Colorful New Music for Kids that Everyone Will Enjoy

We are a very music loving family: It’s rare that someone isn’t listening to a recording or humming a tune (or screaming it over-enthusiastically, in one child’s case!) Some of the most contested negotiations among my children are who gets to have the first turn choosing the music in the car – even when we are driving literally 10 minutes to the park or library. So I love to get to introduce my family to wonderful new music for kids. Who knew there were so many great artists out there recording for children these days??

Below is our take on new music for kids that you won’t want to miss! Be sure to scroll all the way down to find out how to enter to win your own copy of one of these incredible albums!

Disclosure: I received complimentary copies of the music below for review purposes; however, all opinions are my own. This post contains affiliate links. If you click through and make a purchase, I receive a small commission at no extra charge to you.

Colorful New Music for Kids

The Family in Harmony album from Super Stolie is literally a celebration of color, a beautiful metaphor for how we are all different yet come together to make a beautiful rainbow. I just love her voice, showcased on songs like the title track “Family in Harmony” and the lovely “Peace Like a River.” My kids especially enjoy the silly “Chicken in the Kitchen,” and of course I love that the mix of Spanish on several of the songs. And parents everywhere will appreciate having a song (“Will You Get My Back?”) about remembering to wear your sunscreen! Now you can also get a Super Stolie Family in Harmony: Read-Along, Sing-Along Lyric Book to go along with the album. It’s a great way to practice literacy skills while you enjoy the music! 

Swamp Romp is a lovely, rollicking tribute to the music of New Orleans. Johnette Downing and Scott Billington are true enthusiasts, and their knowledge of the area’s music (and their talent for playing it) is deep. Swamp Romp encompasses a dizzying variety of musical styles, all brought into harmony by the unifying thread of Downing’s vocal talents and songwriting prowess, as well as an abiding respect and love for New Orleans. My personal favorites are the bilingual “J’ai vu le loup, le renard et la belette” and the gorgeous “Star in My Sky.” This album is truly an education, but also wickedly fun. In addition to the talents of Downing and Billington, it features an impressive array of local musicians, including one known for playing the washboard! For grown ups and older kids (and teachers), I highly recommend the liner notes, which I enjoyed almost as much as the music itself! For example, do you know the origin of the name of the “po’ boy” sandwich, or that there was a community of Canary Islanders in New Orleans (Isleños)? 

From the moment we started playing Buenos Diaz, I knew it would be in constant rotation at our house. All of the songs are so much FUN! This is an album that I listen to even when my kids aren’t around, just because I enjoy it so much. As every song starts, I think, “I’m going to be singing this one all day!” The album (releasing April 5th) is available for pre-sales, but if you want a taste of what I’m talking about, you don’t have to wait! Just check out this fun video they just released, a tribute to Mexican sweet bread, pan dulce. Many of the songs on the album are in Spanish, and others a fun Spanglish mix, and perhaps for this reason they can play with some of the stereotypes about Mexico, like instant classic “Nacho Cheese” or the dance party tune “Taco Tuesday.” The music on this album is stellar, part of why Alt.Latino chose “Pan Dulce” as one of their weekly picks. Scroll to the end of the post for details on how you can enter to win your own copy!

Building Blocks celebrates all those magical milestones of childhood, like learning to ride a bike or starting a new school. It acknowledges the difficulty of each new challenge but also encourages children to trust themselves and “Jump Right In” to every new endeavor. This album from Grammy Award winning artist Tim Kubart is filled with energy and enthusiasm, though I also love the more laid-back, Jason Mraz vibe of “Oopsie-Do!,” which reminds kids that everyone makes mistakes. The catchy pop tunes on this album deliver an important message to kids who are starting to stretch their wings – that because they are surrounded by love, taking flight might be scary but also exciting and well worth the effort. (As a side note, among his many accomplishments, Kubart wrote the Sesame Street song “We Can All Be Friends,” which introduced the show’s first character with autism!)

Related Posts:

Latin American Music for Kids

New Children’s Music Review

Giveaway!

And now you can enter to win some of this incredible new music for kids for your family! We are giving away a copy of Buenos Diaz to one lucky winner. (If in the US, winner will receive a physical disk; if outside the US, winner will receive a digital download). To enter, just comment below to let us know what music your family loves listening to together. Contest ends Wednesday, March 20, 2019, at midnight PT. Winner will be chosen by random drawing.