This is why your children need to listen to kindie

Last week I was riding the train and I was reminded of something that happened more than a dozen years ago.  It involved a friend of mine who had kids when I was still at the stage of cleaning out the house with a leaf blower. The train experience and that instance are both great examples of why parents should listen to kindie.

Recap: kindie is a style of children’s music that is palatable for adult ears. It’s still lyrically safe for kids, but is more involved musically and can be earnestly enjoyed by any age.

The time was 2002 and everybody trendy was wearing a band aid under their left eye. My neighbor’s child had just turned three. She was giving her a bath and the child suddenly stood up and started singing Hot in Herre from Nelly.

For the record that is really how the song title is spelled and if you’ve forgotten it the lyrical hook is ‘It’s getting hot in here, so take off all your clothes’. Hearing that song in the club or the car is one thing, but it’s another thing when you hear your three year old daughter sing it.

“I need to watch what she listens to on the radio”, my friend said to me. When we first had kids it was a struggle to find something engaging to listen to on the radio. I understand her- and other parent’s dilemmas when it comes to entertaining kids while they’re in the car.

Sometimes the ability to control what your kids listen to isn’t that much of an option. We were on the train the other day and someone came in with their smart phone hooked up to a Bluetooth speaker on his shirt. He was his own walking boom box, akin to what I used to carry around back in the 80’s.

The walking boom box also has his four year old child with him. Unfortunately the music that sir curse a lot was listening to was the uncensored version of four letter, misogynistic poetry.  The music by itself was horrible. The fact that he was listening to it with his son was depressing and disappointing.

Thankfully he was only on the train for two stops and during that time I talked as much as possible to our children so they wouldn’t hear it. It is not that I don’t want anyone to hear music with adult or vulgar themes; it’s just that children should not listen to it. Our kids grow up quick enough and exposing them to music that needs to bleeped out on radio or TV only helps them become mal-adjusted tweens even quicker.

When I was 13 I did start listening to some of those more adult songs-but I was 13 and not 4.

That is why it would behoove every parent of kids 10 and under to explore something in the kindie realm. Whatever excuse you may have for not liking some artist in the kindie field can be overcome. It has artists from seemingly every musical genre. It’s readily available in multiple download options and there are lots of new releases.

What to listen to is your call. OWTK has a nice podcast where he tracks some of the better kindie artists. We review a couple every month and the internet is certainly your friend when it comes to research of this sort.

Have you listened to kindie music? If so, what is your ‘style’ and who are you listening to?