Help me brainwash a 6 y.o.-musically that is [Archive]

Tess

11-10-2011, 04:41 PM

whole bean

11-10-2011, 04:46 PM

Frylock

11-10-2011, 04:47 PM

My six-year-old nephew "Aiden" has told his mom (my sister) he wants his own music. He doesn't have an MP3 player or other device but she's agreed to download what he asks for, pending approval, onto hers or the family computer.
His first list included Katy Perry :( Sis gently shot that one down.
This is a great chance to nudge Aiden towards better music so I'm trying to come up with some songs for a Christmas present. I'd love some recommendations. Anyone want to help?

My kids like the They Might Be Giants kids albums.

They also like Sufjan Stevens.

They also like the They Might Be Giants grown-up albums.

My daughter digs Adele

They like the Beatles and the Monkees.

I'll note that my musical tastes have almost nothing to do (in fact may be in some opposition to) the stuff my parents liked and had me listen to. I don't know how universal this phenomenon is, though.

Is there something specific about Katy Perry that gives you the sad face, or is it just a general dislike thing?

Lacunae Matata

11-10-2011, 05:05 PM

Why not check out the real "classics" before he's worried about his friends' opinions of cool vs. not? A little Mozart or Beethoven to go with the Beatles or whatever? Seriously, though, it's hard to shape tastes, so let him enjoy music, so long as he understands that Katy Perry isn't the only option. I have a toddler who responds to music of every stripe, and has done so since birth. She loves rhythm and tunes, and is exposed to everything shy of gangster rap. I also have a very musical almost-11-year-old, who loves Katy Perry but is also being introduced to lots of other vocalists and music styles in an informed way. She can appreciate Marion Anderson and Janis Ian, but her tastes remain her own. No sense in drawing a battle line over preferences, imho.

Bosda Di'Chi of Tricor

11-10-2011, 05:09 PM

Louis Armstrong
Dizzy Gillespie

Apollyon

11-10-2011, 06:14 PM

Bryan Ekers

11-10-2011, 06:25 PM

I guess I'm uncool, because I don't know enough about Katy Perry to know why she might not be appropriate listening for a six year-old.

Balance

11-10-2011, 06:39 PM

Apollyon's Coulton references made me think of Voltaire's Brains! (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_i7tqWMbUFU). Lots of his stuff is fun, but you'd want to pick and choose carefully.

I guess I'm uncool, because I don't know enough about Katy Perry to know why she might not be appropriate listening for a six year-old.
Here's a sample:

Last Friday night
We went streaking in the park
Skinny dipping in the dark
Then had a menage a trois
Last Friday night
Yeah I think we broke the law
Always say we're gonna stop-op
Whoa-oh-oah
<snip>
Pictures of last night
Ended up online
I'm screwed
Oh well
It's a blacked out blur
But I'm pretty sure it ruled

Damn

Lasciel

11-10-2011, 06:45 PM

My son has enjoyed some of Jonathan Coulton's songs since about that age... one favourite being Code Monkey and another re: Your Brains; there's also something endearingly cute about a small child singing:

All we want to do is eat your brains
We're not unreasonable, I mean, no one's gonna eat your eyes...

:D

God damnit - now that's stuck in my head, and I'm at work and there's no music allowed.

Bloody Christ...

*we're at an impasse here, maybe we could compromise...* Gaaaahh!!!

WarmNPrickly

11-10-2011, 06:58 PM

Bad news. Telling the kid he can't have Katie Perry makes it worse. Let him have the Katie Perry and show him that the other stuff is way more fun. You have to show him, not tell him. If he chooses Katie Perry, let it go, he'll come back if you're right.

lawoot

11-10-2011, 07:34 PM

I say "Go the other route" - get him hooked on Spike Jones, Tom Lehrer and Weird Al. :D

Shmendrik

11-10-2011, 07:36 PM

Obligatory Onion link:

Cool Dad Raising Daughter On Media That Will Put Her Entirely Out Of Touch With Her Generation (http://www.theonion.com/articles/cool-dad-raising-daughter-on-media-that-will-put-h,26132/)

MobiusStripes

11-10-2011, 07:53 PM

The "They Might Be Giants" suggestion was very good. They have four kid-oriented albums (that I love as someone in his late 30's). My daughter is just turning 6 and we enjoy them together (usually come with a DVD as well). Good clean stuff, though the Science album might make some religious folks upset (songs about evolution, etc).

She has at least one Katy Perry song on her play list. Something about Fireworks. It's not my thing but didn't find it offensive. We have some Gaga on there too (if you care to judge me!) While I won't play her the video for Bad Romance, she does enjoy the Weird Al version. I'm quite proud. We make liberal use of buying single songs on whatever store for 99 cents.

She tends to find female singers more her style. That and things she can dance to. She'll glom onto songs we have playing like somethings by "The Jezabels" that have strong female vocals. We have some Cold Play on her playlist too. Stuff she's heard on the radio or on background tracks to videos on YouTube.

Oh, her current play list contains: "Hey, Soul Sister" by Train. "Safety Dance" by Men Without Hats, "YMCA" by the Village People, "Particle Man" by TMBG, and "You Can Call Me Al" by Paul Simon. There's some U2 and Sting on there too.

Peanuthead

11-10-2011, 09:09 PM

Turn him on to some Jamaican music. Reggae, ska, rock steady, calypso. Kids can really get into the rhythm of it.

mac_bolan00

11-10-2011, 09:22 PM

remember that bartender in joseph wambaugh's book "the secrets of harry bright?" he refused to play any rock-and-roll music in his bar, to the dismay of the young cops.

"maybe you kids don't have the sophistication to appreciate a song like 'bewitched, bothered, and bewildered?' what's going to be the memory of your youth, 'wake me up before you go-go?'"

Bosstrain

11-10-2011, 09:34 PM

Other than Classical music I can't think of anything, all my other suggestions would be B.I.G., Snoop and Dr. Dre (I know, I'm an odd bird, what can I say, Beethoven was, in my mind, on the same level as Notorious...but maybe not as OK for kids though ;))

Leaffan

11-10-2011, 09:37 PM

I guess I'm uncool, because I don't know enough about Katy Perry to know why she might not be appropriate listening for a six year-old.

As a 49 year old classic rock lover I see absolutely nothing wrong with Katy Perry.

Pushing prejudices aside she's actually pretty talented. Lady Gaga too.

You can lead a horse to water, and all that..........

blondebear

11-10-2011, 09:44 PM

My suggestion: Then And Now by The Monkees (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Then_%26_Now..._The_Best_of_The_Monkees)

Inner Stickler

11-10-2011, 09:50 PM

I'll note that my musical tastes have almost nothing to do (in fact may be in some opposition to) the stuff my parents liked and had me listen to. I don't know how universal this phenomenon is, though.

Is there something specific about Katy Perry that gives you the sad face, or is it just a general dislike thing?I find myself picking up albums or artists that strike my fancy, only to realize later that it was an album that my parents had played when I was younger. I've heard more than one song used as part of a movie or TV show soundtrack that I bought only to realize later that my dad used to sing it to me at night when I was little. So, for me, at least, my musical tastes are greatly shaped by my parents' choices in music when I was little.

Katy Perry sings quite sexualized songs. Firework is a rare outlier praising the general you for being so totally awesome. "You don't have to feel like a waste of space. You're original; cannot be replaced. If you only knew what the future holds, after a hurricane comes a rainbow. Cuz baby, you're a firework. etc. etc. etc."

Rushgeekgirl

11-10-2011, 10:12 PM

My six year old daughter's all-time favorite song is Fly by Night by Rush. She also loves the Mario theme song, Baby Baby by the Bieb, Crazy Train by Ozzy, and various Buddhist chants, like Green Tara. She digs the repetition I guess.

I say they're gonna like what they're gonna like. If he likes Katy Perry maybe find some pretty girl singer who sings some milder songs.

foolsguinea

11-10-2011, 10:12 PM

Coltrane? Thelonious Monk?

Alternatively, Berlioz? Chopin?

Onto what you trying to turn him?

voguevixen

11-10-2011, 11:32 PM

...what's going to be the memory of your youth, 'wake me up before you go-go?'"

I'm thinking a 6 year-old would LOVE "Wake Me Up before You Go-Go."

Beeotrice

11-10-2011, 11:52 PM

I don't know that you can really force/trick him into liking anything in particular. I think it's more important to instill a love of music in general. My dad is a music fanatic, and has always had an incredible music collection. He always encouraged me to listen to whatever I was into (within reason). When I was your nephew's age, I remember my dad had me really into the Beatles, Marvin Gaye, Elvis, Sam Cooke, and the Beach Boys. Oh, and Bob Marley. ALL kids love Bob Marley.

When I got older, he used to just find out what I was listening to and then suggest music he thought I would like based on that. When I was around 11/12, was when Green Day, Rancid, and Sublime were really popular. So he gave me the Clash, the Ramones, the Specials, the Who, and Cheap Trick; all bands that I still love. He did this for every band/artist that I liked, and I learned to love some really great music. He's going to like what he's going to like, so maybe just try to find something that's somehow similar that you think is better/more appropriate, and hope he likes that too.

The Hamster King

11-10-2011, 11:54 PM

His first list included Katy Perry :( Sis gently shot that one down.This makes me very sad. :(

The best way to kill someone's enthusiasm for something is by telling them the stuff they like isn't any good.

Balance

11-11-2011, 12:09 AM

This makes me very sad. :(

The best way to kill someone's enthusiasm for something is by telling them the stuff they like isn't any good.
I imagine it's more that she didn't want to have to explain to a six-year-old what a ménage à trois is...or explain to someone else why he's singing about one. I will throw my cred aside to say that I actually rather like the song I quoted above, but it's not something I'd put on a little kid's playlist. I can't speak to the rest of her songs, as that's the only one I've heard.

In general, I agree that the best option is to expose kids to lots of different music, figure out what they like, and help them find more of it.

Rhiannon8404

11-11-2011, 01:33 AM

Ledzepkid (now 13) was about that age when he first became a Led Zepplin fan. In fact he was reminiscing about the first time he ever heard Stairway to Heaven, "I think I was in first grade and I wanted to know who was playing guitar? Do you remember that, Mom?"

They're never too young to start on the good stuff.

voguevixen

11-11-2011, 01:43 AM

I imagine it's more that she didn't want to have to explain to a six-year-old what a ménage à trois is...or explain to someone else why he's singing about one.

This. I remember when Madonna's "Like a Virgin" came out and how scandalous it was. So much 'splaining to do. I remember my (younger) brother belting it out at some point and me scoffing saying "I bet you don't even know what that means!" He of course turned to my mom who in turn turned to me and said "Why don't YOU explain it?"

Currently, in following the Bieber paternity scandal, I've seen quite a few comments on media articles along the lines of "Well, I'm not a fan of his but this is obviously absurd and I wish him the best. That having been said I'd rather not have had to explain to my 11 year-old daughter what a "paternity test" is."

Electric Warrior

11-11-2011, 02:14 AM

My six year old daughter's all-time favorite song is Fly by Night by Rush.

...I like you.

When I was a 6 year old, I was totally brainwashed by the parents. I listened to Fleetwood Mac, the Beach Boys, Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, Eric Clapton, Cat Stevens... After an embarrassing period of self discovery (it involved Good Charlotte), I finally realized in my late teens that my parents had been right all along and now I'm rediscovering all the music they played me as a kid. I highly recommend the Beatles for kids that age, as well as just about anything from the 60s. Some of the themes will be a little over their head but there's very little they might get in trouble for repeating.

Leiko

11-11-2011, 02:29 AM

One of my new favorites is Kina Grannis's In Your Arms (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IOu0DuxFAT0). The video is amazing and there's nothing objectionable for even a six year old.

Acid Lamp

11-11-2011, 06:45 AM

Set the little bugger up with a pandora account, seeded with artists you and he likes. Show him how to use the bookmark artist button and check in on what he favorites. He'll find a world of music easily that way. Insist on stations from many differing styles.

infinitii

11-11-2011, 09:04 AM

The "Natural Born Killers" soundtrack -- that's how I started appreciating music. (of course, I was quite a bit older than 6...)

WordMan

11-11-2011, 09:13 AM

When my kids were younger, I played huge variety of music in their presence and they made their tastes pretty clear -

- The Beach Boys - get a greatest hit compilation; I Get Around, Dance Dance Dance, Fun Fun Fun, Good Vibrations - kid goodness, right there.
- The Ramones - same thing; the kids love chanting "hey ho - let's go"
- Chuck Berry and/or other 50's rock classics - Tutti Frutti by Little Richard went over very big ;)
- The Sweet - Ballroom Blitz and Fox on the Run - I was only a passing fan, but Fox got played once randomly and my kids glommed onto it. It was all we played for about a month.

Fun, high-energy music that is easy to bop along and chant to/sing along with - what's not to love?

FriarTed

11-11-2011, 09:21 AM

Katy Perry sings quite sexualized songs. Firework is a rare outlier praising the general you for being so totally awesome. "You don't have to feel like a waste of space. You're original; cannot be replaced. If you only knew what the future holds, after a hurricane comes a rainbow. Cuz baby, you're a firework. etc. etc. etc."

Rare? The "You're so awesome just for being you" song genre has offerings by Katy, Pink (F*ing Perfect), Christina Aguilera (Beautiful), Lady Gaga (Born This Way) & I'm sure others. Alas, they're late-coming anthems for the "Self-esteem w/o earning self-respect" movement.

That said, while I enjoy Katy- for various reasons, I'm an adult (kinda) & a good part of her work is not 6yo apporpriate IMO.

I say- a sampling of actual classics- Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Wagner, then Jazz, Crooners, Swing, early Rock, Beatles, Stones, Zepplin, Jethro Tull, Moody Blues, Kansas, Styx, GoGos, B-52s, Talking Heads, DEVO, whatever. I love The Doors but they may be a bit morose for that age. *L*

msmith537

11-11-2011, 10:41 AM

Here's a sample:

Yeah my six year old cousin went on a drug and alchohol fueled streaking sex bender the first time he heard that song on the radio.

Parenchyma

11-11-2011, 03:23 PM

Agree with the idea of really good music in non-standard categories, like Jamaican reggae, and Bach on a harpsichord. What about medieval chants like Hildegard von Bingen, and some rollicking classic blues? We are so lucky to be living in a golden age of musical diversity and access.

Tess

11-11-2011, 03:54 PM

Thanks for all the suggestions!

I ended up cutting some details from my original post to keep it short. To clarify, Aiden wanted "Last Friday Night," which as Balance and others noted isn't quite meant for a kindergartener. Sis didn't flat out tell him no, just said not all his songs would fit the player and he'd need to take one off the list. Perry was the only female singer and he's got a strong preference for "boy singers" so he didn't think twice about giving her the ax.

He's got plenty of exposure to mainstream pop and his older cousin is putting something together for him too-he loves Big Time Rush though it might be more about one of the guys having a mohawk than anything about their music. I won't be replacing his music, I just want to show him there's a variety.

I'm not good at linking the title to the song on classical music. Can anyone suggest some of the faster, more uptempo pieces?

chela

11-11-2011, 04:00 PM

Depends on the mood, music does.

music to wind you up and get you moving,

or music to wind down with, or transition to

Music as pleasant background while dining ( or too mask the angry chewing ;) )

sometimes silence works too.

Folk bluegrass, rock and roll, Debussy, Mozart ....

gaffa

11-11-2011, 04:20 PM

Yeah, no matter what you do, he will probably hear more different styles of music and a wider range of artists than you have ever heard. I ran across a great article a year or so ago, and this grizzled music writer was at a relation's wedding. He found himself spending most of the evening involved in what he described as the most wide-ranging and fascinating conversation about music he had ever had - with a 15 year old cousin.

This kid, through the miracle of the Internet, had heard at least as much music as this professional music writer. During the writer's formative years, getting an album was a significant investment. You could make decisions based on the radio single, but you had no idea of the quality of the rest of the album. Could be one great single and the rest dross, or a terrible cliche single from a great album.

But the kid heard new music, and reading and watching interviews with musicians, listened to their influences - and finding out what influenced the influences, etc. And this wasn't a just sampling, the kid had worked his way through complete catalogs of various artists and wide swathes of various genres. He was as knowledgeable as any 30 year veteran of the music industry.

So even though radio is ever more insipid with smaller playlists, kids today have access to far more music then their parents ever did.

I do have one suggestion: Instead of "Guitar Hero", get them a real guitar. Aldi has a crappy acoustic guitar in this weeks ad for $16.95! Have an instrument or two around the house. Maybe they'll pick it up, maybe not, but unless you have something for them to play, they'll never find out. And you can learn to play on a shitty guitar - it is motivation to get a better one.

I see amazingly talented kids all the time videotaping School of Rock shows. I have no business connection to the School of Rock other than the fact that I shoot the shows and sell DVDs to parents (and hope that one of these kids will become famous). It's an after-school program for kids age 7 to 17 that gets them on stage in real venues performing for paying customers. The best kids from each school form a band and gig around town. They compete to be part of the All-Stars who go on regional tour.

Teufelblitz

11-11-2011, 04:21 PM

Louis Armstrong
Dizzy Gillespie

++Good

Rushgeekgirl

11-11-2011, 04:45 PM

How about Selena Gomez as a replacement for Katie Perry? My little girl has it playing right now on one of her Jumpstart games.

gaffa

11-11-2011, 05:20 PM

I do have one suggestion: Instead of "Guitar Hero", get them a real guitar. Aldi has a crappy acoustic guitar in this weeks ad for $16.95!
I just got back from Aldi. It is a child-sized guitar. They didn't have one out of the box, but if you consider it a toy instead of an instrument, it is still a very inexpensive toy.

Inner Stickler

11-11-2011, 05:26 PM

Rare? The "You're so awesome just for being you" song genre has offerings by Katy, Pink (F*ing Perfect), Christina Aguilera (Beautiful), Lady Gaga (Born This Way) & I'm sure others. Alas, they're late-coming anthems for the "Self-esteem w/o earning self-respect" movement.Rare for Perry. I mean, Firework is scrunched in there between California Gurls and Peacock. That being said, Katy Perry's only in her 20s so it's not like she was lollygagging at making a GRRL power song.

Critical1

11-11-2011, 09:03 PM

Tom Waits, Kids can totally get into him and his weirdness.

Peanuthead

11-11-2011, 10:07 PM

Tom Waits, Kids can totally get into him and his weirdness.

When my younger son was 6 years old he knew all the words to Tom Waits' "Pasties and a G-String". Everybody got a big kick out of that. About 20 years later I asked him if he still knew all the words. He said, "Yeah. But now I know what they mean". :D

Link (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sPSktrg6GO0)

Bosda Di'Chi of Tricor

11-12-2011, 07:32 AM

Louis Armstrong
Dizzy Gillespie

++Good
Add Eartha Kitt to the list, then. :)

Yookeroo

11-12-2011, 09:24 PM

I don't know that you can really force/trick him into liking anything in particular. I think it's more important to instill a love of music in general.

I agree. What I would try to "force/trick" is an open mind about musical genres. But...

Yeah, no matter what you do, he will probably hear more different styles of music and a wider range of artists than you have ever heard. I ran across a great article a year or so ago, and this grizzled music writer was at a relation's wedding. He found himself spending most of the evening involved in what he described as the most wide-ranging and fascinating conversation about music he had ever had - with a 15 year old cousin.

...this doesn't seem as much of an issue with kids today. They seem to have much broader tastes now then they used to.