There’s really no precise label that adequately describes the sound of The Pop Ups, the Brooklyn-based band comprised of Jacob Stein and Jason Rabinowitz. Their song “Winter Beard” is reminiscent of New Zealand’s Flight of the Conchords, while “Connect the Stars” has a dance beat and pop melody that would work on any Top 40 playlist. They cover Frank Loesser’s “Baby It’s Cold Outside”—using two fuzzy puppets as the leads, of course—and channel a jazz vibe for their Halloween tune “Miss Elephant’s Gerald.” Really, we dare you to put one musical label on these genre jumpers (beyond the kindie one).
While it’s difficult to define their music, it’s easy to understand why they’ve garnered national attention in the kindie music scene since releasing their first album “Outside Voices” in 2010, toured with Yo Gabba Gabba!, and earned a 2013 Grammy nomination for Best Children’s Album for their sophomore CD, “Radio Jungle.”
How did you react when you found out you were nominated for a Grammy?
Rabinowitz: I could not stop dancing. That was my reaction. I literally could not stop jumping around the house… I wasn’t even aware that they were announcing the [nominations]. That’s how not on our radar it was.
Stein: When Jason called me, I just outright did not believe him in the least bit until I found it on the web. Then I was jumping up and down.
What age group does your music best suit?
Rabinowitz: We consider 2- to 6-year-olds our sweet spots. In our live show, we have a lot of, not adult jokes, but we have things that work on different levels… We made our first Pop Ups record, “Outside Voices,” really considering it a gift for our friends with kids. [It was] for our friends almost more than their kids.
Stein: I have adult friends who don’t have kids who come to our shows, and they’re cracking up.
Where do you find inspiration for your songs?
Stein: Someone interviewed us recently and asked us like, ‘So, do you write all of your songs based on your own childhood?’ And I was like, ‘Actually our last song that we released was called “Winter Beard,” and it was about a beard that I grew this winter.’ We get to write about the things that we’re experiencing at the time, and I did not have a beard as a child.
Rabinowitz: There’s a lot of freedom inherent in making kids music. People think that you have to dumb down kids music, but you really don’t. I really think children can appreciate music of all kinds, if the content of the songs is geared towards them.
Given your backgrounds in education, do you ever use your music to teach?
Stein: For our first record, we presented at the NAEYC (National Association for the Education of Young Children)…and we made a guide for it. For our second record, we didn’t make a teacher’s guide, but we write very much with a preschool-aged focus, with classroom fundamentals and benchmarks in mind.
Rabinowitz: It’s a fun challenge to make counting to ten into something clever and fun… And I like the idea of edifying, teaching, being able to give something other than just the joy of listening.
Tell us about touring with Yo Gabba Gabba!
Stein: [One of their producers] brought his kids to our show, [“PASTA!”], and they loved it. Then, he approached us about touring with Yo Gabba Gabba!…Some of the stuff that Yo Gabba Gabba! has done we’re huge fans of. It was an honor to go on the road with them.
Rabinowitz: Those guys are awesome.
What’s next for The Pop Ups?
Rabinowitz: We’re working on our new album, we’re always looking for new ways to get our videos out there, and we’re just excited to keep making stuff.
Stein: We feel like this is just the beginning of what is it we get to do.
