Turn it up: The best music-focused podcasts and audiobooks for kids

Kids are in constant need of entertainment and being in the car is no exception. Whether you’re gearing up for a road trip or looking to add some entertainment variety during everyday errands (the same playlists on repeat get old, no?), listening to audiobooks for kids or discovering the best podcasts for kids might be just the thing your family car rides are missing. And since you might be learning right alongside them, this is a great opportunity to make every car ride a moment of discovery for the whole crew.

Teachers from Modern Music Academy—a Caldwell, New Jersey music school for all ages and skill levels—compiled their favorite music-focused podcasts and audiobooks for kids. While you’re on the road driving to your destination, introduce the kids to an indie college-esque radio hour, learn as a family about classic works of art, get schooled about the King of Rock and Roll, and more.

Keep the good times rolling with these recommendations for the best music audiobooks for kids and the best music podcasts for kids

1. Noodle Loaf

Noodle Loaf music education podcast is regularly a number one podcast in the music category for kids for good reason. Noodle Loaf is an interactive podcast born from the brain of a music education specialist father and his goofball kids. For about 10 minutes at a time, host Dan Saks invites the family to join together for some creative fun. “Noodle Loaf” definitely ranks in our best podcasts for kids lists because it musically empowers children through play, laughter and lots of singing.

2. “The Life and Music of Elvis Presley”

With the new blockbuster “Elvis” tearing up music-biopic records everywhere, it’s never too early to teach your kids about the King of Rock and Roll. “The Life and Music of Elvis Presley” is a more G-rated look at the artists’ early life, his inspirations that made him a legend and how he became one of the most iconic artists of all time. As far as audiobooks for kids go, this is a great pick that’s interesting and educational. 

3. “Can You Hear It”

CD and accompanying book: Similar to publisher Abrams’s best-selling series, “Can You Find It,”made in conjunction with The Metropolitan Museum of Art,in this book, young readers are introduced to great music and great works of art. Children will hear “The Flight of the Bumblebee”, “The Four Seasons”, “Night on Bald Mountain”, and more as the accompanying CD urges young readers to listen for certain instruments. Can you hear the car horns honking, played by clarinets? Can you hear the horses’ hooves, played by castanets? “When each CD track is played, young readers will stop, look, and listen as never before.” Included is a CD featuring 12 short works and an introduction to the orchestra and the instruments. 

4. “Spare the Rock, Spoil the Child”

This one-hour indie music hour is as if your indie college radio station had a kids’ hour. For over fifteen years “Spare the Rock, Spoil the Child” has been providing the soundtrack to thousands of childhoods around the country. The show plays “indie music for indie kids,” including the best of music aimed at kids right alongside kid-friendly tracks from the likes of The Ramones, Mike Doughty, Ella Fitzgerald, Brian Eno, Pizzicato Five, Andrew Bird, Fishbone and more. Throw in exclusive in-studios from dozens of artists, and you’ve got an idea of what the show is about. The founder’s mission: “We’re radio nerds, and we want to raise another generation of radio nerds.” On-demand streams can be found here. 

Though tablets can be a saving grace at times on road trips, audiobooks and podcasts can engage the whole family while providing engrossing and educational content. Additionally, it is truly never too early to foster a lifelong love of music, and we think you’ll find these recommendations teach and delight kids of all ages.