Justin Robert Celebrates 25 Years Kids Music with New Album 'Space Cadet'

Full of energy, four-time GRAMMY Nominee Justin Roberts' 16th full length album, Space Cadet, is a return to his power pop all-ages sound. Heavily inspired by his life as a new dad, the feel-good album offers themes of inclusion and acceptance that wind through emotionally intelligent songs. Roberts creates a welcoming space for children to celebrate their uniqueness and dance it all out. Alongside his epic 5-piece rock band the Not Ready for Naptime Players, Justin is joined by jazz horns, 80s synthesizers, soaring strings, harp, and plenty of hand clapping.

Justin Roberts is well known for helping to create the modern family music scene and has been praised for his ability to take kids seriously, seeing the world through their eyes and writing meaningful songs that acknowledge kids' emotional depth while still letting the fun shine through. Roberts released his very first kids' album, Great Big Sun, back in 1997, and 25 years later he is now making family music through the lens of a new dad.

Roberts' son Eli was born in 2018 and inspired Wild Life, Justin's last album of sweet, quieter songs. With Space Cadet, Justin returns to the huge rock energy of his GRAMMY nominated albums, Jungle Gym and Recess. While still using his imagination and childhood memories, Roberts now weaves in first-hand parenting experience. Kitchen dance parties, fascinating fire trucks, and playground life have inspired these joyous and passionate new songs.

While writing this album, Roberts noticed recurring themes in his new songs about inclusion, the importance of being yourself, embracing differences and self-discovery. From a very personal perspective, the experience of isolation during the pandemic, combined with the loss of his father during 2020 contributed to songs about healing on the album. The opening song, "When February Comes," sets the beat and takes the listener on an exciting journey through the changing seasons and the cycle of a year.

The high energy "I Have Been a Unicorn" is an anthem about being who you are and recognizing that we are all our own unique selves. "Truman Was a Tornado" tells the story of a boy tornado who tries to fit in while discovering both his unique cyclone abilities and the quiet beauty within himself. Back when Justin was an easily-distracted elementary school student, his teacher referred to him as the "absent-minded professor." Being a "Space Cadet" has been a part of Justin's identity ever since, and the scatter-brained 15 parts of this song provide an excellent illustration. About "Space Cadet," Justin says, "The advantage of having your head in the clouds is you can get lost in imagining stories and creating things."

"Gimme a Fire Truck" was inspired by the day a grumpy Eli brightened immediately upon seeing and hearing a passing fire truck. Justin began to think about all the fire trucks we have in our lives that help rescue us when we need them. "I'm Not Just An I" talks about how our relations with others transform who we are, and "Dance Party" is a page ripped from Justin's home life with his wife, the cellist Anna Steinhoff, as Eli requests that they clear off the coffee table and throw all the couch cushions on the floor for a nightly dance party. "Seven Billion Billion Billion Atoms in Me" is an empowerment song that reminds us of the wonder of being a human being.

Fun fact: every human has about seven billion billion billion atoms within them! "Whole Lotta Love in This World" was written towards the end of 2021 as a healing prayer about missing family and friends after two years of isolation. Closing out the album is "Everybody Get on Board," a song about everyone being invited to the party, inspired in part by the divisive politics of the last several years and by the opening lines of Curtis Mayfield's "People Get Ready." Roberts dedicated this song to his dad, Steve, a train enthusiast who passed away during the pandemic. Other songs on the album include "If You Should Dig," about digging deep to find buried treasures and "Little Red Wagon," a song about friendship.

The album features the Not Ready for Naptime Players: Jackie Schimmel (Bass Guitar, Vocals), Gerald Dowd (Drums, Percussion, Vocals), Liam Davis (Electric Guitar, Organ, Vocals), and David Winer (Trumpet, vocals) plus other friends: Christian Matthew Cullen (80s Synthesizers), Michael Mahler (Piano, Electric Guitar, Vocals), John Abbey (Upright Bass and additional Bass Guitar), Ben Melsky (Harp), Jason Adasiewicz (Vibes), Meagan McNeal (Vocals), Nora O'Connor (Vocals), Lisa Kaplan (Piano and Toy Piano), Anna Steinhoff, Liz Hagen, Pascal Innocenti, Marty Davids (Strings), and Chris Greene, Anna Jacobson & Nick Broste (Horns).

Space Cadet was produced by Justin Roberts and engineered by Matt Hennessy at VSOP Studios, Chicago, IL. The album was mixed by Liam Davis at Acrylic Audio, Evanston, IL and mastered by Emily Lazar and Chris Allgood at the Lodge, NY. Illustrations and Design by Ned Wyss and photography by Todd Rosenberg.

Space Cadet will be available in both physical and digital formats on July 15, 2022 wherever families look for great music. More at justinrobertsmusic.com.

Four-time GRAMMY Nominee Justin Roberts is truly one of the all-stars of the family music scene. For 25 years, Roberts has been creating the soundtrack to families' lives, helping kids navigate the joys and sorrows of growing up, while inspiring parents to remember their own childhoods. His songs are the kind of get-stuck-in-your-head pop nuggets that draw comparisons to Elvis Costello, Fountains of Wayne, and Paul Simon rather than to simple nursery rhymes, prompting USA Today to call him "hands-down the best songwriter in the genre."

Along with his band, The Not Ready for Naptime Players, Justin has travelled the globe, from Hong Kong to New York, and Miami to Seattle. In addition to his recordings, Roberts is also the author of two acclaimed picture books: The Smallest Girl in the Smallest Grade (illustrated by Christian Robinson) and The Great Henry Hopendower (illustrated by Deborah Hocking), both published by Penguin Random House.

Two more picture books are on the way, including I'll Be Your Polar Bear (illustrated by Chuck Groenink) due in October 2022. Justin is a former Trustee and President of the Recording Academy's Chicago Chapter. He is very involved with the advocacy work of the organization and even testified in front of the Senate Judiciary to help pass the important Music Modernization Act.

Listen to the new single here:

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