Music Stars Making A Social Impact: Why & How Lindsay Munroe of Troubadour Music Is Helping To Change Our World
An Interview With Edward Sylvan
I feel as though I have a responsibility as a children’s musician to use my songs to spread messages of kindness, inclusion, love and acceptance. Songs stick with us — we may find ourselves with a song stuck in our heads, singing it throughout the day. We carry songs in our hearts. I want to bring goodness to the world by writing songs that foster emotional intelligence and cultivate kindness, empathy, and community. I want to teach children to be an ally to our friends in the autism and disability communities, and to be an LGBTQ ally, an anti-racist ally.
As a part of our series about music stars who are making an important social impact, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Lindsay Munroe.
Lindsay Munroe is an award-winning multi-instrumentalist, singer, and songwriter who lives in Massachusetts. A mother of three children with autism, Lindsay is a passionate advocate for diversity and inclusion. Her newest album, Frogs and Birds, was produced by children’s music icon Raffi, who joins her on many of the songs.
Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Our readers would love to get to know you a bit better. Can you tell us a bit of the ‘backstory’ of how you grew up?
I grew up in Massachusetts with a loving family and a love of music. My mom always encouraged us, her kids, to follow our dreams and do what we love. As a young child, I played violin, flute, and piano. When I was in first grade at Hastings Elementary School, my teacher Mrs. Forsythe had a piano in our classroom, and I remember her playing Baby Beluga and thinking it was the greatest song I had ever heard. She made first grade magical as it was filled with songs. When I was in high school, I got a guitar for Christmas and my grandfather gave me a Janis Ian CD and told me I would love her — he was right! I taught myself how to play guitar while listening to Janis Ian and Joni Mitchell and playing along.
Can you share a story with us about what brought you to this specific career path?
I had been a stay-at-home mom for years, taking care of my three autistic kids. When my youngest started school, I had newfound free time during the day. Right away, I knew what I wanted to do. I followed my passion and started doing singalongs at libraries and preschools. I loved my job and felt like I had found exactly what I should be doing. I started a YouTube channel and began sharing songs on social media. That’s how Raffi found me. I remember when Raffi liked my video of Oats Pease Beans and Barley and left a nice comment too! Little did I know that less than a year later I would be signed to Raffi’s label, and he would be producing my album and singing with me!
Can you share the funniest or most interesting story that occurred to you in the course of your career? What was the lesson or take away that you took out of that story?
When I was a little girl, I loved watching Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood. As a child, my favorite color was green. I remember always hoping he would pick the green sweater. One day he did, and I had a feeling it was going to be a good episode. I’ll never forget that one very special episode featuring Yo-Yo Ma. I was mesmerized by his beautiful cello music. I knew I had to hear it again. I became obsessed with the cello and begged my mom to please take me to the music store and let me play the cello. Unfortunately, when we got to the music store my legs wouldn’t fit around even the smallest cello they had. I left the shop with a violin that day. I couldn’t play the cello, but I began listening to Yo-Yo Ma and it became my favorite music. Listening transported me to a calm, magical place.
Flash forward to 2020. I had the honor of releasing a song with Raffi featuring Yo-Yo Ma himself! It was a dream come true for me to collaborate with him. The song is called “For All You Do” — a song of gratitude for essential workers. All the proceeds from the song went to Direct Relief. It felt so good to be able to thank essential workers and support such a great organization while also having a childhood dream come true.
Don’t forget about your childhood dreams! They can come true. I think that’s important for kids to hear.
What would you advise a young person who wants to emulate your success?
I would advise people to do what they love and never give up on their dreams no matter how long it takes. I was 37 when I released my first children’s album. Success, to me, is knowing that I’m contributing something meaningful to the world. As my song “Every One of Us Belongs” says, “we all have something to give.” We all have a unique voice and something unique to contribute to our families, communities, and the world. Before my music was heard around the world, I was singing in local libraries and preschools sharing songs of kindness and inclusion for children in my community. If you have something positive to contribute to the world, start in your community and make a difference where you can. There are many ways to define success.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you explain how that was relevant in your life?
My favorite “Life Lesson Quote” would have to be from Fred Rogers. “At the center of the Universe is a loving heart that continues to beat and that wants the best for every person. Anything that we can do to help foster the intellect and spirit and emotional growth of our fellow human beings, is our job. Those of us who have this particular vision must continue against all odds. Life is for service.” To me, this is what it’s all about. I try and foster intellect, spirit, and emotional growth through my songs. We all have different gifts and there are many ways to be of service. I think what’s important is using your gifts, whatever they may be, to make the world a better place.
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?
I’m so grateful to Raffi. I wouldn’t be where I am today without him. In June 2019, I brought my daughter to Raffi’s concert in Worcester MA. After the show, we attended the meet and greet backstage. It was wonderful talking with him. He genuinely cared about my story. Raffi asked about my three autistic children,, and we talked about what music means to them. Raffi encouraged me to write a song for neurodiverse children. I had never written a song for children before, but I said I would try. I went home and wrote, “I Am Kind.” I sent the song to Raffi and he loved it! I was so happy with his positive feedback. He encouraged me to keep writing and I kept sharing my songs with him. He became a great musical mentor to me. When he offered to produce my album, I was over the moon. Shortly after that, he signed me to his label, Troubadour Music. Raffi and I have continued to collaborate and it’s a dream come true to sing with and make music with him.
Let’s now shift to the main focus of our interview, how are you using your success to bring goodness to the world? Can you share with us the meaningful or exciting social impact causes you are working on right now?
I feel as though I have a responsibility as a children’s musician to use my songs to spread messages of kindness, inclusion, love and acceptance. Songs stick with us — we may find ourselves with a song stuck in our heads, singing it throughout the day. We carry songs in our hearts. I want to bring goodness to the world by writing songs that foster emotional intelligence and cultivate kindness, empathy, and community. I want to teach children to be an ally to our friends in the autism and disability communities, and to be an LGBTQ ally, an anti-racist ally. In one of my newest songs, I sing;
“I can be an ally
An ally is a friend who is kind to others different from them
Everyone deserves respect
We’re not all the same
There is no shame in being just the way you are
We’ll stand up when we see something wrong
You can be an ally too
Your caring heart is oh so strong
We’ll stand up
No, not from a chair
I mean be aware
Show you care
And be there as a very kind friend”
If I can use my musical gifts to make the world just a little more kind and accepting, then maybe the children who grow up listening to my music will be inspired to use their unique gifts to bring goodness into the world and make the world a more inclusive, loving place for all of us.
Can you tell us the backstory about what originally inspired you to feel passionate about this cause and to do something about it?
My three children inspire me every day. They are the most unique, loving, wonderful people I know. They also all happen to be autistic. I want people to stop looking at autism as something that needs to be fixed or cured. I want my neurodivergent kids to be accepted and loved for exactly who they are. I want all children to feel accepted for who they are. Not just accepted, but loved and celebrated! When children grow up feeling loved for who they are, it results in lifelong positive outcomes that make our families, communities, and world a better place.
Many of us have ideas, dreams, and passions, but never manifest it. But you did. Was there an “Aha Moment” that made you decide that you were actually going to step up and take action for this cause? What was that final trigger?
In 2019 I took the Raffi Foundation course in Child Honouring. When I first read about Child Honouring, it deeply resonated with me and touched my heart. I was inspired to live more consciously and do my part to create a more peaceful society; one which honours both Earth and child.
Child Honouring is a holistic philosophy with a children-first approach to healing communities and restoring ecosystems. It views how we regard and treat our young as the key to building a humane and sustainable world; it speaks of organizing society around the priority needs of its youngest members. There are 9 guiding principles such as respectful love, nonviolence, conscious parenting, and diversity.
In addition to feeling empowered by the course, I was encouraged by Raffi. He believed in me and told me I had a unique perspective and voice. He heard what I had to say, and he encouraged me to share my songs and my message. I consider my songs to be child-honouring songs.
Can you tell us a story about a particular individual who was impacted or helped by your cause?
I’m so touched when people write to me and tell me what my music means to them. The other day I came across a video of my song “I Am Kind” being sung by preschool students at their graduation ceremony. It touched my heart to hear their sweet voices singing “I am kind, I am brave, I am strong, I am wise” and knowing that they will carry this song with them as they grow.
The songs on my 2nd album, Frogs and Birds, were written for a social-emotional curriculum from Bridges Learning System called SEA Bridge. SEA Bridge has empowering lessons of self-advocacy, finding pride in neurodiversity, and building social confidence. Their organization believes that disability is a social construct and that environments need to change, not people. Their aim is to refocus the conversation around disability to better meet the needs of all people and to create a place of equity where everyone belongs. The students who use this curriculum are listening to my songs with each lesson and I’m so glad my songs can play a part in helping them.
Are there three things that individuals, society or the government can do to support you in this effort?
- Make music a part of social-emotional school curriculums. I’d love to see my songs be used in schools. Music activates both the left and right brain simultaneously which maximizes learning and helps children remember the lessons. We carry songs with us and I think it’s a great way to internalize important messages of kindness, anti-bullying and inclusion.
- See the unique goodness in everyone you meet and treat then with respectful love. When we see the goodness in others, we amplify the good and inspire them to be their best selves. If you focus on the good in everyone you interact with, you’ll have more positive feelings towards them, and in turn, you’ll feel happier and so will they.
- Listen to each other. We don’t all have the same experiences in life. Listening to others is so important. We all want to be heard and seen. Listen with the goal of understanding the other person and their feelings or situation. Acknowledge the limits of your knowledge, listen, and reflect.
Fantastic. Here is the main question of our interview. What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why. Please share a story or an example for each.
- Believe in yourself. You can make the change you seek. You can use your gifts to bring goodness to the world. I think that believing in yourself if the first step. Believe in your vision and follow your heart.
- Support others along the way. Do what you can to help others achieve success. If others help you, pay it forward. The world is a better place when we all want to see each other succeed and we do what we can to help each other. While writing the songs for my Frogs and Birds album, I got to know a woman working as an illustrator for Bridges Learning System. When I found out she had perfect pitch and a passion for music, I invited her to record harmonies on a song with me and Raffi. Shortly after releasing my first album, I Am Kind, I met a wonderful percussion player. I asked him to play on my second album and he thanked me for making his childhood dream of working with Raffi come true. Lift each other up and share the joy.
- Don’t be afraid to take risks. There are going to be many times where you have to put yourself out there. You might be afraid of rejection or not being good enough — do it anyway. I was so nervous to send Raffi my first song. I had never written a song for kids before and he is a children’s music icon. He asked me to sing it for him and I could barely get the words out at first. I believed in myself and took a risk and shared my song. Now we’re working on our third album together!
- Never give up on your dreams. I was in my late 30’s when I released my first children’s album. It’s never to late to do what you want to do. Don’t be afraid to start over or change direction. Follow your heart.
- Be Kind. Always.
You are a person of enormous influence. If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂
I would encourage everyone to learn more about Raffi’s Child Honouring vision. Child Honouring is a unique social change revolution, a holistic philosophy involving a children-first approach to healing communities and restoring ecosystems. You can take the online course which empowers us to become changemakers. The course is not just for parents, it’s important for all of us. In order for a societal shift to really turn this world around, we need everybody: parents, educators, community members and policymakers. It truly does take a village.
We are blessed that some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Politics, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them 🙂
I would love to have lunch with the people at Sesame Street. When they introduced their autistic character, Julia, it meant the world to my daughter to see someone just like her! I think my songs are a perfect fit for the Julia storylines. I think we could do a lot of good and spread a lot of joy.
Thank you so much for these amazing insights. This was so inspiring, and we wish you continued success!
About The Interviewer: Growing up in Canada, Edward Sylvan was an unlikely candidate to make a mark on the high-powered film industry based in Hollywood. But as CEO of Sycamore Entertainment Group Inc, (SEGI) Sylvan is among a select group of less than ten Black executives who have founded, own and control a publicly traded company. Now, deeply involved in the movie business, he is providing opportunities for people of color.
In 2020, he was appointed president of the Monaco International Film Festival, and was encouraged to take the festival in a new digital direction.
Raised in Toronto, he attended York University where he studied Economics and Political Science, then went to work in finance on Bay Street, (the city’s equivalent of Wall Street). After years of handling equities trading, film tax credits, options trading and mergers and acquisitions for the film, mining and technology industries, in 2008 he decided to reorient his career fully towards the entertainment business.
With the aim of helping Los Angeles filmmakers of color who were struggling to understand how to raise capital, Sylvan wanted to provide them with ways to finance their creative endeavors.
Music Stars Making A Social Impact: Why & How Lindsay Munroe of Troubadour Music Is Helping To… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.