Children’s media company Slumberkins is branching out into a new line of entertainment and education with a music album dropping later this summer.
The first single, “Heart Family,” is out today and is performed by A Great Big World, the Grammy Award-winning duo of Ian Axel and Chad King.
The album is called “Together We Shine, Vol. 1” and features seven songs for children and families that are all based on books from the Slumberkins line. The Vancouver-based company has published more than 50 books that feature characters and stories that address social and emotional learning for kids. The single and the album will be available on streaming platforms.
The songs are very close to the words in the books or are closely based on the stories but with the artists' take on the message, said co-founder and co-CEO of Slumberkins Callie Christensen.
“We are so excited about music. We have always known the importance and power of music, especially when it comes to exploring the emotional world,” said Christensen.
The album is executive-produced by platinum-selling indie-pop artist Ingrid Michaelson, who is also one of the performers. Also on the album are: Rachel Platten, Trevor Hall, Britnee Kellogg, AHI and Mosley Wotta.
“We all wanted this record to resonate with the parents and caretakers just as much as with the kids, and I think this amazing group of talent did just that,” said Michaelson in a written statement.
The first single centers on the story of Otter, a character who helps children understand that there are many different ways to be a family including a chosen family. Christensen said this book and character has resonated in the foster care community, adoptive families and families with members who might be far apart from each other.
The album comes on the heels of a television show produced by Slumbkerins and The Jim Henson Co. The show premiered in November on Apple TV+. Christensen said they don’t have details on the streaming data, but the company has seen strong community response. She is especially proud that the show got a five-star rating by Common Sense Media, a children's advocacy group that reviews kids media.
“'Sesame Street' gets five stars,” she said of the rating.
Slumberkins also has a free app children can use to have an interactive moment with the characters. Christensen and co-founder and co-CEO Kelly Oriard are also experimenting with going live on Facebook and TikTok to talk to their community on social media. Christensen noted that a recent TikTok Shop live stream had 43,000 people join over the course of an hour and a half.
The company is investor-backed, but Christensen said they aren’t looking at raising new funds in the near term as venture capital investors have pulled back and the general economy remains uncertain. She noted the team is taking a conservative approach and controlling their spending.
“We are back to the scrappy days,” said Christensen. “Things like producing this music album, we have never done this before. It’s the same with (new social media efforts like) TikTok Shop. These initiatives have inspired Kelly and I as entrepreneurs to put back on the entrepreneur hat and navigate something new we haven’t done before and bring something creative (to the world).”
The company remains fast-growing. It was No. 56 on the Portland Business Journal Fastest-Growing Private Companies list. It had 2022 revenue of $13.8 million and a two-year growth rate of 79%. Earlier this year the 8-year-old company hit 1 million books sold.
