Belinda Miller, Greasy Kid Stuff
Portland native and local DJ Belinda Miller of Greasy Kid Stuff talks with NW Kids about how they got started and where she finds inspiration.
What was your inspiration to start Greasy Kid Stuff? What is your inspiration now?
We loved fabulous, freeform WFMU www.wfmu.org/gks and were volunteers there for many years. Many people volunteer to get a foot in the door to do a show there, but we just loved the station. At once point they were recruiting DJs and asked us if we wanted to give it a shot. We tried to imagine what we could bring to the stew-the musical knowledge there is so vast and passionate, and we decided we could offer something to the parents to share with their kids, something alternative to the pop stuff offered to 6-10 year olds, and often a blast from the past for parents, but awesome for kids. We also wanted to present what kids had to say about the world, and music, we did a lot of kid interviews in those days. We also seek out the one amazing, kid-friendly song on an album that kids might not otherwise hear.
It's very inspiring now to be able to present this music-our toys!-to a new audience. It's exciting to us to feel relevant in Portland.
Can you tell me a little about the role of music in your life?
Like most kids, Hova and I both escaped into music as kids. I had a Top 40/country/Chipmunks upbringing and Hova rebelled against classical music with punk rock. Now with Georgia we listen to music all the time, though we edit for content a lot more. I don't blast the Breeders and American Music Club like I used to, and Hova doesn't sing all the words to Clash songs in the shower. We do have regular evening dance parties with her though, and her favorite requests are Rock Lobster, Allan Sherman, and the Ramones.
When we left WFMU we had so many people write to us, thanking us for being a part of their lives. Some kids had listened and had birthday hollers since the day they were born! It was a wonderful thing to be a part of, and people really connected to it and appreciated it. It felt like a wonderful gift, both for us and for our listeners, and we feel thankful to have been a part of it. Now that we've moved to Portland it's fun to feel a new community of listeners growing and connecting to us. And many of our old listeners tune in via the live stream. That feels great.
What has been the response from the community?
One of my favorite stories about Greasy Kid Stuff in the community: One time were were driving around New Jersey going to yard sales. We stopped at one house and in the yard next door a kid was singing Hockey Monkey. Now this was long before Nickelodeon started airing the video, I'd venture to say we were the first kid show to ever play the song, and it was a huge hit on our show. And in my world in my head it didn't seem odd, of course he was singing it, it's one of the greatest songs of all time! But Hova reminded me we were in reality, and the only way that kid could know the song was if he was a Greasy Kid Stuff listener. The boy walked around to the back of the house, and we decided we'd drop some GKS tattoos on his front porch, but as we were doing that the dad came out, in protective Papa Bear fashion and said, Can I help you?" We explained what had happened, and he was so excited he called his whole family to meet us. They ended up being some of our biggest supporters around pledge drive time!
Who / what are some of the biggest influences that inform your work?
Jonathan Richman (the Patron Saint of Greasy Kid Stuff), Pee Wee Herman, Lynda Barry, and this one lawyer who told us, when we were talking with Jim Henson Co. about turning GKS into a TV show, "If it isn't making you as happy as you are right now, doing the show as it is, for free, then don't do it." We didn't, and we've yet to make money on it. But we have a great time doing it!
Where is your favorite place to play (either "play" as in your work or "play" as in hanging out)?
The Crystal Ballroom is a blast when we do Baby Loves Disco. All of our favorite bands, past a present, have played there and it's pretty awesome to think of standing where James Brown and Tina Turner stood.
Favorite places we play when we're not working are: any great Portland Park, the Oregon Zoo, The Children's Museum and OMSI.
What do you think of the local music scene?
Since we have a kid, no money and too much work we just look into the goody-filled candy store that is the Portland scene. It's amazing what goes on here any given week. There's always something we want to see. I'd like to see earlier shows for parents! But we do get to rock a lot anyway, we presented the Grease Ball with the phenomenal Portland band Captain Bogg and Salty and The Jellydots from Austin. We see any Captain Bogg show we can go to, Georgia would go to every one. She loves to watch with studious intensity. Maybe she'll be a drummer! We saw the Sippy Cups last month, they were fun. We go to the summer park concerts, doesn't really matter what the music is it's usually good and fun.
We'd love to present something of a hootenanny with some of the local scenesters doing songs for kids, that would be a blast. If any of you are reading this, get in touch!
(Can I say something to parents who want their kids to rock? Please take earplugs with you. CB&S seem very aware of keeping it a decent level, but some bands really blast. The sticky silicone ones are great, they don't go into the ear, just stick over the ear canal, and they can be pinched into small balls for any size ear. We always carry earplugs in our bag because you never know when you will encounter the rock.)
What brought you to Portland? What do you about it?
I grew up in Portland, and Hova grew up in Southern California, so we thought we'd get back here someday. All our family is here on the West Coast. We lived in the Coachella Valley, Los Angeles, New York for twelve years, New Jersey. We love Portland and can't imagine being anywhere else. We feel really lucky to be here.
Where can we hear your program?
Our TWO great compilation CDs are a really good intro to Greasy Kid Stuff. Everyone should get one automatically on their sixth birthday (or 26th, or 56th).
Greasy Kid Stuff
with Belinda and Hova
Saturdays at 8 am
on 94/7 Alternative Portland
http://greasykidstuff.vox.com/
You can purchase a GKS CD at:
Kids at Heart on Hawthorne, Music Millennium, CD Baby, Amazon
