I’m confused. How in the name of Greg/Sam, Anthony, Murray, and Jeff has my child been exposed to the likes of Raffi without my consent or knowledge? Prior to this week I was vaguely aware of Raffi’s existence but did not know anything about him. I had heard of the song, “Baby Beluga” but did not know the tune nor did I care to. Imagine my surprise when my kid picks up a Raffi concert DVD at the library and says, “Let’s get this ‘Waffy’ movie, Mom!”. I added it to our pile of goods and didn’t think much of it until last night when she asked to watch it. I put the DVD on and went back to my magazine. Sweet Jesus! What the hell is going on here? I can appreciate that the music is positive and soothing but all of the children in the crowd seem to be drugged and why in God’s name are they all wearing pinafores and/or suspenders? Is this the 1980s or the 1880s?
I decided to do some research. Okay fine, I Googled him while eating an english muffin… He appears to be a doe-eyed Armenian man with a penchant for using a banana as a telephone. And the kids eat it up with a spoon! I had seen his picture before but I think I had mistaken him for the prop comic Gallagher. Without the hair, there is a resemblance. And I think they both wear black, pleated pants. So in that way, he also resembles Paula Poundstone. Which would be Strike Two for Raffi. If anybody’s keeping track, the Banana Phone was Strike One.
So, I still don’t know how the hell my daughter knew about Raffi if I didn’t. We spend all of our time together and she only started Preschool last week. My sister suggested that there may have been some playground peer pressure at work and that Raffi is only the beginning. That terrifies me. If Raffi is the gateway drug to Hannah Montana, please bogart that Banana Phone. If you see me or mine on the playground, don’t pass it over to us. We don’t want a hit.
You probably shouldn’t allow any bananas in the house…just to be sure. 😉
Unfortunately, it’s practically all my kid eats…
The same sort of controversy has swirled around “Barney” for years, the hypnotic theme song and the subliminal mind control themes just seem wrong…It backfired on Barney, and it’ll probably do the same for whatssizz name too! Good read!
From your keyboard to God’s ears… 🙂
Raffi irritated the crap outta me. I wouldn’t let my kids listen to him. I just REFUSED. They were toddlers. What could they do about it? Nothing. And, now they just twitch some of the time!! Stopping by from SITS! Have a wonderful weekend!
I thought he was fairly benign (albeit annoying) until I heard him RAPPING about brushing teeth. Oh, Raffi… Check yourself before you wreck yourself! 😉
As I child, I loved listening to Raffi. I think my parents were quite happy to have us watch/listen to Raffi, Fred Penner and Sharon, Lois and Brahm instead of Barney and the like. (It could also be that all those groups were Canadian and we only had peasant vision, so we didn’t have much choice.) Even though, I can understand how one could find Raffi a bit annoying.
Whoa man, I this just caused me to have a trip down Canadian television lane.
Happy SITS Saturday Sharefest! 🙂
It turns out that my MIL is the Raffi pusher! My husband grew up with him, too. He grew up on an island very close to the Canadian border and got Canadian television channels so his Saturday morning shows were Canadian instead of American. SO funny! I guess that partly explains how I missed him… 🙂
[…] Does children’s music frighten you? Well, join the club! Out With the Riff-Raffi […]
Really funny post.
Can you say Wiggles, Barney, Elmo… the Blues Clues guy…
Happy SITS day!
Ahahaha! Love that! Good luck!
Stopping by from SITS!
I’ve never heard of him either (probably just as well, since I don’t have kids!)
Stopping by from SITS! This is the first I’ve heard of Raffi. Well, I guess I know where banana phone came from now, and I’m terrified of what will be the new kids show when I have kids.
happy sits day
“Raffi is the gateway drug to Hannah Montana”
DYING over here!!! I’ve never heard of Raffi either but I’m going to ask my daughter when I get her up in a few minutes!!!
RIGHT?! I maintain Raffi and Gallagher are the same person.
Awkward penchant for fruit. Dead giveaway.
I never heard of Raffi, but then I don’t have any children to educate me. It’s funny, the things you learn from kids.
Congrats on your SITS day!
i LOVE me some RAFFI!!! boom boom aint it great to be crazy? how can you not love him? he doesnt have orange hair, he doesnt have a bunch of weird looking animatronic friends and he doesnt have a television in his stomach! RAFFI is my boy!!
p.s. i found you through SITS!
omg, this was hilarious! How can I keep my daughter from finding out about this raffi dude? I can just see all the preschoolers on the playground, whispering in groups about Raffi, ha ha! 🙂
but ya gotta love his sharing song!!!
I’ve never heard of Raffi but this scares me.
Thankfully I think we have passed this particular grenade. I have never heard of him before, but if it isn’t on NickKids or the Disney channel, then it doesn’t happen in our house.
Thank God. Although I do sing the Google Head song in my car…when no one else is in the car.
Strangely I had never heard of Raffi until college, when that dreaded banana phone became weirdly popular. You’re right to stop in at the start – it can lead nowhere positive.
I admit it. This is the first I am hearing of this Raffi character. It sounds like some immediate detox is necessary! I’ll be sure to steer clear of it over here! Thanks for the warning!
Well I’ll be the one not agreeing. I have listened to Raffi since I was a teenager. Yes. Not a kid – teenager. I had his Christmas album. And now I love that my kids listen to his music.
Go ahead.
Flog away.
I can take it 🙂
Yikes! I’ve never head of such a thing until now!
(Stopping in from SITS)
Raffi is creepy. The same way the Wiggles are creepy. We avoid them at all costs.
We DO like They Might Be Giants though.
Happy SITS Day!
I have never heard of Raffi, but all kids music and shows are weird. My kids have recently discovered Yo Gabba Gabba. They love it. It is just strange. I do have to say that, I am proud of my kids when they can sing Black Parade by My Chemical Romance 🙂
Raffi is a little strange but not too bad. Maybe your child would like The Learning Station- it’s a little less creepy. Here’s a link to their website!
http://www.learningstationmusic.com/
Happy SITS Day!! Congrats =)
Happy Sits Day- never knew who it was that sang those weird songs- glad my kids don’t know who he is. I can’t stand the show Yo Gabba Gabba either~
Visiting from SITS and I must say I found this quite entertaining. I made the serious mistake of getting my 3 year old a Raffi cd at the library and after 2 songs I lied and told him the cd was scratched and wouldn’t play. I remember Raffi from when I was little but somehow the memories were much better than reality so I am avoiding him for as long as I can (or until my son can enforce his free will). Happy SITS day!!!
Yeah, that “Eeples and Beneenees” thing still hits me from time to time, and my kids are grown! Yikes–
Found you via SITS!
I’ve never heard of Raffi. Thanks for enlightening me!
Oh, my gosh! You’re cracking me up! Raffi is the gateway drug to Hannah Montanna!
Yup. I’m still in the dark – and by the sounds of it I have to thank the good Lord! We have no tv, so any current fads they pick up are DEFINITELY playground-pushed…
Both my kids listened to Raffi when they were little. I still remember al the words to a song that has the lyrics “Mr Sun, Sun, Mr Golden Sun, Please Shine Down On Me”
PS Happy SITS day!
Funny! Love it!
Over from SITS!
I have to say, though I’m not a mom, just a devoted Aunt, these people who are singers/song writers/dancers for children sort of freak me out. Especially when they put large bananas to their ears. That’s just wrong… put an apple to your ear, Dude.
HAPPY SITS DAY!!
Never heard of Raffi until now, but I can say with utter seriousness that men who sing children’s songs terrify me. It started with The Wiggles during my babysitting days. How does a GROUP of grown men, none of whom look particularly wholesome, end up doing that for a living? Same with Armenian Raffi… gateway drug, indeed.
I don’t have kids yet but I am hoping (praying) for the mental fortitude to ward off the Disney machine (horrid Hannah Montana et al) when the times comes.
roflol I love Raffi! I listened to him when I was a kid. On cassette tape. He’s been around for years…I wasn’t even sure if he was still active anymore. Those were the days..Sesame Street (when Oscar was still in the trashcan, and people could see Bert & Ernie as roommates not potential gay lovers), Mr Rogers Neighborhood & Raffi.
That is too funny! He does look like Gallagher! Yes, some of these kid’s TV people scare me too. My jaw was on the floor for 30 minutes the first time I watched Yo Gabba Gabba on Nick Jr. I was just wondering, “What the heck is this? This is so weird! Why aren’t children afraid of this?”…’cause I sure was.
Great post and Happy SITS Day!
Luckily we escaped this phenomenon…I’ve never heard a note of his music. Phew!
Happy SITS day.
I felt the same way about “Yo Gabba Gabba”, that is until it enabled me to get dinner cooked without a child or two hanging onto my legs…
So far my girls have not been exposed to Raffi…not sure if they will either though I definitely remember him from my childhood 🙂
okay, i barely got through five sentences without laughing. LOVE your blog.
A few months ago I was playing on Tagfoot (I think) and found a video of a British children’s programme. It was so obviously “adult” in terms of its humour that I was entirely disturbed by the whole thing.
I know nothing about Raffi, but it seems rather similar.
Stopping by from SITS. My son is 23, so I am not familiar with Raffi – but love the story.
Visiting from SITS. I grew up with Raffi and, yeah, it’s definitely its own genre of kids music. I still haven’t decided how I feel about his music. Some songs are okay, some are seriously weird!!
Visiting from SITS! Have a great day!!
Too funny! I’ve blissfully missed out on Raffi these glorious past 4 years (probably my lack of proximity to CA), but somehow Hannah Montana made a pitstop around here and is still hanging around. Great post and happy SITS day!
All I can say is I am glad my children are practically grown…I had Barney to deal with, that was bad enough! 🙂
Happy SITS day!
I haven’t heard of Raffi either, but Hannah Montana isn’t all bad. 🙂
Oh, Happy SITS Day! My kids grew up on Raffi and they are now 16 years old. He has been around for quite some time; he his fans and lots of kids adore him. Like Barney, this too shall pass.
😉
Cheers,
E
Barney is stuffed purple crack. Beware. A tip from me to you, SITS-ah.
I’ve never heard of Raffi. Where have I been?
Raffi??? Never heard of him, thank goodness… I mean what kind of adult uses a banana phone as his marketing plug???
BUT yes – sad to say, Raffi IS just the beginning… make the most of Greg/Sam, Anthony Murray and Jeff… The joys of Sharpay Evens await you – and she makes Hannah Montana seem like your Fairy Godmother. Trust me.
Oh, and BTW I’m visiting from SITS too! (I’m a newbie)
Pre-school will expose your wee one to all sorts of odd things. My son was all about spider man when he was two, we’d never discussed the movies, much less watch the movie. All of a sudden he was shooting webs at us. Luckily Raffi is not one of the things he has picked up on- I’d rather poke my eyes out with a sharp stick than sit through any of that business. Enjoy the fun.
I’ve never heard of him either. Now I have to google him too!
LOL! Kids now-a-days listen to Raffi!?!? I thought it was all about Barney and those creepy Teletubbies (SP?).
I used to love Raffi! I think I still have a ton of cassette tapes somewhere. I liked the baby bumble bee song best. I miss side pony tails.
Stopping by from SITS!
Congrats on your Sits day! I love your writing and am thankful to have found a writer’s blog.
So, my daughter is 5 and I have so far been able to avoid this Raffi character. However, on levels of contention, is there a huge difference between his irritation level and that of say, Dora’s whining at her monkey all the time?
I am convinced Disney still employs subliminal messages to herd cattle. There is no other explanation for my sudden outbreak into a Demi Lovato song in the shower. I was just as scared as you are right now. Terrified, even.
When my nephew was younger the Wiggles were my enemies. I knew all the songs and all the dances. I don’t even know what I would have done if he discovered Hannah Montana. That would have been a nightmare.
Wow, definitely grew up with Raffi! I think I saw him in concert once! As annoying as he is he seems to have staying power I guess! As an adult, ya the banana thing a little disturbing:)
Happy SITS day! I actually have fond memories of listening to Raffi on record. Yes folks, records! This was 1985 people! We also watched his tv special too!
My son loved Raffi…my daughter has spared me so far. YEAH!
Happy SITs Day!
My girls grew up listening to Raffi, and they’re fine.
Wow, this is the first I’ve heard of Raffi in about 20 years. I used to have all of his cassette tapes. He was so much fun to listen to! Now, seeing him, just now…He creeps me out. I get that same feeling of panic when I see the ice cream van drive by.
My kids are older, so I’m not really up to speed on their pop stars. But I’ve got to think he’s an improvement over the Wiggles.
My kids are older, so I’m not up to speed on kids’ pop stars. But he’s got to be better than the Wiggles, right?