New York, NY (Sugar Mountain PR) -- V2
Music is proud to announce the launch of a new family music label,
Little Monster Records. The label will feature new family-friendly music releases by some of today's top artists in a range of musical genres.
Principals in Little Monster Records include Kate Hyman, formerly Vice President of A&R with V2 Music. Just in the past decade, Hyman has fostered a stellar array of platinum selling, Grammy Award-winning artists including Moby, Grandaddy, Toots and the Maytals and Aimee Mann. Her partner in life and in business is rock-pop musician and in-demand record producer Kevin Salem (Rachael Yamagata, Giant Sand, Mooney Suzuki). This dynamic musical duo say their four year old daughter is their best inspiration in guiding the new label.
They'll launch November 7th with a Beatles tribute CD/storybook called "All Together Now" (featuring Marshall Crenshaw, Rachael Yamagata and artists from Grandaddy and The Bangles singing with a natural-sounding children's chorus). All Together Now will debut exclusively at all Barnes & Noble Stores in North America before becoming available to other retail outlets in May 2007. The CD will be packaged with a together-time storybook with colorful illustrations, poems and interesting Beatles facts, designed so that parents can share their experience of the Beatles with their children.
This parent-child musical sharing is key to the mission of Little Monster Records, says Hyman. A host of forthcoming music and DVD releases point to the sophistication and all-ages appeal of their musical choices.
In first quarter 2007, Little Monster will release a Medeski, Martin & Wood children's CD, "Let's Go Everywhere," a collection of high – energy tunes for singing and jamming along. Next up will be an animated music DVD "Gustafer Yellowgold's Wide Wild World" by Morgan Taylor. "Soulville" a collection of classic R & B and soul, featuring singers Ray Frazier, Tabitha Fair, and Chocolate Genius (again accompanied by children singers) will also be released next year. The label is talking with other artists and bands for future releases, and just signed Robert Schneider of Apples in Stereo to record a CD under the moniker of Robert Bobbert and the Bubble Machine.
What sets Little Monster Records apart from the current onslaught of children's music releases is its high production quality and the way each release is designed for sharing by grown-ups and adults. "It's all about the music," notes Hyman. "Music is regarded as a necessity in our home, not something we take lightly. We are carefully choosing artists and projects that offer great music that doesn't talk down to kids."
Salem has worked closely with artists and children singers in the studio and says he's setting the production standards high. "I don't like to make records that people can talk over -- I want to challenge listeners a little." He notes that artists are eager to participate. "It's something about the innocence and joy of children's music that appeals to them -- and to us," he notes. "This is music that will make you smile, as it did the day we recorded it."
Little Monster Records releases will be marketed and launched in innovative ways, according to V2's Greg Barbero. "We went into this understanding how children's music has to be marketed. It's great not to be bound by the standard operating procedures. But on the other hand, you have to search out new landscape, and that is a much less quantifiable journey. In this market, you have to offer something original when you're launching children's music at retail. The nontraditional packaging and recognizable talent are part of what will set this CD apart." Barbero suggested the unique book/CD package to Scott Hueston, the head of the V2 sales department, who arranged the label's exclusive rollout of All Together Now with Barnes and Noble.
V2 Music CEO Andy Gershon is offering strong label support to the launch of Little Monster. He is excited by the prospect of fostering a new imprint devoted to high quality music for all ages. "Little Monster is the obvious musical genre for a label like V2. We realized that teaching kids to listen to good quality music must start at an early age. In order to stamp out the Jessica Simpsons and Britney Spears of the world, kids must be exposed to quality and that is the sole mission of Little Monster, as well as having fun of course. There will be no Mouseketeers on this label."
For her part, Hyman wants to build Little Monster into a classic children's music brand that parents know and trust. "Children's music is not a fad. We want these recordings to be around for a long time, and for people to come to recognize Little Monster as a brand offering quality music. That will be a reason to buy these CDs."
V2 Music is a New York City based independent record label. V2 was originally formed in 1995 by Richard Branson. Sheridan Square Records purchased V2 earlier this year, joining its forces with Artemis Records. The label's multiplatinum selling artists include the White Stripes, Moby and the Raconteurs.
Little Monster Records website will launch soon at www.littlemonsterrecords.com. For now, visit www.v2records.com for updates and news.
