On Dabbling

[From the Spring 2026 Issue]

Children’s Music is weird.

While virtually all other genres are defined by instruments, techniques and cultural associations, Children’s Music isn’t. How would you define it? Often (but not always) it features an acoustic guitar and/or a ukulele. Often (but not always) its melodies, lyrics, structures and arrangements are simple. Often (but not always) it teaches a lesson or moral. Often (but not always) it pulls from a canon of folk songs, schoolyard chants and nursery rhymes. It’s all of these things and (often) none of these things. Ultimately, the only defining feature of Children’s Music is the median age of its target audience.

Because literally any style of music can be considered Children’s Music as long as it meets certain lyrical strictures, the genre is infinitely diverse and inclusive. This is a major strength. Peruse the children’s section in a record store (or more likely a streaming platform) and you’ll find hip hop, jazz, folk, rock, classical, world music… in a word, everything. This can only be a benefit to children who can now find appropriate music that exposes them to a limitless array of cultures and tastes.

This also means, for better or for worse, it's the only type of music in which artists from other genres can liberally dabble.

For much of the twentieth century, mainstream artists were the mainstay of Children’s Music. Burl Ives, Pete Seeger and others would, from time to time, release a song or a record for kids. Beginning in the 1970s, however, a growing number of (particularly Canadian) artists turned exclusively to Children’s Music, and the genre came into its own.

Still, mainstream artists continue to dabble. This is a perfectly understandable artistic choice. If you’re a professional musician and you have a child, what could be more natural than trying your hand at making music that your kid will enjoy? This process has led to the production of timeless albums (e.g., Ziggy Marley's Family Time) and greatly enriched the landscape. It has also brought many artists into the kindie community who went on to be active Children’s Musicians (Dan Zanes, Darrelle London...heck, Raffi was a folksinger). Artistically speaking, dabbling has undoubtedly been a boon to Children’s Music.

On the other hand, there are at least two ways in which dabbling can have a detrimental impact on the genre. I certainly don’t mean to suggest that dabbling is a bad thing or that it should stop. But here are two things to consider.

Mudslinging: From time to time, an artist will dabble in Children’s Music because, from their perspective, there is no good Children’s Music, and they see themselves as God’s gift to the genre. This wouldn’t be a huge deal, except that sometimes they say so in the press. When (Bob Dylan’s son-in-law) Peter Himmelman made his first kids' album, he explained that “there is such a paucity of good stuff for human beings of low chronological age… some of it is so bad I could just vomit.” Martha Johnson and Mark Gane of Martha & the Muffins said that they dabbled because “most kiddie music was ‘nauseating crap,’” and Paul Cargnello put out a kids’ record because he was “tired of the schlock that the music industry throws at our children.”

I don't dispute that there is a surplus of low-quality content for children floating around on the internet. But, from the perspective of a Children's Musician, such claims that there is no good music intended for children are absurd and insulting. Imagine I put out a jazz album and then in an interview I said, "I made this record because all the jazz that people are making these days is garbage." I would be pilloried, and rightly so. When artists say things like this it reveals that they are woefully disconnected from the community and the history of the genre. They've passively seen what's on YouTube, but they haven't actively sought out what the genre has to offer. And yet they present themselves as experts and visionaries.

Awards: The other issue with dabbling has to do with awards. As far as I can tell, Children's Music is the only genre where artist routinely slip in from other genres and win awards. I couldn't win a Grammy for Best Classical Album because I haven't dedicated the last twenty years of my life to honing the craft of classical composition. But it doesn't work the other way around. People who have dedicated decades of their lives to Children's Music are consistently shunted aside when a mainstream artists dabbles in kids' music and throws their hat in the ring.

Tori Amos was nominated for the Grammy this year. John Legend last year. The Barenaked Ladies' only kids' album won the Juno in 2009, beating out the legendary Jack Grunsky. More recently, iconic Canadian artists like Maestro Fresh Wes and Walk Off the Earth have each put out a string of kids' albums, racking up a slew of Juno nominations. These albums enrich the genre and deserve to be celebrated, but they're not inherently superior to the work of artists within the genre just because they have a big name attached to them. They also take the spotlight away from dedicated kindie artists who have been working on the craft for their entire adult lives. Although nobody makes an album for the purpose of winning a Juno, a nomination can be a massive benefit for the career of a Canadian Children's musician. But when mainstream artists monopolize the field, the kindie community has to grapple for fewer and fewer opportunities. It can be disheartening. It makes me wonder what would have happened if, when they lost to Anne Murray for the inaugural Best Children's Album Juno in 1979, Sharon, Lois & Bram had thrown in the towel. Can you imagine?

I won't suggest that mainstream artists should be banned from Children's Music awards. Awards should be based solely on artistic merit, otherwise it cheapens their value. They should be open to any record that fits the criteria, but they should also keep the emphasis on artistry and avoid becoming popularity contests. It actually makes nominations (and wins) so much more meaningful when you consider the number and variety of artists who are eligible. It's so impressive that Garth Prince beat both Walk Off the Earth and Maestro Fresh Wes for the prize 2022. And surely the fact that we're up against John Legend will only force us to make better art, which will benefit the genre.

Ultimately, the point that I'm trying to make is not that we should insulate Children's Music from dabblers. Children's Music is a self-sufficient ecosystem with a long history, and, in many ways, Children's Music artists who live inside that tradition are best positioned to write songs for children. At the same time, the genre benefits from the contributions of artists from outside of it. It's a unique strength. But it also comes at a cost.

Matt Robertshaw, editor