From 2006-2009, I worked for Razor & Tie, the owners and creators of KIDZ BOP. I started as an intern, then worked my way up to a Marketing Coordinator before I quit.

Here are 3 of my business cards (personal information has been removed as I still talk to some of my old coworkers). http://i.imgur.com/tolmlrj.jpg I will be happy to provide the mods with unedited versions if needed.

Also, here is a picture of my full catalog of KB CDs: http://i.imgur.com/jZoQQVk.jpg

I know it can't act as proof, but let's be real here, what self-respecting adult (who doesn't have kids) would have an entire collection of KIDZ BOP CDs? (Yes, I know the box says "FREE". That's because I was using it to give away CDs to my friends a while back).

I will stick around for a bit to answer as much as I can, and then I'll pop back in over the next day or so to answer whatever else I can.

EDIT: Just for clarification, I worked there from KIDZ BOP 10-15, and whatever special releases came between those.

UPDATE: IT IS TIME FOR ME TO CRASH. I'LL ANSWER A FEW MORE QUESTIONS IN THE MORNING. HOPE YOU ENJOYED YOURSELVES. THANKS!

Comments: 257 • Responses: 66  • Date: 

BananaNutz307 karma

Why?

Polloco184 karma

It was a job! I had just moved to NY to work in the music business and the label was the only one to offer me a paid internship as I was starting out. I moved into KB full time in 2007 because my boss kicked ass.

_TURbo93 karma

Did you have any friends left after giving them KIDZ BOP CDs?

Polloco71 karma

I actually only have 1 friend with kids at the moment, and the mom loves the CDs with the kids.

dividezero49 karma

Haters hate but I went to school for music business and I would have taken that job too. Sounds like it was fun at least for awhile.

Polloco56 karma

Exactly. It WAS fun for awhile. About 3 years of awhile.

dividezero6 karma

You're a champ. I might have made 2 depending on other conditions.

Polloco5 karma

It was a new experience for me. Hadn't left my home town outside of philly ever in terms of living. Spent 3 years up in NY working for the label. Great life experience.

NicoSuave9k116 karma

Did you ever sit at home at night, cradling a handgun, crying at the torture devices you'd help create?

Polloco147 karma

Batman doesn't use guns, and neither did I. I did, however, leave as soon as my boss quit cause she was the only reason I was staying.

However, when I stubbed my toe once, I did put the music on repeat to help drown the pain.

NicoSuave9k47 karma

You were trying to get with that, weren't you?

Did you also down a handle of vodka too?

Polloco89 karma

Hahaha. No, I wasn't. She was just an awesome person to work for.

Tequila, my friend. Vodka is for pussies.

Jelal3 karma

you should try Mezcal. It'll change your life.

Polloco8 karma

I love mezcal.

Hovik498 karma

Did you actually like the music? Did ANYONE like the music?

Polloco161 karma

You can't help but find it catchy, but no, I did not like the music.

SorensonPA78 karma

Who on earth actually buys Kidz Bop? Is it just corporate/business owners looking for some background filler for stores and the like, or do actual human beings deliberately and nonjokingly go out of their way to get it? You say you were with marketting, so I imagine you had to have quite a lot of connection with Sales and whatnot.

Polloco127 karma

We sold an ASSLOAD of music. Parents of kids that are to old for Raffi but to young for the real shit really loved what we did. As I said in another comment, it helped parents and kids enjoy something together. The parents loved the original songs, so they could sing with the kids. You'd be surprised how many people love Kidz Bop.

Connor14944 karma

Just to clarify, because i am not familiar with metric, how do assloads translate into pounds.

Polloco106 karma

1 assload is 25 courics.

I_Am_Telekinetic76 karma

What's the most controversial KIDZ BOP song that did (OR: didn't) make it on to an album?

Polloco125 karma

Oh man. You know, I didn't have that much interaction with them picking the songs. There was basically 1 guy who chose most of the music, then recorded it. Then it got passed off to us in marketing to promote it.

The whole idea (at least back then) was to pick whatever was hot at the moment and redo it. We would joke about doing REALLY inappropriate stuff, but never really went through with it because, well, it'd be controversial.

Of course, when you're turning sex fueled pop songs into children's hits, everything will be controversial.

Sorry if that's not the answer you were looking for.

johntehfisherman64 karma

So I shouldn't expect a Thrash Metal Kidz Bop?

Polloco75 karma

I would have LOVED that. In fact, myself and an intern I had near the end of my stay LOVE metal, so that would have kicked ass.

I_Am_Telekinetic37 karma

Thank you, that's exactly the answer I was looking for.

I can just imagine the irony going on there in the marketing dept...

Polloco71 karma

You can't market sex to kids that young. Unfortunately, the industry is full of it, and the kids are subjected to it. KB kind of gives parents a safe(r) avenue to let their kids be fans of pop music. While a lot of people think it massacres the music (and I wouldn't totally disagree), it also gives kids and parents something they can sing along to together. Also, the kids LOVED the concerts.

rocketmonkeys12 karma

They have concerts???

Polloco28 karma

Yeah. They're insane. I don't know if they still do them. I went to a few. The kids watching are so enamored with it. They go crazy. You ever see footage of foreign countries freaking out over Michael Jackson? Yeah. Imagine that.

SquareTurtles53 karma

  • Where do they get the kids?

  • Would you buy it for your kids?

  • Any idea how many CD's they released?

Polloco74 karma

We found the kids through casting calls. We also had contests occasionally for kids to become temporary KB Kids.

I don't want kids... but no. No I would not.

Well over 35 or so. I think they're up past 20 actual number releases, plus all the specials (Halloween, Xmas, 80s, etc.)

daketrugs5 karma

why wouldn't you buy it for you own kid? any specific moral type reasons or just because it's not real music?

Polloco27 karma

I wouldn't raise my kid on pop music.

daketrugs3 karma

not even the beatles? that's cruel..

Polloco17 karma

Never got into the Beatles.

eaglesguy9643 karma

Are there any kids that have worked on Kidz Bop that have went on to have relatively successful careers in the music industry?

Polloco52 karma

i honestly have no idea.

indiepunk2139 karma

If you ever worked with the kids, what were they like? Did they all act snotty since they were "famous" or were they kind and polite?

Polloco71 karma

When we did the concert tour, I went to a few and met the kids. They were all ridiculously nice and excited to be there. It was an adult band, 2 adult singers, and 4-5 kids. Everyone was having fun and rocking out. It was pretty funny.

-askMe-36 karma

how do they get rights to all the songs? must be $$$!

Polloco53 karma

It's all through publishing. In reality, covering a song isn't as crazy as it seems. By US law, you are legally allowed to cover songs under a compulsory license. So getting permission wasn't really an issue. Obviously, there were some artists (whom I won't name) who weren't ok with it. Then it's just a matter of dealing with the royalty entities. KB sold a TON of discs, so it wasn't always that bad.

OccupyJumpStreet37 karma

Am I allowed to name one? Prince. He fucking hates that pretty much anyone can cover a song of his. Source.

Polloco76 karma

yes he does. there are a lot of people that hate it. you know weird al usually gets permission from the artists even though he doesn't have to. good guy he is.

scwt26 karma

Now that I think about it, I think every artist would hate getting covered by Kidz Bop. So, (since I know you won't answer the opposite question) were there any artists that were pleased or at least ambivalent to get a Kidz Bop cover?

Polloco54 karma

Sean Kingston actually did a song WITH us, so that was one artist.

captain_obvious_scum35 karma

How much did you make an an intern per hour?

Full time salary?

Polloco59 karma

$7 an hour in NYC. it was brutal.

captain_obvious_scum27 karma

damn that's below minimum wage even in NJ. Let alone for NYC. Marketing Coordinator? How much made there?

My buddy is getting 17 an hour this summer at an IT internship.

Polloco30 karma

My final salary was around $31k a year. It sucked.

RagdollPhysEd13 karma

Dang, how did you make ends meet living in NY?

Polloco20 karma

my wife worked as well.

monky999789132 karma

What is your job now, and how much better is it than Kidz Bop?

Polloco70 karma

i've always loved kids. in 1 month, i will be finishing my masters to be an elementary school teacher. i'm already certified and i currently work with autistic kids at a middle school. it's a million times better than kidz bop.

monky999789118 karma

...Wait, I just realised. You're getting your masters in one month! Awesome job!

Polloco16 karma

Haha. Thanks!

nph199615 karma

but you said you don't want kids?

Polloco61 karma

i don't. that doesn't mean i don't enjoy working with them.

Spartan59631 karma

Did you take place in any of those music videos too? Or just helped record the song.

Polloco61 karma

I was in one music video, but I won't say which one as that would identify me :)

drumnbass5516 karma

Don't have to say what, but was the role embarrassing? Or did you enjoy it?

Polloco37 karma

Nope. It was funny, actually. I'm a metalhead, and when they did the video, they had everyone in wardrobe, but looked at me and said, "just wear whatever you want." It was fun. Besides, how many people get to say they were in a music video?

logical_failacy30 karma

The commenters here really make me realize how young the reddit crowd is.

For many people, a good job has very little if anything to do with the end product. A good boss, a good environment between employees, and better pay than you get anywhere else? That's a fantastic job. It doesn't matter that you're making Kidz Bop CDs or tire valves. Nobody has an affinity for making tire valves.

Polloco11 karma

Exactly.

PretendsToBeThings21 karma

Did you ever procure permission to film those commercials on location?

I mean, it really looks like you snuck some kids into a water park and had them lip sync for 10 seconds.

Polloco11 karma

I didn't handle the filming of the spots. We had a dedicated team for the TV marketing.

HopeRegained16 karma

So, I'll be brave enough to come out & say I've purchased Kidz Bop for my kids. Like it or not, it's odd and uncomfortable for me to hear my young kid chanting "Hey Sexy Lady" & "Your Sex Takes Me To Paradise". He got to hear the tunes he loved, and it wasn't extremely inappropriate.

And yes, I'm working on improving his taste in music. :)

Polloco16 karma

You paid my bills! Thank you.

1The_Mighty_Thor15 karma

How many of those kids come back for another CD? Does singing for Kids Bop turn help out their careers in the music business?

Also are the rumors true that the people from Kidz Bop are going to start making a new edition with fully grown adults?

Polloco31 karma

I don't know about the kids as I just did the marketing. Up until right before I left, we didn't even have "Kidz Bop Kids". They were all supposed to be faceless so that each listener could feel like they're a KB Kid. It was all about empowerment.

I have no idea about rumors nowadays as I've been out of it for almost 4 years.

Frajer13 karma

Who is buying Kidz Bop cds? Do kids like it or do parents or both?

Polloco23 karma

both. parents are the ones actually buying it, but they all loved it.

ficitonalism12 karma

[deleted]

Polloco5 karma

Thanks!

studtomymuffin11 karma

How else did you market? Because I only ever saw TV commercials.

Polloco16 karma

Lots of blogs. Promotions with big box companies. It really was mostly TV, though, as that's where the kids would see it the most. We also had digital placement and physical placement in stores. We'd do print in very specific magazines, but again, most kids don't read magazines, so it was a few parenting mags once in a while.

inte1ati7 karma

So why did you quit?

And would you rather fight 100 duck sized horses, or one horse sized duck?

Polloco16 karma

well, if i can bring my 3 dogs, i'll go for the 100 duck sized horses. if not, then 1 horse sized duck. i love duck... mmmmm.

i quit because i realized that the music business is just business. i didn't enjoy it. i now work as a teaching assistant while i look for a job as a full time teacher.

inte1ati8 karma

What would you teach? (And good luck [Good job, we need more teachers])

Polloco11 karma

i'm certified in elementary. it's fucking impossible to get a job at the moment, though. i've been trying for 2 years now. luckily, i have a solid job as a teaching aide.

inte1ati4 karma

Sorry, I was homeschooled and I have no idea about public schools. Do elementary teacher have specific subjects they teach?

Polloco9 karma

not usually. we teach 1 group of students everything (math, science, social studies, english, social skills). usually the arts and gym are separate, along with languages.

PounderMcNasty7 karma

Have you forgiven yourself?

Polloco8 karma

yup!

powerhousedrew145 karma

[deleted]

Polloco6 karma

hell yeah man! i was there when we did some QVC. in fact, the woman who came down to be on air (whom shall rename nameless) was my boss!

usrevenge5 karma

how much, if anything, did the kids who actually appeared on the commericals make

were those kids the same people who did the singing in the cds(were they kids?)

how much were the singing kids on the CD paid

Estimate if you have to i'm just curious

Polloco4 karma

no idea how much they made. at first, the commercial kids were not the kids on the CDs. I don't know if that's the case anymore. I couldn't even begin to estimate.

shawnxstl5 karma

RAZOR AND TIE OWNED KIDZ BOP? WELL TODAY I FUCKING LEARNED

Polloco3 karma

Haha. Yup. Blew my mind the first time I found out.

hudsterboy4 karma

Can you 'rap'?

Polloco22 karma

Does ice ice baby count? That's my jam.

shinkashank4 karma

I have one question: Why would you help with these travesties?

Polloco15 karma

I needed a job. Also, the real music side of the label had dope artists.

pyromanaic41412 karma

TIL Devin The Dude, John Lithgow and All That Remains are signed to the same label as Kidz Bop

Polloco16 karma

we also had lamb of god back in the day! it was badass! i actually helped with the filming of the all that remains DVD in Philly. it was dope.

also, don't forget a Twisted Sister Christmas!

da_asparagus4 karma

I didn't know Razor & Tie created Kidz Bop. I listen to a few Razor & Tie artists (For Today, Norma Jean, P.O.D., Brand New, Foreigner. Just to name a few.)

  • Did you work mainly in the label part or in the publishing part of Razor & Tie? Or did you just coordinate marketing for the entire company?

  • What was the most fun part of your job?

  • What was the most difficult part of the job?

  • What advice would you give to someone who is considering going into the music business?

Polloco3 karma

I started working for the main label as KB hadn't really broken off yet. I did marketing my entire time there.

I loved getting free music. The people I worked with kicked ass. I also got to meet some cool artists.

Living in NY and helping to manage huge budgets was hard.

Advice? Accept the fact that, probably for a good long while, you're going to work long hours and make shit money. I have a few friends still in it (going on a decade of being in it) and it's still tough. The whole industry has changed. That's one of the reasons I got out of it. It's a lot more of a BUSINESS now then it used to be.

AncientBlonde4 karma

Do the kids really sing it?

Polloco3 karma

Yeah. There are always kids on the records.

AncientBlonde3 karma

Can the kids really sing that well?

Polloco4 karma

Auto tune?

AncientBlonde2 karma

Is it mostly auto tune or is it some skill?

Polloco4 karma

Some skill.

BretMichaelsWig3 karma

Razor & Tie also releases Twisted Sister's "A Twisted Christmas" album. Did you have anything to do with that?

Polloco3 karma

Yup.

martusfine3 karma

When did Razor n Tie move from "Best of..." budget compilations in the 90's to signing and creating bands/music?

Polloco3 karma

they always had bands, but the best of comps were the bread and butter that allowed them to rock the bands.

DJEXxorcIST2 karma

Any funny stories from working there?

Polloco3 karma

Hmmmmm. I think the funniest stories are more just the fact that the people that worked KB were batshit crazy. We were all just nuts.

augustburnsred12 karma

Was it exclusively Kids Bop or was it other things within the label as well? I know that one of my favorite bands, Norma Jean, is signed to the label.

Polloco2 karma

They do a lot of distribution and have some of their own artists.

PronsBECKHAM2 karma

This is gonna sound messed up, but sometimes child actors like the girl from Family Matters grow up to do porn. Have any of the kidz bop kids grown up to have sorrid lifestyles? Has there ever been any gossip like "One of the girls we had do brittney spears back in the day sells coke now, wow!"

Polloco2 karma

no idea.

thwamp1 karma

what does COD stand for?

BrainWav9 karma

Since Op is probably done, I'll answer. It's "Collect on Delivery," it means the recipient pays for it when the product is delivered. It pretty much never happens in mass market mail-order stuff now, due to logistics and having to move the money from the deliverer to the seller.

Polloco2 karma

Exactly.

Cbmac14401 karma

Is their actually still a market for kidz bop?

Polloco2 karma

I would assume so.

Dylan_Ram_Brick1 karma

Are you familar with Devo 2.0?

Polloco1 karma

Yup

bdlh1 karma

What did you study in school?

Polloco2 karma

English and communications. I worked at my schools radio station. I was running it by my senior year.

3citizenships1 karma

ever meet the chenfelds?

Polloco1 karma

Yup.

RAS3101 karma

Do you know anything about the adults who would sing the lead vocals on the earlier KB albums (they switched to all-kids around KB14 or so), like their names, or why they decided to get rid of them finally (I couldn't stand hearing the male singer in the commercials who sounded like he had his nose pinched).

Is it true that Razor & Tie does not have to get the rights to cover the songs?

And was it true that Fall Out Boy's "Dance, Dance" was supposed to be on KB10 before Pete Wentz stopped it? http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1533265/fall-out-boy-take-on-kidz-bop.jhtml

Polloco1 karma

Don't know much about the adults.

I believe publishing was paid.

Not sure about the FOB thing as that was right at the beginning of my time there.

BastardScum1 karma

Oh man so sad I missed this, maybe OP will check back... I swear years ago Kidz Bop almost did an Atreyu song. But since then I can't find a trace of this, did I imagine or dream this up? If it helps I think the song was ..right side of the bed?

Polloco2 karma

i can't imagine KB would have done an Atreyu song. Atreyu never had anything in the top billboard charts :)

vitruvianninja1 karma

How much every year would KB spend on licensing songs to sing?

Polloco2 karma

no idea.

JayVeeBee1 karma

Who rewrites the lyrics for a Kidz Bop cover?

Polloco2 karma

Oddly enough, I have no idea.