Five-Minute Time Out: Lisa Loeb
The singer goes to camp with her new kid's album.
by Jennifer V. Hughes
July 18, 2008
Can you tell me about one of your original songs — the story behind where it came from?
One of the things we wanted to do was to highlight all the big events around summer camp — like in the song "Going Away," where you try to bring every single thing with you. We had the song, "It's Not Goodbye," which is about how at the very end of summer camp you're in tears because it's the end. There are also songs about different times of day, like "The Wake Up Song," or "When it Rains." We thought it would be cool to inspire kids to look at life in a different way, and if it's raining, it's not the worst thing.
I think it is so cool that you are going to be raising money with this CD to help underprivileged kids go to camp.
I've heard a lot from the people who work with the kids [who benefit from the charity, Summer Camp Opportunities Provide an Edge] and there is a lot of research that shows that when kids are engaged over the summer, reading or doing arts and crafts with other kids, they retain more of what they have learned during the school year.
"I always loved kids' music growing up, like "Free To Be You and Me," and "Really Rosie" — to me they just sounded like regular music."
If not, they lose more of what they have learned. So kids who go to summer camp are better off than kids who don't have a way to go.
How did you get into children's music, anyway?
I always loved kids' music growing up, like "Free To Be You and Me," and "Really Rosie" — to me they just sounded like regular music. That's probably because all the musicians who were playing on them were real musicians, they were playing with people like James Taylor. I wanted to make music like that for kids. Right now there is this huge wave of people making modern kids music that adults can like too. With Camp Lisa, I wanted it to be for a little more grown-up kids.
Well, my four-year-old loved it.
I've been interested to hear what age of kids are drawn to it. I was just trying to make music I would like to listen to. Some songs, like "Peanut Butter and Jelly," sound like a little kid song, but you can just as easily be a fifteen-year-old standing on a bench in the cafeteria and singing it really loud, too.
©2008 Jennifer V. Hughes and Nerve Media
About the Author
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Jennifer V. Hughes is a writer whose work has appeared in The New York Times, Mothering magazine and the Columbia Law School Report. She also makes a killer sangria. |
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