KindieFest is the world’s first-ever family music conference that fully embraces today’s market in all its diversity. Focusing exclusively on music for kids and families, KindieFest helps uncover the fastest-growing aspect of the music business: family entertainment.
KindieFest, which grew out of industry showcases in 2007 and 2008, got started on Saturday, May 2, 2009, in Brooklyn (under the name StinkFest), with a sold-out day of panels and a night of music and fun. Read all about 2009′s event here.
In 2010, KindieFest expanded to three days, including a first-night party and keynote and a Sunday public festival. Read all about 2010 here.
In 2011, we had another great year; see the schedule and more here.
KindieFest is an event of KindieFest LLC. Who we are:
Tor Hyams Grammy® nominated producer Tor Hyams has over 20 years of experience in the music and film industries, from writing and performing his own material to producing world-class recording artists, live music festivals for children, short films and digital programming, and composing dozens of scores for both film and television. Among his 46 commercial releases, Hyams wrote and produced an award-winning, star-studded children’s CD called “A World of Happiness,” and has since had a sheet music/activity book published with Alfred/Warner Chappel by the same name. He co-founded Kidzapalooza and produces the family stages at Austin Kiddie Limits and the West Beach Music Festival. He has his own label, Happiness Records with E1 Entertainment, has led the children’s music panel at South By Southwest the last three years and is a music judge for the NAPPA Awards.. http://tor.net
Stephanie Mayers fell into the kids’ music world while managing publicity at World Cafe Live, a concert venue in Philadelphia. There she created and produced the award winning kids’ concert series Peanut Butter & Jams and earned a solid reputation for her knowledge and insight of the changing industry. Realizing she found her calling, Stephanie then founded Kindie Rock PR, a public relations firm specializing in the promotion and marketing of independent kids bands whose clients included AudraRox, The Terrible Twos, Randy Kaplan and others. She then spent the next 3 years in Manhattan at Putumayo World Music as Promotion and Event Director for the international record label (including its hugely successful Putumayo Kids imprint) and since 2010 has been with Festival Five Records (home of Dan Zanes) as its Marketing & Operations Director. Stephanie also writes for the widely succesful CoolMom Picks.com. stephanie AT kindiefest DOT com
Bill Childs produces, with his kids, the weekly radio show Spare the Rock, Spoil the Child. The show, featuring “indie music for indie kids,” airs on a commercial AAA station, 93.9 The River (WRSI) in Northampton, Massachusetts and southern Vermont, and received a 2009 NAPPA Gold Award, among many other acknowledgments. He has written a syndicated kids’ music column published in regional parenting magazines and served as the music stringer for Parenting magazine. He has produced numerous kids’ concerts in the Pioneer Valley and elsewhere, including annual showcases in Brooklyn and Austin, Texas, and series at the Iron Horse Music Hall and the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art. He co-produces the River’s annual Meltdown, (rivermeltdown.com), a family music and book event that draws thousands, and the family stage at the Green River Festival. In 2010, he founded Spare the Rock Records, releasing Many Hands: Family Music for Haiti, selected by Amazon as the best family music release of the year. Many Hands has, to date, raised over $40,000 for Haitian relief. Not long after KindieFest 2011, with Susie Tennant, he created kinDIY.org, a wiki-based resource for family musicians. He also did college radio (WMCN St. Paul) and co-owned a record store, Tremendous Imposition Records, in Minneapolis, long ago. By day, he’s a law professor at Western New England University. http://sparetherock.com; show AT sparetherock DOT com
Mona Kayhan served as Director of Putumayo Kids, the kids and education division of Putumayo World Music, for over 6 years. She was instrumental to the development, success and growth of Putumayo Kids and was the executive producer for a number of award-winning Putumayo Kids releases including Jazz Playground, Picnic Playground, European Playground, Sesame Street Playground, Rock & Roll Playground and more. She continues to consult on Putumayo’s branding and product development and currently serves as the Marketing and Operations Director at Dubspot, the cutting edge DJ and electronic music production school in NYC. Mona also contributes to the world music community as the founder and board member of the Persian Arts Festival, a non-profit events organization dedicated to showcasing the magnificence and diversity of Persian art and culture through its voices, artists and visionaries. mona DOT kayhan AT gmail DOT com
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I would like to attend Kindiefest 2012. I always seem to find out about the events after they’ve happened. Is there a mailing list you can put me on so that I will receive the registration notification next year? It also looks to me like there’s a limited amount of participation by performing arts centers. I’d be interested in talking to you, if it seems like a good idea, about how to get more presenters to see these showcases, at the very least, and perhaps to the panels as well. Thanks. Best, Lisa
If you look in the right-hand column there’s a place to sign up for the mailing list. 2012 will be April 27-29 in Brooklyn!