By MARIA SHERMAN AP Music Writer
NEW YORK (AP) — Parents of toddlers everywhere, prepare yourselves. YouTube sensation and music teacher Ms. Rachel and her husband, Aron Accurso, will release their debut album, the 23-track “I’m So Happy,” on Sept. 25.
“Music is such a wonderful way for people to bond, for parents to bond. I know from the minute my kids were born, we’re singing to them,” Ms. Rachel, whose real name is Rachel Griffin Accurso, said.
Ms. Rachel launched her mega popular YouTube channel in 2019 with her husband, known online as Mr. Aron.
“I am a music educator, so I get excited about kids hearing a real clarinet on ‘Icky Sticky Bubble Gum’ and kids getting excited about hearing more real instruments,” said Ms. Rachel.
But that isn’t the only education they’ll get from the album. A song like “I Could Be Your Friend” gives kids a script for bolstering their social skills. “We’re always thinking about all kinds of kids, whether they have disabilities, whether they’re autistic,” she said. “We just want the world to feel like it’s helpful to all children and the musical worlds as well.”
The songs aren’t limited by genre, either. Take the single “I Love a Rainbow” as an example: It’s a big bossa nova number. Their take on the classic “Old McDonald” leans bluegrass.
“Music is at the heart of our show,” added Aron Accurso. “And so, we’ve always wanted to release the music and have families experience the music away from the screen.”
Big arrangements and simple songs
“I’m So Happy” was co-produced by Aron Accurso and Grammy winner Scott Riesett and principally arranged by Mr. Aron as well. Aron Accurso reimagined a number of Ms. Rachel’s fan favorite songs and childhood classics with a team of 19 vocalists and 42 instrumentalists.
“It’s songs that people know from the show, but we decided to expand them and elevate them with new arrangements and reproducing them,” Aron Accurso explained. “It was a process of, you know, looking at them and saying, ‘OK, what else can we do to this to make it sparkle more? What can we add to it? What does it need to be on the album?'”
He says they most hope that the album will inspire “living room dance parties, because that’s what we love with our children,” he said. “We love to put on an album and dance around.”
An album next to advocacy
Ms. Rachel has made headlines over the last few years for using her social media platforms to advocate for global humanitarian crises, with particular attention given to the plight of children in Gaza and those detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Most recently, she shared comments about the mysterious death of 18-year-old Nolan Wells in Mississippi, a case shadowed by the state’s fraught racial history and lingering distrust in law enforcement.
“We know the investigation and everything that followed would have been different if Nolan Wells were white and his friends were black. Nolan and his family deserve justice,” she wrote on Instagram.
Ms. Rachel says she knows her album may bring attention to her advocacy and vice versa. “I view myself as an advocate for children’s rights so anytime they’re being violated by anyone anywhere, I want to be speaking out,” she said. “I want families to be happy and safe and healthy, and I think that’s a wonderful thing. So, if it’s brought up with the album, that’s great.”
‘I’m So Happy’ Tracklist
1. “I’m So Happy” 2. “I Love a Rainbow” 3. “Icky Sticky Bubble Gum” 4. “Phonics” 5. “Hop Little Bunnies” 6. “Caterpillar” 7. “Up and Down” 8. “Bubble Pop” 9. “Walkin’ at the Zoo” 10. “Open Shut Them” 11. “I Could Be Your Friend” 12. “I Listen to My Body” 13. “The Wheels on the Bus” 14. “Dino Play” 15. “Pop Those Bubbles” 16. “Old MacDonald” 17. “If You Should Meet an Elephant” 18. “Counting to 20!” 19. “B-I-N-G-O” 20. “Lobby Loo” 21. “Big Feelings” 22. “Together” 23. “I Love You to the Moon”