Normally when people try to show me videos of kids singing, I plug my ears with my fingers while shouting incoherently and running into another room, because if you’ve ever heard the Kidz Bop version of Macklemore’s “Thrift Shop” or anything, for that matter, you’d know that kids sound strange with their youth and innocence and other things I’ll once again possess when I find the Fountain of Youth.
But I have to admit, I really like this new video of some students from several middle and elementary schools in Oakland teaming up to sing a new, empowering version of Rihanna’s “Please Don’t Stop the Music” entitled, “I’m an Oakland School Kid.” And it helps that actual one-time Oakland school kid and Seattle Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch joined in on the fun and danced like a goofball to provide me with my fantasy football team’s new GIF logo for this season.
The video was produced by the folks at Portal A, which previously gave us the amazing “2 Legit 2 Quit” remix, starring Hammer and former Giants closer Brian Wilson, for San Francisco mayor Ed Lee. As for that whole “purpose” aspect of this video, director Nina Reyes Rosenberg described it as such:
“Oakland has such a significant place in our cultural landscape. We wanted to celebrate that by bringing together a bunch of Oakland natives, children, parents, and community figures like Marshawn who show kids they can follow their dreams and have fun at the same time.”
But make sure they go easy on the Skittles, Beast Mode. Candy should be a reward and not a regular part of a child’s diet.
