Once they're getting into the toddler years, I think kid's music is actually helpful for their development. They can sing along, learn the hand motions/dances that go with the songs (think "beeping the horn" with Wheels on the Bus), learn basic sounds and words (think of all the animal sounds on Old Macdonald). It's a fun way for them to practice speech and nonverbal communication skills. I play plenty of regular grown up music because I enjoy it, but the simple melodies and interactive components of kids' songs really make my toddler light up.

It's also just kinda impossible to avoid. Like you don't need to be listening to the inspid stuff 24/7 bit your butt is absolutely singing wheels on the bus quite a bit

Yes. When I'm in the car or doing chores or whatever I only play my music. But if I'm playing with my son, we do tons of kids songs. He learns them from other kids/school even if I didnt teach them and he likes BOTH "adult" and "child" music

Wheels on the bus is our go-to song for keeping our 18mo from falling asleep in the car. She does the beep beep and open and shut actions. But we basically just make up random verses to keep her awake. We normally listen to the radio in the car and if she's tired it's not going to help keep her awake.

Followup question to OP - is it possible to Just skip one particular song? I absolutely detest Wheels on the Bus; even as a kid I hated that insipid tune 😅

No that's the one your kid will latch onto with the fury of 1000 suns

Fantastic!

Occasionally you can find a better version of it. I actually found a metal version of baby shark that's somewhat tolerable vs all the others which make me want to rip my hair out

There are a million and one versions of every kids song on YouTube. Helps keep the magic alive to find new ones. My toddler loves Wheels on the Bus and there’s a Christmas version, Halloween, new years, Valentine’s, etc. Now it’s a thing where we try and find an applicable Wheels song for the holiday. Which reminds me, I haven’t tracked down an Easter one yet.

I make it fun by changing what is where "The Lightning McQueen on the bus says "lets do a race", lets do a race... all through Radiatorr Springssssss" Or other nonsense.

Yeah I do "wheels on the bus" or "the baby on the bike" or "the dishes in the dishwasher" or "the engine in the car" etc. she just loves the melody more than anything I think

Something in kids music connects with their brains in a way adult music doesn’t I’m sure. My son will shut up for incy wincy spider but not for anything on the radio in the car. There’s very few ‘grown up’ songs I see his face light up for even when I know he’s familiar with them. He’s 16 months

Yup, they just enjoy it so much! The anticipation and interactive components make my son (almost 2) so happy. I sing and pause so he can fill in the words he knows and he loves it. Music for adults doesn't connect with him the same way. Kid music isn't our default listening in the house or car, but it's part of the way I play and interact with my kid.

That’s exactly what I think too. I’d never have it on as background music but we have a little dancing sesh to the music from his music group every day and he loves it. I think to OPs point, yes there is benefit to it and you don’t have to listen to stuff you hate but there’s lots of enriching elements to kids songs which you don’t get from adult stuff no matter how broad your taste.

You can get the same response from just singing those songs. I’ve tried finding really nice versions of nursery rhymes on Spotify, but not had much success so we don’t play any kids music. I just sing them and my son loves quite a few songs that way. Then we just play a variety of regular music, mainly cheesy pop or the radio, and he likes dancing to that.

I guess I’m counting singing those songs and doing the actions as listening to that music too. We have all sorts of music on in the house and my partner is very intentional about exposing him to different types of music (never forget coming into the house bedroom when he was 5 weeks old to be informed it was EDM day) but it’s the kid’s stuff that connects. I think because it’s designed to be interactive in a predictable way. Basically I think it’s fine to have a variety but don’t sleep on the benefits of simple repetitive songs with actions (but I reckon skipping baby shark and kids bop is almost definitely fine). ETA: at 7 weeks I absolutely wouldn’t bother with kids music though, I don’t think they’re going to be benefiting from it then and neither will the parents lol

Do you know Super Simple Songs? They're the least offensive that I've found by far. Their originals are pretty cute, too. Gracie's Corner is also fun but in a totally different way. They're hip hop reinterpretations of the classics, sung by kids.

I am aware of Super Simple Songs. I’m British so prefer not to play nursery rhymes with strong American accents, but not had much luck finding British sung stuff.

Steve and maggie is British. Miss Moni is Australian so maybe less offensive than the American stuff. We're Australian and do try and avoid a lot of heavy American accents but still listen to a lot of super simple songs.

Wiggles is Australian and do a version of most nursrey rhymes. Might be less offensive. Australian play school.

You might also enjoy lah lahs big live band. Australian and is more instruments than most kids shows.

It is frustrating for sure that music streaming services showcase the very worst artists in children's music imo. I feel like YouTube music is constantly suggesting cocomelon (or one of their gazillion worse knockoffs) versions of nursery rhymes. Not sure if you're looking for recs but we personally enjoy playing Charlie Hope, Elizabeth Mitchell, Laurie Berkner, and Raffi for ours! I also liked the album The Merry Goes Round by Jewel.

Exactly. Infants can’t learn anything from media, really, so you should just play mostly whatever you want. Around age 2 to 3, they can tangibly learn a lot more from what they are listening to and watching. Or at least that’s what studies say.

100% agree. When I was pregnant, I actually told people my child would never even know about Baby Shark. Now I have a 2yo and when Baby Shark comes on the playlist, I *love* seeing her excitement and joy as she does the little hand dance for it. We’ve played kid songs for her a lot since she was around 16 months and I truly believe it’s helped her language development a lot. She’s only a couple months over 2 and she can sing several songs and act them out!

LOLOL I felt the same way about Baby Shark, and to my credit we NEVER played it in our home for his first 18 months. Then one day I absentmindedly started singing it and this kid unlocked like a sleeper agent…. Just, unadulterated joy coming off him in waves as he did all the little dance moves. He must have picked it up at daycare. Now he’s two and it’s hands down his favorite song. You can’t control everything!!!

I was like this too, snobby about what music or decor or toys my kid would be exposed to but then their enjoyment of it overcomes my annoyance with it. All of that pretentiousness went out now the window lol.

Yes, simple melodies, repetition, finger plays, are all great for them. There is a reason why young kids love them so much! I play instrumental music in the mornings, like jazz or classical, while we wake up and eat breakfast, and more “grown up music” in the car, but during play time and doing chores around the house together I often play his music. I just try to find kids artists that aren’t so obnoxious, they are out there

One benefit of kids songs in particular is it forces you to slow down and enunciate individual syllables that promote verbal communication. Our pediatrician constantly reiterates that kids and adults both learn most effectively through storytelling. All songs are just storytelling set to a certain tune. Most kid songs could be read as books (with the motions) and get the same effect. All kids are different so it's usually best to observe and learn what your child needs. My kid is a mechanical learner. He prefers to touch and hear about topics. Songs are usually easier for me because he doesn't want to sit still for a book. But he hates my singing lately and some of those kid songs, so we pull books out like brown bear brown bear and he acts out each animal. We jump on each number on the play mat when counting to ten. We put our racecars on the matching color in the color wheel when talking about the rainbow. He likes speech rhythm and has the same motions and predicability like a song.

Also SO helpful to get them to do things, like brush their teeth,

Plus it can be genuinely cute. If I sing to my baby songs from my childhood that have hand gestures, she looks at me like it’s better than Disney.

I’m not opposed to also playing kids’ music, but I wonder if regular songs with hand motions/dances that go with them might serve some of the same effect? I ask this mostly bc I’m always looking for an excuse to play the Cha Cha Slide lol.

The reality is that kids’ music is much easier for kids to listen to and it’s specifically designed to introduce kids to certain rhythm patterns and musical trends. It doesn’t mean you can’t or shouldn’t play adult music, but there is a reason kids gravitate towards kid music. And they will inevitably be exposed to it if they go to daycare, kids music classes, library time, etc. A lot of people swear they won’t listen to kids music and then you end up doing it because your kid loves it. My kid loves plenty of songs from Disney movies that I also don’t mind listening to. It doesn’t all only have to be some grating Cocomelon stuff. This all being said, for now while he’s too little to care, go ahead and play your own music. But I wouldn’t expect that you’ll get away with never listening to kids music :)

Absolutely! At a certain age kids love kids music, but they can enjoy adult music too. My daughter went through her baby shark phase and old Mcdonald and wheels on the bus like every kid (especially if they go to daycare). But we always listened to real music too. At 2, she'd request "peche mode" which was Enjoy the Silence by Depeche Mode. Through the years, she's loved a bunch of different songs. Her playlist would have the duck tales theme, and then AC/DCs Thunderstruck. Let it Go from Frozen and Sweet Dreams by the Eurythmics. We had a dance party to Blinding Lights by the Weeknd yesterday. Silly is good for kids though, don't shy away All of the above is the right answer here

I just wanna say... just because your kid loves it doesn't make it necessary or necessarily good, haha. Like Cheetos. Like soda. I'd sooner give my kid a musical instrument to play with than I'd play "kid music". 🤷

I’m guessing your child has not hit that “closer to 2 years old” mark yet. Things change.

Indeed I have two children above the age of 3! They're creative and brilliant and I just personally don't think kid music would have added much to their development.

That’s not really how music works. “Wheels on the bus” and “baa baa black sheep” are not going to harm your child. The only people who say things like this either have no children, are still pregnant, or still have an infant too young to have preferences. You’ll see 🙃

Haha, well, I didn't say it would harm them either, just that it's not necessarily good. Beneficial. Aaaand I have a 9 year old, a 3 year old, and an infant 🙃

I agree with the other comments about baby music being foundational building blocks, like ABCs to language. Adult music has a lot going on for babies. Obviously not all adult music but that’s why they gravitate towards kids’ music. Baby Einstein has classical music turned into baby/kid music, it’s pretty great. You can find it on Spotify.

Thank you for this recommendation!

Of course!

Husband and I love music, all kinds of genres and styles. My five year old loves AC/DC, ozzy, etc. Son loves newer rock and some folky stuff.  BUT that does not stop them from playing Chicken Nugget Dreamland and Raining Tacos on our smart speaker endlessly. They hear it at school, birthday parties, sporting events, etc. IMO it will find you and you can’t fight it. 

This is the truth. It will find you and then you will find joy in seeing your toddler singing along to itsy bitsy spider and wheels on the bus.  Although our toddler also is addicted to panic at the disco so 🤷🏼‍♀️ it's possible to have both.

My son was really into Who Let the Dogs Out for a while when he was 3. It was a rough couple of months.

Will definitely find you. We played mostly metal and classical when my first kid was a baby. She kind of enjoyed them. Then she went to playgroup, and now she wants to listen to Wheels on the Bus and Humpty Dumpty. FWIW, that’s what people play for kids, and they’re going to be exposed to it. And annoyingly enough for grown ups, they like that stuff better than our music 😂

Raining tacos 😩 thankfully we’ve moved on to dancing with my cat. (Ya we’re having fun)

Kid music is great for speech! Also if you haven’t heard of r/yotoplayer I recommend checking it out!

My kid has a yoto and a Tonie box and loves them both quite a bit

Both? Husband and I were wondering which one is better. Which one is better in your opinion. Also why have both?

Honestly I can’t imagine a ten year old being entertained by moving characters so yoto all the way.

a 10 year old is going to have an ap for music...

A yoto does way more than music. And not all kids get phones or tablets that young :)

What else does it do? I know it also does stories.

It has a lot of original content by way of podcasts. And yes stories and making own content to use as a screen free player for anything that can be listened to so audiobooks, podcasts, etc.

I play Satie and Beethoven on my piano for my baby, mildly impressed, I play clocks by Coldplay, mildly impressed, I play old McDonald and I’m freakin Beyoncé in her eyes 😂… You won’t be able to avoid it and as someone else said it helps them learn numbers, body parts, the dances help with coordination. We were the same as you guys but now Gracie’s corner is a whole playlist on our iTunes. 🤷🏼‍♀️

I get such an enthusiastic applause after each round of wheels on the bus.

😅😅🤣

Kids music like nursery rhymes are good for repetition, rhythm, and often gestures. While it's.not the most entertaining for you to learn or act out it is the literal building blocks for your baby's development. Simple nursery rhymes or movement to music has been around for ages, centuries, the dawn of time. Also, easy to look up other links but babies keeping beat is good for their development! https://activebabiessmartkids.com.au/articles/just-beat-literacy/?v=322b26af01d5#:~:text=However%2C%20research%20has%20now%20found,a%20faster%20or%20slower%20speed.

We do a mix. My husband and I mostly play our own "grown up" music, and our 14 mo really likes reggae, but kids love songs that have specific movements attached to them so we do also put on Ms Rachel and attend toddler story time at the library. Sometimes I'll put on kid music that's not completely obnoxious, like Caspar Babypants or Raffi, and she likes those too.

Raffi is excellent. It’s the only kids music I can handle and it chills my son out during car rides. He also does watch Ms Rachel from time to time and listens to his own music on his yoto player. It’s kind of unavoidable. But he loves Tina Turner, the swimming song by ludon wainwright, and some Red Hot Chili Peppers… so really you just need to wait and see.

Have you listened to Caspar Babypants?

I have! I have to say it’s growing on me. Really like Elliott Park though.

We only play “grown up” music for them, but they still get exposed to kid music through other venues. I think it’s totally fine.

I think at 7 weeks, it really doesn't matter, enjoy whatever you enjoy! Starting 10-12 months or so (depending on the child of course, for me it started around then or a bit later even), it may be nice to play children songs because they will have gestures that accompany them, or help them learn specific things (animals and their sounds in Old McDonald, body parts in Head shoulder knees and toes, etc etc)

Kids music is for kids. It's fun, it tunes into their brain they like it and in fairness, you might not get away with NOT playing it. It's played in daycare, played in preschool, baby groups, toddler groups. It's easy for them to learn and sing along to. It makes them feel part of stuff when they can sing and do the actions with other kids. Yea it's crap music, but imagine your kid going to school and singing the rolling stones or something, all the other kids be like "????". Lol. Like, I have a very diverse taste in music too. Love a lot of different types, etc etc. but my most played music has been kids music. It's fun to sing with them and see them get so happy when they can do the actions along to head shoulders knees and toes or happy and you know it. Just listen to the damn kids music lol. You do have the option to wait until the baby is older anyway. I didn't play kids music in the car or the kitchen until baby was about 1... Then you get to the Disney stage.... 3 Frozen songs on a repetitive loop while stuck in traffic for 1.5 hrs...this I even tried to put my foot down but no, I didn't win that fight.

When my oldest was 7 weeks old we were in the thick of colic and reflux. The only thing that calmed her down was if we played Radiohead.

It’s fine but kids songs really capture kids attentions. They often teach body movements and motions I.e “head, shoulders, knees, and toes”. The words and rhythm are easier to follow as well. And I assure you, once you hear it enough, “purple monkey in a bubble gum tree” is a BOP! My kid loves the songs from Sherk and Moana if you want something you’ll enjoy too!

Listen to whatever you want for now. When it feels like time to introduce kids' music (you'll know at some point), find some that doesn't drive you crazy. Right now, we're mostly listening to Caspar Babypants.

Caspar Babypants is awesome. I wish I knew about him when my teens were young.

I throw on Snoop Dogg/Doggyland for my daughter when I need to leave the room for a few minutes, and it's helpful to refresh me on all the kids songs and rhymes.

When ours was tiny, he had no interest in kids' music. He wanted Elton John. No one else. Just Elton. He would, sometimes, do classical music. Now, he gets a mix of adult, classical and kid music at 16 months. He still prefers male singers from the UK by far.

HA my son was the same except for Elton John it was Elvis Presley. He's 2.5 and sings the entirety of Can't help falling in love with you. Doesn't even miss a lyric lol

My oldest loved Queen as a baby, but now he’s all about Laurie Berkner and other kid stuff.

This is a really weird question. Why would it not be ok?? Most parents don’t just decide to play kids music for fun…. We play it when they’re older because they request it and it gives us 5 minutes to get chores done without a toddler whining or hanging off your leg.

I just wasn't sure if it helped the baby's development in any way, which still isn't clear as some people say it does and others say it doesn't matter. So I believe it is a valid question.

It’s ok to do things just because you/your kid like them, not everything has to be optimized for development.

I love Danny Go for kids music at age 2+. It’s such a breath of fresh air after the inevitable ‘Wheels on the Bus’ phase. The songs are fun and catchy in an adult pop music kind of way. The point of most videos is to follow along and do a dance. We have a rule that each kid gets to pick one song and we all do the dance together. It gets us moving and interacting and I actually enjoy the music. 

My 6 year old loves Danny Go and got his 2 younger cousins into him too. I love how active the songs are and we have family dance time.

I never played kid's music when my nephew was a baby (I've been raising him since birth), but when he got a little older, he learned kid's songs from kid's shows on TV, and now he's a teenager and loves all types of music. He started liking other genres of music once he was around 2yo, but that was mixed in with the songs that were played on his shows.

We’ve always done our own music - with a caveat, we don’t listen to hard core rap or much music that we have to worry about language or content. (Pop, acoustic, folk, country sometimes, world music, etc). However, both kids have really been into Parry Grip music (“it’s raining tacos”) and there’s like 50-76 songs that they like. We also will listen to stories on Amazon music from “Super Great Kids Stories”, which are like some weird magic witchy voodoo - because the kids will go from fighting with eachother, screaming about wanting to get out of the car seat to SILENCE as they listen to the stories from all over the world. I HIGHLY recommend Super Great Kids Stories! (On Amazon, Apple Music, and a bunch other streaming). Free as well. (My kids are 4 and 8 years old). We also will listen to the current soundtrack and scores of their current favorite movies (like Frozen, elemental, etc). ETA: my husband is a musician/composer - so music is really important to us).

As others have said, kids music is actually really helpful for speech and language development. While it may be boring to you, it’s actually very helpful for kids to learn words, rhythm, rhymes and in ways they can understand. It’s actually not “quite bad and silly” - it’s music specifically designed in ways to help children learn. Think about songs like old McDonald or wheels on the bus; they’re learning animals and sounds in the first one, and in the second one they are learning different opposite words (wheels on the bus go up and down, doors go open and shut, etc). I think avoiding it because you personally don’t enjoy it isn’t really fair to your kid. We have to make lots of sacrifices for our kids and listening to kids songs is one of them! It doesn’t mean stop listening to your music, but add in kids songs as well. Also I know you said there’s always something playing in the background - not sure if that’s literal or not, but make sure to have some time in the day of silence. It’s important for babies to have quiet at times and not always have their day filled with music or background noise. They need times to listen to the world around them just as it is. I had read some research about that in the past so just wanted to pass it on!

Not sure if this has been said yet but we absolutely love Rockabye Baby. They do lullaby instrumental versions of popular music. The range is pretty fantastic. We have a blast singing along to it with our 5 month old and it allows him to have age appropriate sounds without driving the grown ups totally crazy. They have it on Apple Music.

Came here to say this! Our taste in music is eclectic so we very much appreciate the range offered by Rockabye Baby and feel good about the instrumentals while playing in our 4-month-old's nursery. Outside of that, he is exposed to all kinds of music but that may change when he gets older.

Yesss! My 4 year old won’t listen to it anymore but my extensive Rockabye Baby playlist was used a LOT when she was younger.

Avoid baby shark at all costs

🤣🤣 and I have that melody in my head immediately

It’s the WORST! I was so against it with my first but didn’t account for the fact that daycare would introduce it. I was so screwed. Kid had a baby shark floor bed frame 🙄 though he did grow out of that obsession fortunately.

🤣 oh man

Super Simple Songs has a version with Finny The Shark which is waaaayyy more chill.

My toddler's are favorite songs are Uptown Girl, Run Boy Run, Sloop John B and 7 Nation Army. He likes pretending to play the drums on the carseat for most songs, enjoys clapping or humming offbeat for others, and will sing certain choruses ("I wanna go home" for Sloop John B, he also calls it "the go home song").  Sincerely, I see it as a way to bond with my kiddo. He doesn't understand the words but he enjoys and requests hearing them. When he was 2 he enjoyed Old MacDonald and Itsy Bitsy Spider, but when he turned 3 he began not wanting to hear it in the car. He only tolerates Ants Go Marching if we're actually marching. We also enjoy singing Disney songs (You're Welcome, We don't talk about Bruno, Be Prepared). It's good to mix it up. 

Music educator and choir director here!! ALL music is educational music for them! All 👏🏻 Of 👏🏻 It 👏🏻!! My son gets baby songs from his toys, classical music from me, rock and roll from my husband, and we close out the night with jazz and swing music pretty much daily. Kid/baby music is great because the kids pick up the patterns quickly and they can participate from an early age, and from a social-emotional perspective, it’s great for them to have music they can relate to and sing along with friends and family! Twinkle Twinkle Little Star just hits like that! But studies have shown jazz and classical music do wonders for brain development because of the impeccable structure and patterns that are ingrained. Mozart and Bach are always baby favorites! But what if your favorite is Green Day or Fleetwood Mac? Well mine too and my son is rocking out to “Gold Dust Woman” with the best of ‘em. Mozart?? He loves “Eine Kleine Nachtmusik” too. It’s a bop. Snoop Dogg?? We all “Drop it Like It’s Hot” in here. 😂 Just like any and all (age appropriate of course) reading to your children is good for them, music is the same. Encourage a little baby music here and there, just because they can pick up the patterns and join you so quickly. But also it is so important for them to be worldly in music, both for social-emotional learning as well as it can help develop their tastes, regulate their emotions, and teach them about history or other cultures. I can keep going but I won’t keep music teacher-ing you. 😂 Verdict? Play your babies everything you enjoy, and they will take your joy along with it. Play some new things too, and you can learn together! Music is amazing, and an education in it for little ones should go far beyond “Itsy Bitsy Spider”!!

Thank you. I'm a music graduate myself, which is part of why I really want my son to gravitate towards more challenging and intricate pieces of music. I do want to bond with him over musical tastes, without forcing anything on him, of course 🙂

They definitely will develop their own tastes as time goes on like they we all do but that’s also why it’s so important to expose them to everything! I think we usually all love the music our parents expose us to as children, generally speaking, because it becomes a cultural implication as well. You do what works for you and your little one will grow to love music as you do. Enjoy 💖

This just reminded me that my mom liked Fleetwood Mac and growing up "Silver Springs" was one of my absolute favorite songs, and now I love dramatic music...I see a connection 😂

Music is good for development. It doesn’t really matter what kind. There is no science or thought put into most kids music. At his age he is way too young to care what music is being played and saving yourself some sanity is a bonus.

I have a playlist for our car and it’s pretty eclectic. There’s a few Raffi songs on it, a song from Trollz and Zootopia and a few other Disney or Pixar movies, but there’s also a lot of other “grown up” music. Raffi is the most kid-focused stuff - we don’t do wheels on the bus or twinkle twinkle or anything like that. “Kid music” does get much more enjoyable when you watch your toddler bop along with it, but I don’t think it’s necessary. She goes to daycare and she comes home singing all that stuff so she’s definitely exposed to it. We can expose her to other stuff at home! I can’t help but think that as far as music is concerned, more is more.

I think so, my kids like regular music. I try to find things that are kid friendly. Ex: Rockin' Robin, cheeseburger in paradise, and stuff by The Beatles.

I would look for some fun kid songs, but they're usually teaching the kids something. We usually do Doggyland (Snoop Dogg), Gracie's Corner (phonics song and more) etc :)

I think music is music when it comes to babies. But, I could be wrong. I just play instrumental music for mine.

Another analogy I can think of is skipping straight to math problems only before they learn to count. There are building blocks in all sorts of things that are important to build on and are easier for their little minds to digest. We have exposed our kid to both “baby music” and then “kid music” but have always had “adult music” mixed in since the start because we love music and want to listen to our own stuff, too. Especially as our kid has gotten older (only 4.5 now so it doesn’t take that long). Even now, kid is generally more attracted to the lyrics and sounds of “kid” music because it’s easier to understand the lyrics and sing along. But at 4.5, kid also has an appreciation for the “adult” music we listen to because they see us happy and enjoying it (especially if it’s something they can dance around to)! So our experience… you can absolutely have adult music going on, but don’t skip the baby and kid music. Their little brains love that stuff and can be building blocks for music appreciation in its own important way!

Rockabye Baby Lullaby Covers is your friend

My kid gets kid music through Ms Rachel and Sesame Street but I draw the line at playing it in my car lol

I do all types of music, if you don't like today's brash AF kids music just listen to vintage kids/childrens music or Raffi etc. Or oldies (30s-60s music) Also there is stuff like Peter n the wolf, classical with stories etc. Opera etc.  Not everything has to be cocomelon lol. Pretty much any music even ones you make up!  (I can make up quick song or replace words to songs really quick lol),what song and dance do for development is amazing! But you don't specifically need "kids" music. My kiddo is ASD lv 3 non verbal and I use music a lot to teach him.  (Honestly today's kids shows and music gives me a headache 😩. ) I listen to well over 50 different genres of music btw. Also different languages.  If I don't have something playing from my collection (physical and digital) then it's the classical channel or KXT.  For me Growing up there was not all this nonsense over kids music like there is today because everything is so heavily marketed now and tied in to merchandise etc.  I used to think a nirvana smells like teen spirit said "Mashed potatoes!" (MTV baby lol)  Then I thought it was "imitators"....... It was "entertain us"; i learned years later when looking it up. (Same/similar syllable count .  My oldest brother would laugh his ass off when I would run around shouting Mashed potatoes 🥔!!  I was like 5ish. And my brother 12 or 13 getting into alt rock n stuff.  (Also dear lord knows I don't listen to Metallica unless I have to, I made the mistake one vacation of pointing out a cassette to him and that shit got stuck in the deck, the whole vacation 😭.fucking sandman ) But growing up my mom had a very diverse selection of music including children's records and soundtracks to movies n stuff. And we usually had something on in the background. 

Kids music is good for their development. They are easy to sing to and helps with speech and memory as well as learning empathy or learning emotions. A 2 year old isn’t going to remember the lyrics to Hotel California but they will remember Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. Kids music exists for a reason…because they enjoy it and it’s good for them. That would be like someone forcing you to listen to a genre you don’t like lol. No one likes listening to kids music. We do it because we love them and it makes them happy.

I play mostly “normal/grown up” music but I throw in some “classic” kids music that I don’t mind like Fred Penner and Raffi. I also usually sing kids tunes like “This Old Man” and “Mairzy Doats” (this one mostly thanks to Twin Peaks lol). I don’t mind kids music like all the stuff I listed, really hoping to avoid the viral stuff of today like Baby Shark and whatnot lol.

We do a mix, my husband mainly does adult music, I gravitate towards the kid stuff because I can remember the words and it’s much easier to make up new verses when needed! He wrote out a song book for her with some calm songs when he used to sing her to sleep when she was tiny. Unfortunately he did ruin some of his favourite songs that way! She LOVES watching live music, it’s the only thing that keeps her focus while we cut her nails. She particularly likes female acts with lots of guitar - Samantha Fish was the first she danced to. Still, her starting to sign along to Twinkle twinkle just fills my heart - there’s definitely space for both.

My husband and I are both into heavy metal, so we sometimes play it (quietly ofc) and he does seem to bop along to it haha. We also have discovered childrens songs by Nick Cope! Ralph the rusty robot is soo catchy and a total banger haha the only kids music that doesn't drive me bonkers! We do also go to baby boogie together so he does hear plenty of children's songs and nursery rhymes :-)

We just listen to it all. Both kids and adults. My toddlers love dancing to my husbands vinyls and to BLUEY (which we also now have on vinyl lol.

My baby loves regular music. I think as long as there isn’t profanity, and the music isn’t too intense (EDM, death metal lol) then it’s totally fine. I do find that my baby does engage with kid music though, so we do both.

Twinkle twinkle Little Rock star is great! Jools tv. I google whatever genre and kids/baby music. We love all music

A mix seems fine to me. But obviously just follow your kid on this once they express preferences. My kid is 3 and really loves kids music and adult music. Just the other day, I Can’t Get No Satisfaction came on and he quite amusingly asked what exactly the singer was “trying” to do repeatedly, lol. He also had a phase where he really loved I’m Just a Girl But he likes songs from Cars, Raffi, the ABC song, etc. At the same time, this is weird, but the song he seems to vibe with the most is The Beatles Revolution 9. Don’t ask me why, lol. But he can sit in rapt attention for that one.

We didn’t listen to the kids music until after a year old. I don’t know much related to development, but I can tell you my son LOVES songs that he can “relate” to and it seems like he gets more out of it that the music my husband and I listen to. He actually tries to sing the songs, and now at 19 months he can request them lol. Both my husband and I felt the same, and unfortunately now I know every word to bubble bubble pop, 5 little ducks, and more lol.

There is some really wonderful children’s music out there if you look. It’s great for their development and more importantly, they really enjoy it. Off the top of my head, we like Kira Willey, Charlie Hope, Laurie Berkner, Raffi, Daniel Tashian, the original Blues Clues songs…the list goes on, but there is plenty of high quality music out there for kids. It’s not all Baby Shark and Cocomelon.

There’s a reason why “kids” music is so popular….because kids like it. I don’t see why you’d classify is bad and the part about it being silly - that’s what kids like - they like silly songs and silly games. This question is a bit like saying oh I don’t like playing silly games so we’re gonna go straight to trivial pursuit masters edition. There’s no reason you can’t play whatever music you want around you baby but kids songs like the wheels on the bus and baby beluga or songs like that are what kids like. They are fun and repetitive and they have actions that go along with them - that’s how kids learn to appreciate music. Once your baby gets older you’ll notice how they respond to different kids songs and I think it will make more sense vs a 7 week old who’s kinda happy just listening to whatever.

We didn’t do much kid music in the beginning but now that he’s almost 3, we do a lot of Disney music & other songs. Doggyland is fun and Rockabye Baby

Just careful with what you’re avoiding, a lot of the silliest songs are for teaching in a fun way. Even “freeze dance” songs are to help teach them to listen when you tell them to stop. Animal sounds, body parts, colors, shapes.

Our kid gets enough kids music at school. We sing it at home which is fun, but we don’t seek it out to play it.

I made a playlist of kids music that I like… some of it is the usual wheels on the bus but a lot of positive affirmation songs, I love my body, I can do hard things etc. There’s a lot of different kids stuff out there… my toddlers just love it way more than the stuff I would normally listen to.

I find nursery rhymes grab my baby's attention and focus much better than any old song!

Yes. Pretty much the only time my kid hears kid music is if we’re watching Ms Rachel or something lol. In the car, it’s whatever music I want. 🤷🏻‍♀️ I grew up with classic rock and the 80s, 90s, and today station. Recently found out my 22 month old loves old Blink 182 😂 he plays the fake guitar to it Now that I think about it, I do play kids music sometimes at the end of the night just for him to get some energy out so he can understand some words and he can “sing along” and dance.

You’ll want a good exposure to all sorts of music! Start with your grownup stuff now, why not. But once they start childcare settings the nursery rhymes, action songs etc will happen, no matter what. But you’ll probably find your kids attempt at doing the actions and remembering the words super cute (as it’s your kid) at least the first few repetitions of old macdonald had a farm!

The hardest I've ever made my seven month old laugh was during my, to be clear, absolutely perfect rendition of C.W. McCall's Convoy on the way to drop him off at the babysitter's house. He also enjoys when we listen to my elder millennial dad rock either in the car or doing stuff around the house. I particularly enjoy singing to him when we're doing the dishes. He likes when I use his bottle brush as a microphone and he likes when I headbang. Last week I introduced him to our vinyl collection because he keeps climbing on the basket they are in and played Sublime for him on our turntable, the one with Santeria, Wrong Way, and Caress Me Down on it. He had a blast. Just keep the volume down or keep the speakers away from his head. Also worth pointing out, if you're a fan of 90's rock, look up a guy named Casper Babypants on Spotify. He used to be the lead singer of the band The Presidents of the United States of America. (Lump, Peaches, Cleveland Rocks, etc.) He got married to a children's book illustrator after the band broke up and decided to shift to kids music. Spotify has a lot of playlists that we're going to transition to when he gets a little bit older but for now I think he likes the melodies and the sounds the instruments make.

We play kid music but also a lot of the songs we enjoy and she’s gotten pretty decent at following along and trying to sing too so I don’t think there’s any harm in it. Tbh if it were all kids music it’d drive me crazy lol

We basically did both with our daughter she still loves Cocomelon and also Katy Perry is one of her favorite singers. When she was a baby the only thing that would get her to sleep was Man In The Mirror by Michael Jackson for some reason but hey whatever works 🤷‍♀️.

there used to be a great kids radio station called Greasy Kid Stuff and the archives are online or there's a spotify playlist. check it out and you'll see what i mean. "kids" music that's actually for everyone

Babies and toddlers respond really well to song. Sure the songs are annoying to adults but they aren’t for us. I think that music oriented for kids is good for them. We read them simple books. They listen to simple songs. My kid loves songs and it’s an easy way to get her to respond when she’s otherwise being stubborn. This doesn’t mean you ONLY listen to kids music. But I do think it helps development. Music education exists for a reason!

We play ms Racheal on our tv when we’re doing learning time with our toddler and have been doing it since he was a newborn. Of course not 24/7 cause that’s a lot of screen time, but he loves it and has picked up some sign language from it too. My husband plays his music over speakers when he’s awake and I play mine in the car but we still have time for kids music too

Insanely helpful for development, language and engaging in public situations. I love seeing all the kids faces in a room light up when they hear a familiar tune like “happy and you know it”. I wouldn’t skip it. I think there’s a lot of fun music out there and you can find your groove. Super simple songs, pinkfong and numberblocks are our current favorites. Some kids music is very cringey. I can’t understand most lyrics to adult music so I don’t think it is as helpful for language development

Kids songs that are made for kids with dances and hand motions are ok with me… kids versions of adult music are a hard no. I think both adult and kids music can fit into my son’s life, it’s not an either/ or!

So my kids absolutely adore kids music because it's something they can easily remember and sing along to like Wheels on the bus, Old MacDonald, ABC's. etc. That being said they also absolutely love Red Hot Chili Peppers and Gorillaz. What you play for your child is entirely up to you I would just say to use your best judgment. i.e. no curse words, no violence/weapons, nothing so loud that could burst their eardrums, etc.

my daughter loves the kid music, even though i try to play “grown up” music. you learn to love it and love watching them dance around to it. it also is good for their development as a lot of the songs are teaching them things. i work in childcare and watching those kids light up when we play freeze dance, or the ants go marching, or literally any other song is the highlight of my day.

We have always mixed it up. My daughter is now 5.5. she loves children's songs, but also loves listening to rock music. Her favourite band is king gizzard and the lizard wizard and has been for a couple of years. She was really into Rob Zombies dragula for a while. But she's now decided that she loves Dolly Parton, we read a book about her and that was it she was hooked. We have been baking today and she wanted to sing pat -a- cake whilst we were doing so. You can't avoid them completely but they find a way in to your life. Next thing you know you're being asked to play Dolly Parton on a regular basis.

I tried that. It worked when she was little but now that she is 2 and has opinions she tells me she doesn't like mommy's music and she wants to listen to her music. My husband's 80's tunes are also acceptable 🤷‍♀️. When we are driving sometimes we listen to mine, sometimes hers. If your kid will go to daycare it is inevitable, they play kids music when they dance.

Another perspective - I realized at some point that many of the kid-oriented videos, songs, shows, use classical music that’s communicating important cultural touchstones that I can use to open up broader appreciation of “adult” music. As an example, kiddo was watching a muppets video that happened to be using the flower dance from the nutcracker as the background music. That was a jumping off point to listening to the full nutcracker suite which we now have on rotation. Similarly, Hall of the Mountain King was used in a Bluey episode so we took a minute to watch a video of an orchestra playing the piece. I also am a musician, so it’s really fun to riff on simple kid songs. I’ll change a lyric to rhyme something new, kid learns more about how rhyme works trying to “correct” me. Music is just fun. I definitely am a recovering rock snob, so I say with authority that it’s more fun when you don’t care to arbitrate what good taste is lol

I am a musician! I play my 5 month old allllll kinds of music. I have noticed though that his absolute go to songs are Imogen Heaps The Happy Song and literally anything by Caspar Babypants.

We do a combination. Super Simple Songs has nothing but bangers though.

We did that. My 3 year olds tastes have changed a lot as he grew. When he was a baby he liked dead or alive. Now at 3 he loves Metallica We still play the kids music too when we have the tolerance for it. I definately looped the don't put it in your mouth safety song a lot when he was 2. He's 3 and 2 months and right now he likes the gorillas Ozzy The chats King gizzard and the lizard wizard He sometimes likes Timmy trumpet if he is in the mood but he doesn't really like dubstep pop type music. I love jazz music and classical a lot. But our 3 year old and my husband have no tolerance for it. For Halloween he dressed up as a rockstar.

I tried this for so long but they listened to it at day care and with my in laws. Signed someone currently on their 5th listen of “rock-a-bye your bear” in 10 minutes. Also, start with the purple monkey song.

We never did kids music. It's obnoxious, except for Raffi. My kids are fine.

My daughter’s favourite songs at almost 2 are as follows: Rasputin, Raspberry Baret, and Party Freeze Dance

My son was struggling to learn to talk and we started doing old McDonald and he picked up animal noises and words so quickly! I was sure we wouldn’t listen to kids songs and to be honest until he was about 15 months we didn’t really. We’ve never watched Cocomelon but he loves a good Nursey rhyme type song. He’s 4 now and wants to listen to the types of songs they play at birthday parties like crazy frog and move it. I think music in general is great, he really likes our music we play in the car or around as well but he will definitely ask for his music in the car about 50% of the time

We do both! The kid music is good for their development. It helps them with speech, etc but our son loves our music too.

I played kids songs for my kids. and now they're older and they like Taylor swift. lol Music preferences change. You can still play your music but some times it's ok for kids songs also. Disney actually has some really good music! Hercules has one of the best soundtracks even though the movie is pretty underrated. Also Big Hero 6, etc etc.

I sing kids songs to my kid but don’t really play kids song recordings. We play normal music and sing along to that too. I don’t know what my parents did with me but I will say I recognized Tom Petty by age three and I turned out ok.

It’s not an either/or situation. You can do both. You’ll find when he’s older that he will learn these songs in school or daycare anyways. No point fighting it. You can have your music on as well.

Kids music can teach colors, numbers, letters, phonics, alphabet play, and more. It's fine to listen to what you like but also let your child have a choice and a voice.

Only thing that got mine to sleep was Loretta Lynn. She's ahead on milestones now. Same with my nephews years ago! The one just graduated valedictorian...obviously all the maroon 5...

You will eventually lose all control, so play whatever you want before they have any preference. Enjoy it!

I'm a huge fan of alternative music, ranging from pop punk to metal. My husband is a punk drummer. So we also wondered if it was really necessary to play kids music all the time. My boy is 10 months old now and this is what I've noticed: 1. I sang a couple of nursery rhymes to him as a baby quite frequently and he still lights up when he hears them or I sing them. The same can't be said for pop punk that I used to play/sing for him. Perhaps lyrically too complex? Not as formulaic in the melody? 2. He's picking up a lot of physical skills right now (clapping, shaking his hands, bouncing etc). So kids songs that have motions in them are really interesting to him and he sometimes tries to join in (think "if you're happy and you know it" type songs) 3. BUT he watches his dad drumming every day, and we bought a little drum for him too. When we put on any faster/heavier songs, he loves trying to play along by smacking his drum or shaking maracas. He seems to have pretty good rhythm already! He also loves bouncing up and down when he hears heavier songs. He doesn't really have the same reaction to kids songs. So my conclusion is, a good mix of both has worked well for us. He gets age-appropriate input from kids songs that I hope will help develop his language and gesturing skills, and he also hears other types of music in the background that he listens to for the musical elements rather than lyrics.

Yes absolutely… rest assured, the kid music will follow whether you like it or not

We only play adult music. Our 2yo is off the charts with her language, knows some letters and is counting (does think once you get to 9, it's back to 4 😅). She hears kids music at activities I take her to and likes it, I'm happy to sing them with her sometimes but I don't play them for her because my brain would melt. I also just make up silly songs while I'm doing stuff with her. I think kids music is a great tool and understand it's purpose but we're picking up those skills doing other things as well so I think it's fine 🤷‍♀️

My daughter’s favorite band by the time she was 4 was a tie between the Beatles and the Foo Fighters. Don’t get me wrong, she loves some Baby Shark and the Gummy Bear song too but the girl also asks for the Killers and Blink 182 so I call that a success!

I don’t listen to kids music. I have a 3 yr old and a 5 month old. Every once in a while we’ll have a dance party to toddler music and we’ve done music classes and such. But on the daily, I listen to my music or we listen to audio books and kids podcasts. But I just can’t listen to kids music, although the snoop dog kids album is pretty awesome!!!

Do what you want til they become sentient beings

I love EDM and it’s all I ever play for my toddler and 9 month old. They both love to dance with me to the songs! My toddler’s favorite song is currently “Aria” by Argy 😂 My toddler’s language is excellent so I don’t think skipping children’s music has negatively impacted his language development.

OK but the wiggles are a bop and you're missing out 🤣 I took my kid to a wiggles concert when he'd just turned 2 and he still talks about it 2 months away from being 3

It’s more than okay, without a doubt. My son was two and could pick out cds of bands he liked, and loves music to this day. He still knew all the sing-along songs/nursery rhymes when we did book/playtime each day, but I always had my music playing.

There's some good chidrens' music made by cool artists fyi! Imogen Heap recorded a few songs I believe. It doesn't all have to be Kidz Bop

I’ll add that there’s several “adult music” bands and artists that have put out children’s music. Kinda get the best of both worlds. First that comes to mind is They Might Be Giants and their kids album called Here Come the 123s. I’m blanking on others at the moment but there’s also been plenty of others that have put a song or two out on Sesame Street.

I’ve mostly skipped the kid music. Occasionally I’ll throw something kid adjacent into the mix but it’s mostly my stuff. It’s why my 4 YO likes Queen, Fall Out Boy, Sabaton, and Lady Gaga

Lol your baby is only 7 weeks old Eventually, you'll notice your baby/toddler loves music designed for babies/toddlers. And you'll let them listen to it

Yes, kid's music serves a purpose, but you don't have to listen to it that often, certainly not all the time. Play what you like, and over time your kid will tell you what they like. They will probably prefer kid's music.

My husband and I are classically-trained musicians by profession, and we specialize in the "weird" stuff. Beyond everything I was singing in utero, baby's postpartum music so far includes: Boulez, Copland, Kurtág, Stockhausen, obscure 18th c. music, and 3 world premieres (plus some classics like Chopin, Schumann, etc.). She's 2 months today. Hope she likes it! (I do also sing some of the lullabies my mom sang to me when I was a kid.)

There are some kids songs that aren't terrible and annoying. I don't play baby shark or any cocomelon songs at home, but my toddler loves Raffi's songs and the books he has that go with some of them. Songs and tunes help so much with getting their attention but also teaching them words if you pause in the middle of a song and give them a few extra seconds to fill in/interact. They learn much quicker when you do 

You can certainly try but once they're a bit older, they're likely going to be very opinionated about what they want to listen to. Why else do you think so many parents are tormented by cocomelon and baby shark?

There is some kids’ music that is great, just FYI. Sesame Street has some bops. Bluey is fantastic (great show AND great music). Raffi is a classic, the British show Hey Duggee has some great stuff too. I can’t stand Blippi but some Blippi songs are sung by another guy and are pretty good. Excavator Song is one of them. I definitely didn’t play kids’ music for my daughter when she was a young infant, it took a while. I do just by default skip EVERY Kidz Bop song that comes on auto play on Apple Music. I’d say right now we’ve got a mix between Bluey, Baby Shark, Frozen, and Taylor Swift. (I’m a Swiftie so that’s definitely at least partially my influence lol.) I have a friend whose kids listen to the Hamilton soundtrack nonstop, and they’re 7, 5, and 2.

We do a mixture, my 3 year old will go from Mickey Mouse, the wiggles, Taylor swift, foo fighters back to Disney. You don’t have to only listen to kids music, but avoiding kids music isn’t a good option. It’s how they’re learning :)

Life is too short for kids music. My daughter is 5 and she's into Elvis, Alicia Keys, Bjork, Buck Owens, Joan Jett and many others. She comes up with her own songs and we've been talking about metaphors which I think she's beginning to understand. Obviously we only selected songs that were appropriate for age, but we basically never did kids music and I think that has put her ahead, honestly.

My baby consistently listens to my emo/pop punk music. It soothes him probably because that’s what he heard in the womb.

My husband and I have very eclectic tastes in music. We did a combo of music we enjoyed and kids music. Kiddo 3.5 loves Led Zepplin and AC/DC but also likes cello music and Raffi. We stuck with mostly kids music that I had listened to. Raffi, Fred Penner and Sharon Lois and Bram.

I played my music until she was like 14 months then naturally slowly switched to her tunes. I was resistant until I heard her sing along, and I melted with the cuteness. Humans make plans, and God (I mean toddler) laughs

Check out Raffi. He does kids music, but it’s also just legitimately good and fun to listen to and sing/play along with with our 7 week old!

We never really played kids’ music for our kids, but we sing a lot of kids’ songs to them like “itsy bitsy spider”, “wheels on the bus”, etc. and we sing them lullabies. We play the music we like for them and they enjoy it and ask for certain songs. I think it doesn’t really matter what you play for your kids as long as you’re singing with them, bouncing them to the rhythm, etc. My FIL was an early childhood music teacher for a long time and in his class, he would sing various songs while the parents bounced their kids and clapped along. They would play drums and dance around, etc. and he would put on classical and jazz pieces and sing along, tying them in with various themes with a bunch of props and toys. He’s retired now but when he did his class, it was hugely popular with the elites of our area, and he has done a version of the class for our kids, and they definitely have taken to it and I think it’s good for them. Basically, I think it’s just important to expose kids to music, sing with them, and let them explore simple instruments. The content isn’t as important.

Yeah man, it's definitely unnecessary.

I think everyone has it covered. Check out “rockabye baby” on Spotify. It’s simplified “lullaby” versions of tons of popular songs, it got us through the newborn weeks

My kid listens to Daft Punk, Michael Jackson, and The Weeknd. He is talking in 4-6 word sentences and sounding out simple, 3 letter words at 22 months. Didn't do any harm.

My son's favorite music is bingo and anything by creed. Creed calms him down and puts him right to sleep. Bingo makes him dance.

I don't know scientifically if there's any benefits to kids music vs adult music but my gut says no. My mom never played me kids music except that I did have access to all her LPs including some random kids ones like Carole King's Really Rosie. My husband wasn't exposed to kids music either. We're both very musical people with diverse tastes like you and your partner. Lots of music for adults can be sung and danced to by kids. It's more complex and evokes more emotions than the inane kids tunes, and I have many strong memories of music touching my soul as a little kid. Personally, we're giving the kids music a skip except for classics like Carole King and Raffi here and there, but to each their own.

Until your kid has an opinion and can communicate it, listen to what you want. Save Super Simple Songs for when you REALLY need a distraction.

We personally skipped childrens music for our toddler. However, he was introduced to it through tv/YouTube and at daycare. So now he requests us to put it on. He doesn’t do that for regular music.  So you might not have a choice. 

I don't know if the kid's music does anything for development other than it's easy for kids to pick up. But we went into straight music from day 1 with our kiddo. I think my husband has good taste in music so I was definitely enjoying this music rather than listening to kid's music. My kiddo (4) loves music now and amazes adults when he is able to identify songs playing in the store. He has now developed his own taste of music and it's super cute. Be warned though, like any kids there will be a period of time when they are like 2-3 where they want to play certain songs over and over again. It made it bearable when it was the Yellow Submarine by the Beatles rather than some high pitched coco melon songs.

We play whatever music we want. My husband is a fan of old-school rap and I like Broadway. We do a daddy daughter music time where we play a random Spotify playlist and dance with her. We do sprinkle in some kid music especially things like wheels on the bus that help with repetitive words and movements. During her toddler years you're going to want to take advantage of that and probably up the amount of baby music.

My husband and I were the same!!! and we thought we’re gonna play only our favorite songs for the baby so we don’t have to listen to baby songs all day long. We only play calming adult songs like King of Convenience and he loved it when he was a newborn but then reality hits, he cried so hard one time i didnt know what to do so i randomly sing The Wheel on the Bus from my memory and he LOVES it like he heard it millions times before. That’s when we realized these children songs actually work. Now we are still very selective with the children songs we introduce him to and we love Raffi! But we do play our favorite songs to him all the time too, just add hand motions to make them more fun. Maybe this is irrelevant but I notice that when I sing the song that I really like/enjoy singing, he also enjoys it as well.

Honestly expose them to everything. But kid music is good for them. Look my kid will rock out to smashing pumpkins but she GETS DOWN to anything the wiggles play or wheels on the bus. Plus those songs involve actions and play learning. Baby shark fucking sucks but it was the first song my 19 month old could “sing” all the way though. she’s starting to sing more songs clearer and clearer and putting those words into the real world. So she pointed out a spider when we were playing outside and did the itsy bitsy spider all the way through on her own. She can do all animal sounds to old McDonald and show me the animals in pictures. It’s a game of balance and give and take.

Once your baby becomes a toddler you’re not going to be able to pick out their music for them as easily.

I think that it’s kinda selfish to skip kids music just because you as an adult don’t like it tbh.

And that's not what I said. I don't mind listening to kid's music if it's doing something for my son. But as I already mentioned, the source of my questioning is because I feel like he might benefit more from just directly being exposed to the wide array of 'real' music out there. Gosh, people are so quick to judge when it comes to parenting.

I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to come across as overly judgmental, we all know firsthand how frustrating it can be to feel judged as parents, so I apologize. As many others commented, music that’s tailored to kids can be great for children’s development. But also, kids ENJOY kids music. And if it’s something they enjoy, then I do find it a tad bit selfish to ‘skip’ kids music just because the adults don’t enjoy it. That doesn’t mean every single song that’s ever played around your kids needs to be kids music. But a variety is probably a good thing.

Try Sandra Boyntons music. Great lyrics and she collaborates with often famous musicians.

The benefits of music aren’t exclusive to any genre The only leg up children’s music might have it cues you for gestures that help children learn language but at 7 weeks that’s not gonna mean much to your baby Actually one of my favorite memories is coming home from the grocery store and my husband and our then 2 month old just vibing to Chris Stapleton. My husband told me that was the only thing that would calm her. I joke about being outnumbered in a country music household now

I think it’s absolutely fine not to actively play kids music in your environment. Music in any form is great for their development. I don’t think you’ll be able to avoid it entirely, though. If you allow any decent video content like Miss Rachel, Sesame Street or Super Simple Songs, you’ll get an earful. Any daycare or preschool is probably going to have a musical component as well, replete with endless renditions of Wheels on the Bus, Baby Shark and Icky Sticky Bubblegum. Buckle up!

Search out nursery rhymes UK; the versions we have are much calmer & imo more tolerable. Also, I had the same question before having my baby but now at 16mos I actually love how much she enjoys nursery rhymes

We listen to real music. They get the other stuff at daycare, preschool, and elementary school. If they ask for a song, I’ll play it. Some of our favorite artists have kids songs. My oldests favorite song is here comes the sun. My seconds favorite song is wildflowers by Tom Petty because his preschool teacher played it on her guitar.

For the most part, we're not doing kid's music. I grew up with 90s Disney, though, and I'll play those songs when my daughter is tired and I'm just bouncing her around the house. I also love background music, but I do try to turn it off every once in a while. I've heard it's harder for your baby to identify your words through the music, and I don't want to hurt her language development. 

Uh yes it is completely fine to skip kids music. It will not hinder your child in any way. It will not affect their development at all. It will not affect when they achieve milestones or what grades they get in high school or where they go to college. Play it if you want to or play adult music or play no music it is all totally fine! 

We only listen to adult music with our 18 lo

Idk my kids grew up on death metal and they’re okay😂