Natalie Z. Briones is a concert veteran. She\u2019s been to heavy metal concerts and a punk music festival where she napped most of the time. On Sunday, she attended her first baby rave.<\/p>\n
Natalie is a few months shy of two. In the arms of her dad, Alvin Briones, 36, the pigtailed toddler squealed \u201cHi!\u201d to anyone passing by the Roxy Theatre in West Hollywood where the Briones family was lined up to meet Lenny Pearce, the mastermind behind Natalie\u2019s favorite song, \u201cThe Wheels on the Bus.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Natalie Z. Briones, held by her father Alvin Briones, sports rainbow face paint at the baby rave. <\/p>\n
(Elizabeth Weinberg \/ For The Times)<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not the classic version most parents sing while slowly swaying and clapping \u2014 Pearce\u2019s rendition<\/a> rages with enough bass to rattle rib cages. Natalie is here for it, and so is her mom, Alondra Briones, who plays the techno remix during her drives to work even without Natalie in the backseat.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a pick-me-up,\u201d said Alondra, 28, from Compton, before filing into the theater with other parents and caregivers for an afternoon rager with their kids.<\/p>\n In Pearce\u2019s techno remixes of classic children\u2019s music, an unexpected subgenre is taking off \u2014 toddler techno \u2014 which melds the cloyingly sweet lyrics of songs like \u201cHead, Shoulders, Knees and Toes\u201d with the edgy beat drops<\/a> associated with music from gritty warehouse parties.<\/p>\n The unlikely musical pairing creates a bridge between parents like Sandra Mikhail and her 6-year-old daughter, Mila. Both dressed in fuchsia at Pearce\u2019s dance party, the mother-daughter duo were there to celebrate Mila\u2019s promotion from kindergarten. In their Riverside home, Pearce\u2019s music is on heavy rotation.<\/p>\n Children squeal in delight at the baby rave at the Roxy as Kuma the money, Lenny Pearce\u2019s sidekick, hypes up the crowd. <\/p>\n \u201cI can handle kids\u2019 music now,\u201d said Sandra, 38. \u201cWith the beat and [Pearce] adding that techno touch to it, it makes me able to tolerate listening to it all day long.\u201d<\/p>\n For the last year, Pearce has been hosting sold-out dance parties boldly called baby raves \u2014 first in his native Australia \u2014 then on the first leg of his U.S. tour, which culminated in a June 29 double-header at the Roxy.<\/p>\n In the afternoon show timed for that sweet spot many parents know well \u2014 post-nap and right before the evening witching hours \u2014 Pearce pranced, high-fived kids and waved at babies being hoisted in the air.<\/p>\n Lenny Pearce vibes with the crowd at his sold-out show at the Roxy.<\/p>\n (Elizabeth Weinberg \/ For The Times)<\/p>\n At 34, he\u2019s been an entertainer for most of his life. Over a decade ago, he was dancing in music videos<\/a> as a member of the Australian boy band, Justice Crew. Now, he\u2019s firmly affixed in his dad era. His dance partner is now a large balloon spider named Incy Wincy<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m just being a dad on stage,\u201d said Pearce in a video interview from New York. \u201cI can make a clown of myself to entertain kids.\u201d<\/p>\n From boy band to toddler techno Lenny Pearce uses props during his shows, including an inflatable duck. <\/p>\n (Elizabeth Weinberg \/ For The Times)<\/p>\n Pearce\u2019s journey into children\u2019s entertainment seemed preordained, if only because his identical twin brother is arguably the second most famous purple character on a children\u2019s TV show (behind Barney<\/a>, of course).<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re both in the toddler scene,\u201d said John Pearce, the older twin by minutes, who in 2021 joined \u201cThe Wiggles<\/a>\u201d cast as the Purple Wiggle. \u201c[My brother\u2019s] stuck with it for a long time, and it\u2019s all paid off now.\u201d<\/p>\n At the Roxy, many parents and caregivers said they found Pearce through the Purple Wiggle. Others discovered him on social media: He has more than 2 million followers<\/a> on TikTok and more than 1 million followers<\/a> on Instagram.<\/p>\n Before becoming children\u2019s entertainers, the Pearce brothers were members of Justice Crew, a dance troupe that won<\/a> \u201cAustralia\u2019s Got Talent\u201d in 2010. For a few years, the boy band\u2019s future burned white hot with the aspiration to break through in the U.S.<\/a> \u2014 a dream that never materialized.<\/p>\n Lenny Pearce started making what he calls toddler techno music after his daughter was born in 2022. As a dad, he says he\u2019s happy to act silly for kids. <\/p>\n Most boy bands have a finite time in the spotlight, said Pearce. In 2016, he quit the Justice Crew to focus on DJing and music production, but the transition from boy band to toddler techno didn\u2019t happen overnight. For a time, he worked as a salesperson at an Australian electronic store.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople were like, \u2018Aren\u2019t you from Justice Crew?\u2019\u201d he said. \u201cAnd I\u2019m like, \u2018Yeah. Now, do you want this lens with that camera?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n In 2022, becoming a dad to his daughter Mila changed the course of his creativity. Pearce started remixing children\u2019s songs with \u201cravey\u201d music and filming himself dancing with her to the songs<\/a>. Soon, other parents started sharing videos<\/a> of their kids dancing to his songs, too. In this way, social media allows for ideas to be refined until something sticks.<\/p>\n In March, Pearce released his first solo album<\/a> aptly titled, \u201cToddler Techno.\u201d<\/p>\n All along the way, he imagined playing these songs at mini raves. For this generation of kids and their millennial parents, it\u2019s not a stretch, said Pearce. Pretend DJ tables<\/a> are just as commonly sold in toy aisles as construction trucks.<\/p>\n In the fall, Pearce and his baby raves will return to the U.S. \u2014 and, yes, to L.A. \u2014 in a 30-city tour<\/a>. As a solo artist, he\u2019s done what he couldn\u2019t do in a band \u2014 he\u2019s broken through to the U.S. and international audiences.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s funny, isn\u2019t it?\u201d said Pearce. \u201cI always felt like I had something to say, but no one really listened.\u201d<\/p>\n But are techno parties OK for kids? Many attendees at the baby rave were wearing ear covers. <\/p>\n (Elizabeth Weinberg \/ For The Times)<\/p>\n The roots of techno \u2014 in Detroit or Berlin depending on whom you talk to \u2014 were always antiestablishment, said Ambrus Deak<\/a>, program manager of music production at the Los Angeles Film School.<\/a> <\/p>\n \u201cIt was exploratory,\u201d said Deak, a longtime DJ who went by DJ AMB, about techno.<\/p>\n Toddler techno plays with that contrast \u2014 an edgy genre made safe for kids. Deak would not attend a baby rave \u2014 \u201cIt would be very cringe for me,\u201d he said \u2014 but sees the appeal.<\/p>\n \u201cI can definitely see a lot of people being into it,\u201d said Deak, 48.<\/p>\n Still, not everyone is sold on the idea of taking kids to a rave \u2014 even one held in the middle of the day with a face-painting station. In the comments of Pearce\u2019s social media posts, parents occasionally debate<\/a> the appropriateness of exposing kids to drug-addled rave culture.<\/p>\n \u201cI know that most people would say, \u2018Is this the image we want to teach our kids?\u2019\u201d said Pearce. \u201cWhat image are you imagining? Because if you think about it, they\u2019re just kids with light sticks, right?\u201d<\/p>\n He gets the concern, but kids don\u2019t know about the darker sides of raves unless they are taught. And that\u2019s not what his baby raves are about.<\/p>\n In the right dose, some experts say techno music and baby raves can be beneficial for kids and parents.<\/p>\n \u201cParents\u2019 happiness and stress regulation also matter,\u201d said Jenna Marcovitz, director of the UCLA Health Music Therapy program<\/a>. \u201cTechno can promote oxytocin and boost endorphins. It can encourage joy and play and really support brain development, emotional regulation and really enhance the parent-child bond as well.\u201d<\/p>\n At the Roxy, one man vigorously pumped his fist to the beat of the music.<\/p>\n \u201cFist pump like this!\u201d he shouted to the child on his shoulders. Both fists \u2014 little and big \u2014 jabbed the air.<\/p>\n How to keep it safe and sane Glow sticks were a popular accessory at the event.<\/p>\n (Elizabeth Weinberg \/ For The Times)<\/p>\n Everything \u2014 especially baby raves \u2014 should be enjoyed in moderation. The pulsating music, giant inflatables tossed into the crowd and sudden blasts of fog can overstimulate kids.<\/p>\n For the roughly one-hour show, the music is loud. Typically set to 85 to 90 decibels, Pearce said. Having a sensory support plan is key, said Marcovitz, who recommends toddlers wear headphones with a noise reduction rating of 20 to 30 decibels or higher \u2014 like this one<\/a> or this one<\/a>. Practicing dance parties at home, so your child knows what to expect, is also helpful.<\/p>\n At the rave, look for signs of overstimulation, which can present differently with each child \u2014 some might shut down while others might start shoving each other mosh pit-style. At the Roxy show, one toddler sat down, ate half a bag of Goldfish crackers and poured the rest on the floor. Another disappeared into the crowd for a few alarming moments before being returned by a good Samaritan.<\/p>\n Toddlers crawl and lay down amid the crowd at the baby rave.<\/p>\n (Elizabeth Weinberg \/ For The Times)<\/p>\n \u201cFor any child, I would recommend breaks every 30 minutes,\u201d said Marcovitz. \u201cStep outside.\u201d<\/p>\n Because techno hypes people up \u2014 even little kids \u2014 it\u2019s important to help a child regulate their nervous system back down after the show.<\/p>\n \u201cLots of cuddles, silence and hugs,\u201d said Marcovitz.<\/p>\n Pearce also starts the party late, so the dance party before the rave can tucker kids out before he takes the stage.<\/p>\n Ashley and Todd Herles drove from Santa Clarita to the Roxy so their son, Oliver, 3, could meet Pearce before the show. They said they bought $120 VIP tickets, which included a meet and greet and table seats where Oliver got to high-five Kuma, Pearce\u2019s dancing sidekick in a turquoise monkey suit. For Pearce\u2019s November 23 show at the Novo in downtown Los Angeles, ticket prices currently range from $48 to $195, fees and taxes included.<\/p>\n Overall, Oliver loved it \u2014 until he didn\u2019t.<\/p>\n \u201c[The] meltdown happened around 1:40 so we left then,\u201d said Ashley, 40.<\/p>\n They had big post-rave plans to refuel with french fries. But Oliver was tired.<\/p>\n And, most importantly?<\/p>\n \u201cOur backs hurt,\u201d said Ashley.<\/p>\n Children bopped along to the music from atop their parents\u2019 shoulders during the dance party.<\/p>\n
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