Bobs and Lolo bring green ideas to children in song
Arts/Life
Vancover-based children’s performers take the education component of their act very seriously
Posted By Hamish MacLean Canmore Leader
Posted 3 months ago
By Hamish MacLean
Canmore Leader
Bobs and Lolo are known for getting kids moving and grooving, but perhaps more importantly the duo from Vancouver Island are known for getting kids to think about the natural world and caring for it.
"It's pretty funny, what parents say to us, they will come up to us and say, 'My child's first word was recycle,'" Robyn Hardy (Bobs) said. "They'll spell it out loud."
The two are educators first, both, prior to taking their music on full-time, held positions as educators. Hardy was a teacher in North Vancouver before she committed to Bobs and Lolo, while her other half Lorraine Pond (Lolo) was an environmental educator at the Vancouver Aquarium.
And though the two call themselves "edu-tainers" the kind of message they bring to kids has a clear focus.
"We just think it's important to connect kids with nature and encourage them to care about themselves and the planet, because we think if we can enforce it at a younger age, then as they grow they'll keep doing that themselves and encourage others to do the same," Hardy said.
The duo now has three releases to their name, Bobs and Lolo's first disk was ocean-themed, their second was "outdoorsy" and now their third, Action Packed (recently nominated for a Juno Award) is about positive behaviour. Or "how kids can make a difference in their lives to influence the world around them," Hardy said.
And their performing names, though they may cause a little confusion and a few queries, speaks to the history the two women share, and to their friendship.
"Sometimes when we show up at events people think that I'm going to be a man, or that we're clowns," Hardy said. But the two adopted their high school nicknames as their handles when performing.
Bobs and Lolo met singing around a campfire as girl guides on Vancouver Island. The two sang together in their Nanaimo high school choir, took piano lessons from the same instructor and now enjoy a close relationship as collaborators.
"I see her more than I see my partner," Hardy said. "We're really close and we know each other really well, it's kind of neat. Everyone thinks we're sisters and we start talking the same and speaking for each other sometimes."
That chemistry and energy translates into their performance too.
At a school show, Hardy said, while still active and interactive, there is a greater need to calm their audience down before sending them back to class — and their shows actually stick to lesson plans.
"But at community events there are kiddie mosh pits and it's totally crazy," Hardy laughed. "It's a lot of fun to get wild and crazy."
The two do many school shows and perform around 300 shows a year.
And though they firmly believe that using music to teach kids — as a tool — "is the perfect way to engage them and to interact" with children, Bobs and Lolo do think about all their listeners as they write and record songs.
"We really try to make our music listener friendly because we appreciate how often parents have to listen to the music," Hardy said. The duo also touches on different genres like rock and jazz and pop.
Bobs and Lolo take the Main Stage at the 11th annual Canmore Children's Festival May 22 at 11 a.m. admission is $5 or with a festival pass. For more information go to canmorechildrensfestival.com.
hamish@canmoreleader.com
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