rainbow of vivid colors — fluorescent turquoise, electric orange, neon pink — in their Nike, Adidas and New Balance sneakers. “With us being seven Black guys, just seeing the expansion of the type of people that we can bring in, and the unification around one idea has been incredibly encouraging.” The Cove co-founders, from left, Jonathan Diggs, Jordan Diggs, Darin Starks, Shem Rivera, and Eric Diggs, welcome guests to The Cove, a pop-up, 18-and-up Christian nightclub they started late last year. “It’s about letting the Lord into your life,” he said, wearing a gold medallion around his neck inscribed with the Lord’s Prayer and a beige hoodie that read: “God first.” He admired what The Cove’s founders are trying to do, saying, “they want to create a space for believers who want to come to the faith and have fun.” Jade Russell of Louisville, Kentucky, dances at The Cove, a pop-up, 18-and-up Christian nightclub. “It sounds oxymoronic — a Christian dance club,” said Nicholas Oldham, who manages the club’s business.