Emily Arrow loves books like Louise Loves Art and even more, she loves music. Emily Arrow has put her loves together to become a groundbreaking “kidlit” artist and recent winner of the John Lennon Songwriting award. Emily blends bright bouncy ukulele and guitar-driven beats, wistfully wonderful vocals, and rich production with stories drawn from children’s literature. Earlier this year, Emily Arrow released “Storytime Singalong, Volume 1” an inspired collection of songs that soar from the pages of books like The Dot, Are We There Yeti, and The Curious Garden. Emily collaborates with the authors to create fun and engaging music videos for her YouTube channel and she has even more planned for this fall and 2017!
Emily Arrow (Photo credit: Emily Arrow)
For this #8isEnoughQuestions interview, each of the following questions was written by one of our Full Van Fun family members and answered directly by Emily Arrow. Enjoy!
1) How did you write your first song?
I wrote my first song when I was 7 on the piano and it was about the sun and the moon. I played a few notes, then sang along, then forced my adorable lab puppy to listen a million times.
2) I’ve had a hard time figuring out a question to ask you, what do you do when you have a hard time writing a song?
I look at pictures about what I’m trying to write about. So if I’m writing a song about chocolate, I search for photos and unique images about chocolate to give me ideas. [Editor’s note – speaking of chocolate, don’t forget to take a look at our Top 10 Chocolate Destinations!]
3) How do decide which books to make into songs?
Great question! I ask myself three questions: 1) Is the book fun to read out loud? 2) Do I love the illustrations? 3) Would the words and title make awesome song lyrics?
4) Will you ever make a song inspired by a Dav Pilkey book? Maybe Captain Underpants?
Oh I love Dav Pilkey’s book and a Captain Underpants song would be so much fun to write!! I’ll think about it 😉
5) Are the hand motions you use in your videos designed to be educational, therapeutic, or another way to enhance the music?
Cool question – When I do motions while I sing, it helps me memorize and understand a song better and I hope they do the same for my listeners. So I think hand motions are educational, therapeutic….and fun!
6) We read “The Dot” in school and I wondered how you make your mark?
I try to make my own mark by singing about the things that make me happy and I hope that makes the people who listen feel happy too!!! 🙂
7) What is your favorite song that you’ve written so far?
Probably Follow Your Arrow because it explains who I am and how I feel about trying new things and being kind to yourself.
8) Are bunnies funny?
Yes! Is a flute cute?
Thank you Emily Arrow for an #8isEnoughQuestions interview that was on point! Don’t forget to take a look at some of our other #8isEnoughQuestions interviews with authors like Daniel Pinkwater and artists like Mista Cookie Jar, The Not Its, Mike Phirman, Danny Weinkauf of They Might Be Giants, Turkey Andersen, Lucky Diaz and Alisha Gaddis, Bryan Vander Ark of The Verve Pipe, Play Date, Recess Monkey, Andrew and Polly, Greg Page (Original Yellow Wiggle), Rissi Palmer, Jim Cosgrove, and Tim Kubart.
